We’d been in our rented three bed detached since March last year. Close to my eldest son’s school and my youngest’s nursery, and just around the corner from the train station, the house was near-perfect.

We’d prettied the place up over time, so much so that the landlord wanted to move back in. There’s a downside to being a good tenant I guess!

So I called Gavin. Gavin has a small removals business and I’d used him before. Great service, reasonable price. Glad I’d kept his number.

When we were loading his van with my every worldly possession, Gavin asked, “What do you do for a living Pete?”

And I answered his question with what must have appeared to be a random question of my own.

“Are you in the yellow pages?”

It turns out he is. Apparently he’d resisted, but every time they called him, the deal got better and better. Eventually he’d relented and taken space in the book.

“Do you mind if I ask you how much you paid for that?”

“To be honest, I got £100 change out of £2000”

One thousand nine hundred pounds.

Now, if you break £1900 down over a year, it comes to £158 a month. Not bad you could argue, but then the price doesn’t include the online version, and who uses the book these days?

“What do I do for a living? I build websites. And one of them is a brand new concept similar to Yell, but it’s people-focused, and it’s free”

It’s strange that people tend to trust advertisers in the Yellow Pages. After all, anyone with a few quid can get in there. The chat I had with Gavin got me thinking…

The automatic trust Yellow Pages gains for its advertisers is generated on the basis of its name alone. Yellow Pages’ strongest asset is its brand. But it’s no match for a recommendation from a trusted friend.

Lets say you need an electrician. Do you pick one at random from a book of paid-for-listings, or take the advice of a trusted friend who says, “Use this guy, he’s excellent.”

Friends 1, Yellow Pages 0

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