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Driving to work the other day, I noticed a billboard advertisement for a local law firm.  The ad gave the name of the firm and also included the predictable picture of the attorneys, a couple of nondescript, middle-age guys in suits.   In other words, it was mostly unremarkable.

But what made this billboard unusual were the other words that appeared under the firm's name.  There was no address or phone number given.  There was no catchy slogan, like "Tell them you mean business" or "Don't get hurt twice."  The only inscription was...

"Back Cover of the Phone Book"

Now, there's nothing wrong with billboards as part of a marketing plan.  Outdoor advertising will be around as long as there is automobile traffic.  (And when we finally get our flying cars, billboards won't go away, they'll probably just be higher!)

But a billboard ad campaign based on the phone book?  Really??

Sure, there was a time when there was only one Yellow Pages for every community, and every household had one.   Directing passers-by to look for their ad on the back of the phone book might have been a clever marketing strategy in, say, 1983, when the phone book was both indispensable and everywhere.

But now, there's more than just one publisher dropping off directories on our doorsteps.  And increasingly, consumers are dumping them straight in the recycle bin, because we have this thing called "the Internet" now.   Anyone with a computer or cell phone can use Google to find an attorney.  And with reviews and recommendations from other consumers being published online,  shoppers are relying on more than just advertising when choosing a service provider.

As a result, the phone book industry is hurting.  When your product makes a list of "Top 25 Things Vanishing from America"--along with VCRs, the milkman, film cameras, and outhouses--that's never a good sign.  So I have trouble believing that the law firm got their money's worth out of that advertising--both  the billboard and the phone book cover.

So what does this have to do with email?  For one, email is more like the billboard than the phone book; it's not going away anytime soon.  But if you've been using email in your marketing for some time now, it's important to understand how email is changing.

Just like society used to have a place for the Yellow Pages, there might once have been a role for "email blasts," but both recipients and network operators have higher expectations now.   We've been writing here about some of the trends: personalization, behavioral targeting, integration with social networking, and video are among the most prominent.

So avoid being like the lawyers on the sign, and don't assume that all the practices of yesterday will give you the same results today.  Stay in step with the times, and invest in what your audience is looking for now.

Chris Broshears | Product Development