Check any Yellow Pages directory heading from one year to the next and see how many ads disappear, or reduced in size.

Here are some little secrets that your Yellow Pages rep will never tell you but may save you a small fortune.

1. MYTH: A colored ad will double the amount of calls that you will receive over a black and yellow ad. The truth: There is no study by any independent research firm that verifies any increase in calls. Many large advertisers will use color in their ads when it is free and drop the color when they have to pay for it. These advertisers track their calls and see no difference in colored or black and yellow ads.

2. MYTH: The largest ad in a heading will receive the most calls. The truth: In fact  smaller ads will sometimes receive the most calls. If your advert reads like 'choloform-in-print' what do you expect?

3. MYTH: The Yellow Pages publisher will design a wonderfully effective ad for you for free. The truth: Letting the publisher design your ad could make it the most expensive ad design you will ever pay for. Paying for a professionally designed Yellow Pages ad is better than spending money on color or size.

4.  MYTH: A display ad is always better than an incolumn ad. The truth: I have many clients who have increased their calls from their Yellow Pages advertising by going incolumn instead of the display ad that they had before. They were able to reduce what they were spending by 75%.

5. MYTH: You're better off spending money on your Yellow Pages advertising than on the Internet. The truth: This year more people have used the Internet for local business search then used the published Yellow Pages.

6.MYTH:  If you buy a Yellow Pages ad your phone will ring off the hook. The truth: More businesses than I can count have been put out of business by paying for ads in the Yellow Pages that they couldn't afford. A new advertiser should be very conservative in the size of the ad they purchase. No matter what your sales rep says there is no guarantee that you will receive one call, yet you still have to pay the bill every month for the next year.

7. MYTH: Put your name in big print at the top of the ad. The truth: Yellow page publishers suggest this all the time, not to make your phone ring but to appeal to your ego. What you do that separates you from your competition should be your ads headline. Example:” One Hour Service, Guaranteed” Your name and your phone number should be at the bottom of the ad.

8. MYTH:  The big phone companies Yellow Pages directories are used the most and is where you should advertise. The truth: All directories that are distributed to businesses and residents are used. Almost always the phone companies directories are used the most, but you may get a much better deal from some of the secondary publishers. There also will be far less competition in your headings.

The Author Can be Contacted Att doctoryellowpage.com