In BIA/Kelsey’s Local Commerce Monitor™ annual survey of small and medium businesses, we asked our small business owners  which of 50+ media channels they use for advertising and promotion. Nearly 36% SMBs reported that they use directories, including print and digital — roughly the same as last year’s survey. The majority of the businesses still using directories are in home services such as construction and contracting, as well as retail shops and stores. Nearly half of the SMBs that use directories for advertising and promotion report that they plan to decreasing their ad budgets, indicating a shift to lower cost digital options.

In our most recent Local Media Forecast, BIA/Kelsey forecast total U.S. yellow pages revenue will decrease at a 5.5% CAGR (compound annual growth rate) from 2015 to 2020, with the bulk of that attributable to print yellow pages. “Older businesses use print yellow pages much more than newer ones. Newer businesses tend to bypass print yellow pages in favor of media choices that are flexible, digital and lower cost. This is yet another trend that makes it hard to see a path out of print declines.” says BIA/Kelsey’s Senior Vice President and Senior Analyst Charles Laughlin.

A new LCM report on SMBs That Use Directories will be released to our Advisory Services clients on Thursday and will be available for purchase in our eStore.

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BIA/Kelsey’s LCM, Wave 19 reports can be purchased a la carte in the BIA/Kelsey eStore. Our LCM reports look at where particular SMBs (broken out by size, vertical, etc.) spend the most, as well as the top channels for advertising and marketing.