Yellow Pages, Local Search Grow to $39 Billion in 2011: Forecast

Ad revenues from print Yellow Pages, Internet Yellow pages (IYP) and local search will reach $38.9 billion globally in 2011, a 4.9% annual increase from the $30.6 billion spent in 2006, according to a report from The Kelsey Group.

The Global Directories Forecast 2007 projects that online advertising both on IYP and in local search will see a 22.3% annual compound growth rate, increasing from $4.1 billion worldwide in 2006 to $11.1 billion in 2011.

The Princeton NJ-based consultancy also forecasts that print directory advertising will grow 0.9% in that time, from $26.5 billion last year to $27.8 billion.

“Bucking the trend of some other traditional media, the global print Yellow Pages market will grow slightly through 2011, driven by aggressive and innovative publishers,” Charles Laughlin, senior vice president and program director of The Kelsey Report said in a release.

The report predicts that online ad growth will come from new advertisers, larger online marketing budgets, improved ad targeting capabilities and hikes in per-click costs. Telecom companies will also expand efforts to sell online campaigns to marketers who now advertise in their print directories.