Yellowbook Adds Directory Kiosks to the Mix

The largest independent publisher of yellow pages, Yellowbook, arguably has the most complete source of local business information that’s presented online, on phones and in print. Now, when travelers need something at a moment’s notice and don’t have access to the aforementioned, they can still get the information they need, because Yellowbook has extended their digital directory services to airport kiosks.

For the initial rollout, Yellowbook will place five kiosks in strategic locations throughout the Tulsa International Airport - two in the baggage claim and three in the concourses. The Yellowbook kiosks will offer travelers a convenient way to search local Tulsa information by business name or category. Once they find the phone number or address they need, users can then send that listing directly to their cell phone via text message utilizing our newly integrated T3 feature (Touch to Text) for an added convenience.

As useful as these kiosks will be for travelers, they will be equally beneficial to Yellowbook and their local business advertisers. The kiosk placement program not only helps expand the visibility of a local yellow pages brand, but also connects a superlative audience directly to businesses, generating even more value out of a publisher’s advertising program. Kiosks also deliver multiple attractive opportunities for publishers to not only recuperate their costs but gain additional revenue through premium ad placement services - because when a kiosk is not in use, it’s an LCD billboard. Dirxion’s full-service kiosk placement gives yellow pages publishers the ability to quickly and easily deliver their information-rich, local content to yet another place where its going to be needed.

Learn more about Dirxion’s directory kiosk solution.

iBooks Aren’t For Everyone

Over on his blog, Greg Sterling got the conversation started about the possibility for Yellow Pages publishers to present their digital directories in Apple’s iBook Store for the iPad. He uses Dirxion client AT&T’s Real Pages Live as an example, citing that this new medium “…would enable consumers to ‘let their fingers do the walking’ as they do in print but bring all the benefits of digital to the experience…”

We completely agree with Greg’s thoughts about the possibilities the new iPad could usher in to directory publishers. The bad news about this good idea is that Apple chose to construct the upcoming iBook software using a universal e-reader format called ePub. When it comes to complex layouts, with multiple columns and large display ads, this format is very limiting and cumbersome to deal with. ePub is more or less a stripped down - no bells and whistles text and images format - that doesn’t support many of the enhancements that make digital editions so unique; animation, video, audio just to name a few. Long story short, the iBook format will be great for reading… well… books, but it will not be flattering to other published works.

Just because the iPad doesn’t come with an e-reader designed to fit the needs of publishers of things like directories, magazines, catalogs, and so forth, doesn’t mean that they can’t still benefit from its potential. It’s our thought that Greg and some others may have the right device, but are looking at the wrong Apple store.  For those who aren’t book publishers, if you want to make the most of your content on this new gadget, you can best do so through its App Store.

By building your digital edition as an app rather than an iBook, you are not limited to the strict rules of the ePub format. This also means that if it’s not a book then it’s still in this neutral territory that leaves the interpretation of how your content should play with the iPad completely up to the market’s imagination. This means publishers still have a unique chance to differentiate their brand on a device that offers them endless possibilities.

Dirxion is one of the few digital publishers that has already been taking the same PDF files you use for print and using them to create Mobile Directory websites and iPhone apps. Both of these products already work seamlessly on iPhones and should do the exact same on iPads.

The iPad is just one of many new and upcoming products aimed at the publishing industry. By choosing Dirxion for your digital yellow pages and mobile directory needs your, content will be compatible with this new device before it even hits the shelves.

New Year Brings Your Content to New Places and New Devices

For many of us, the New Year symbolizes a fresh start. For my neighbor, Carl, I pray that the fresh start means wearing deodorant. It’s true though; once late December arrives, we suddenly determine that next year seems like the most appropriate time to be everything we’ve ever wanted to be. In my case, that’s a pirate. No more putting it off, pirate lessons commence January 2nd. “This be’th the year I become a seafarin’ hearty, aaarrgghhhh!” (I’ve been reading ahead.)

At Dirxion, we think it helps to apply resolutions to the work place. Pretty appropriate, right? There’s never been any harm done by setting goals. In 2010, it is our every intention to achieve digital publishing greatness and in order to accomplish this we believe in continuing our firm commitment to research and development.

I must say, it’s an exciting time to be in digital publishing – an industry that is being defined by rapid innovation and growth. Over the past year, we’ve watched digital content make its way to a number of new channels and devices, presenting an abundance of new business opportunities for us, our customers and partners.

Being head of the curve is imperative. We’ve had a long, rich history of innovation and advancements in our market and that won’t change in 2010. It should be a fantastic year for our company and publishers alike. We’ve spent the last year rolling out a slew of new features to accommodate for the transforming digital landscape, including our Search Engine Optimization (SEO) program, mobile publishing products and a plethora of social sharing tools.

We already have many new and exciting projects in the hopper for 2010 that will make publishers’ content even more interactive, social and mobile than ever. Our upcoming projects are all a part of Dirxion’s continuing efforts to offer the best solutions for our customers to be found in more places and on more devices. In 2010, we want to be your first choice for digital publishing. So we plan to continue expanding our offerings and growing our range of products to strengthen our partnerships across publishing lines – directories, catalogs, magazines, travel guides, books and newspapers.

Maybe it’s because we’re in the digital publishing industry, but at Dirxion we like to think of the New Year like starting a new book. Our working title is “Opportunity” and the first chapter starts in January. So cheers to a New Year and another chance to get it right! See you in 2010!

SEO: Dirxion’s commitment to increasing your online exposure

For publishers looking to grow their audience with a digital edition, there is no better platform than EdgeClix. Dirxion understands that in order to truly maximize the reach and circulation of your digital edition, it is critical that your content be properly coded for the indexing robots of search engines like Google, Bing and Yahoo. It is for that reason we introduced a Search Engine Optimization method designed specifically for digital editions.

Now when you send us the same print files, our EdgeClix technology can not only convert them into an interactive Flash representation of your publication, but can also use advanced SEO techniques to make your content more visible to search engines. This advanced process allows the robots to read and index your content – line by line – just like plain HTML.

As an added step, we can build landing pages that work – for your users and the search engines. These landing pages are designed specifically to move users through your digital publication with ease, while also optimizing them for full SEO capacity. By combining strategic keyword titles, keyword text and keyword links, we can better leverage your landing page to improve your search engine rankings.

Dirxion’s goal is to stay true to your print, while taking full advantage of the web’s resources. With our straightforward approach to SEO, you can give your readers the rich, heightened experience of a digital edition that also works to increase engagement and online readership.

Digital Directories: At the Sweet Point of Trust & Convenience

SearchPerspective.com recently conducted a study on how consumers search for local business information. They found that the printed Yellow Pages still hold a significant search market share, so significant that they rank second only to search engines on the internet. Yet, when asked to rank their overall level of trust of various advertising mediums, consumers cited the Yellow Pages as the most trusted source of advertising - above newspapers, consumer opinions, and far above the advertisements found in the more frequently used search engines.

What does this mean?

1.) Consumers use search engines like Google, Bing and Yahoo because they are convenient, not because they believe a search engine will deliver more trusted local business results than the Yellow Pages.

2.) There is value in your print advertising program. Businesses are constantly trying to gain a consumer’s trust because branding can play a significant role in the final purchase decision.

If the printed Yellow Pages already have the most credibility, but more consumers are choosing the convenience of search engines over that trust, then it only makes sense for directory publishers to make their book(s) more accessible online. And if consumers trust the advertising as laid out in the printed Yellow Pages more so than any other sources of advertising, including online banners and search engine advertising, then it only makes even more sense for publishers to go online while preserving that same advertising blue print.

Our digital directory product mirrors the look and feel of the printed Yellow Pages. This allows publishers to capitalize on the element of convenience, while maintaining the traditional user experience. And because we don’t sacrifice the characteristics that make Yellow Pages ads so distinguished, our digital directory solution creates even more value for local business advertisers looking to build upon that unique trust with consumers.

New Mobile Directory – The Anywhere Yellow Pages Solution

We are happy to announce that we recently released the best mobile directory product the world has ever laid eyes on. Don’t bother arguing with me, because it won’t work. What I say goes on this blog, buster.

Our new mobile directory product will allow White and Yellow Pages book publishers to reach their mobile Internet users anytime, anywhere (provided they have a phone with Internet and that phone has at least one bar of service… naturally).

This new mobile directory is yet another addition to our constantly growing list of digital publishing enhancements offered to our clients. We can now take those existing print files you have and not only create a digital edition from them but a mobile edition as well.

It’s increasingly important that consumers are able to access local business listings on a mobile phone when they need information on the run. What’s cool about our mobile version is that it can be accessed using the same familiar URL as your digital edition (e.g. www.yourphonebook.com). When they reach the site, however, our product detects access from a mobile browser and adjusts its media to optimize for a small screen experience.

Our mobile directory uses compact HTML so that it can automatically adjust to the multitude of mobile browser dimensions out there. The intuitive and simplistic navigation make finding your listings a walk in the park. Within those directory listings are the standards – company name, address, phone number – but also several other valuable features like:

(Click to view each feature)
-Mobile Map Views
-Live Links to Business Websites
-Direct Email Button
-Advertiser Display Ads

When a user accesses this site from a phone they’ll even be given the ability to place calls from directly within the browser.

Our developments in mobile technology provide our clients with opportunities to deliver the information people need, when, where and how they need it. All parties to your directory benefit from this mobile product. The features, increased exposure, and especially the inclusion of advertisements bring even more value to your print advertising program.

This is one of many upcoming progressive projects, which will create even more interactive access to our publishers’ content. It’s all part of Dirxion’s continuing efforts to find the best solutions for our customers. We want to be the first choice for your digital publishing products, so we plan to continue expanding our mobile offerings and growing our range of products to develop new partnerships across publishing lines.

Survey on Interactive Advertising in Digital Magazines

I recently read some results from a survey by Smarter Media Sales that were published on Folio’s website. Questionnaires were sent to known readers of digital editions in an attempt to attain some of the first measurements of readers and the new genre of interactive magazine ads. The survey compared how readers responded to ads within digital editions as compared to other forms of media. Though the full results haven’t been released yet, they have found some preliminary results from the first half of the 5,000 readers who participated. Here are just a few findings.

The available enhancements to advertisements within digital editions; like video, audio, slideshows and animation are shown to have a positive impact on the reader’s overall experience. Furthermore, 26.4 percent of readers said that they are more likely to play with an advertisement with these digital extras to see if they “may become interested in an ad.”

Folio and Smarter Media Sales also reported,
“Another stat showed that while 32.4 percent of readers will skip an interactive magazine story that they are not interested in, a third—34 percent—will read a bit of the article and play the ad’s extras, while 21.8 percent will play only the digital extras. In terms of user engagement, interactive edition ads topped the charts at 66 percent as the most helpful and/or interesting form of electronic advertising, beating out TV ads (57.8 percent).”

Something they weren’t expecting to find, so far the survey shows that 36.6 percent of interactive magazine readers spent less time searching the web for content online that was similar to what they were just reading in a digital magazine. Smarter Media Sales said about that statistic, “The fact that this survey discovered that it is possible for niche interactive magazines to reduce readers’ search behavior is a huge finding,” he says.

I’ll be curious to see all the statistics when the final results from this study are published. We, at Dirxion, obviously hope they correlate with the preliminary results, giving proof that digital editions and their enhanced advertising features deliver more positive interaction between advertisements and potential audiences than other advertising mediums. This would not only be advantageous for us, but also magazine publishers who could better sell print ads combined with enhanced web features to help further leverage their investments in print, photography, and design and aid in the monetization of their content across more platforms.

EdgeClix and Performance-Based Advertising

Directory publisher Easier to Read recently added value to their Yellow Pages book by putting it online using Dirxion’s look and feel digital directory product, EdgeClix. In doing so, they discovered a host of new marketing opportunities for their existing local business advertisers.

While some publishers choose to simply use our product in its most basic form, which is designed to highlight and give added value to your existing ads just as they are seen in their printed counterparts, others like Easier to Read, see our list of expanded advertising features and cannot wait to seize the opportunity to not only help their advertisers enhance their online presence, but also monetize their new investment.

Cover Banner Advertising

iPick link appears within Popular Categories in the Table of Contents

When clicked the iPick window pops up highlighting your advertiser

Both the Cover Banner and iPick programs were designed so directory publishers could offer their advertisers exciting ways to insert ads at any time of the year. By selling premium placements like these, publishers can guarantee advertisers additional exposure, while also giving them the ability to keep their promotions current.

Easier to Read is just one excellent example of how our customers are using their digital directories to capitalize on the strong relationships they’ve grown with local businesses. Even without large changes to their sales structure, digital directories can be equipped with many of our advertising programs to help generate new, steady, profitable streams of revenue.

Allow your advertisers to use one or many of our exciting, interactive features to get the most activity out of their ads.

Fast Stats

Do people actually use digital page turn publications? Is online publishing really here to stay? The stats speak for themselves. While we don’t want to get into specifics for individual companies, here’s a quick look at some recent usage numbers for our customers:

In the previous six months, directory publications have seen over 1.5 million page views with more than half of that coming in the last three months.

Overall number of visitors to online directories is up almost 9% when comparing the last 90 days to the previous 90 days and the average time spent on the site is up 29%. Even more compelling is that the reach of these directories is expanding way beyond their traditional print distribution.

Catalog usage continues its steady growth. A six month comparison shows a 15% growth in page views and the last 90 days has increased 29% over the previous 90 days. Another interesting find is that the greatest growth has been for those catalogers that place a link to the online catalog in the top right or top center positions of their websites. This makes sense as those are two of the most valuable positions in online advertising, but it’s still good to see that links to the digital catalog are drawing an increasing audience.

Online editions of magazines and guides are following the same great trends as online, page flip catalogs - up in unique users, up in page views and up in URL clicks.

With new opportunities to sell into online publications and an always improving set of features to enhance user interactivity, we are very excited for our publishers to see continued growth in their online publications.

Koocanusa Adds to its Growing List of Online Publications

So you’re a publisher with more than one type of publication, or maybe you’re a marketing company that works with a variety of publishers. Either way, does it make sense to try to put a catalog into an online travel guide format or a magazine into an online directory format? Of course not.

Like many publishers, Koocanusa Publications has a diverse portfolio of magazines, guides and directories. Koocanusa recently added a magazine to its growing list of online publications provided by Dirxion. In addition to their existing directories, this Canadian-based publisher has just produced a digital edition of the Rocky Mountain magazine. The Rocky Mountain magazine provides visitors to the Kootenay Rockies with information and articles about what to see, where to go and local events occurring in the region. Koocanusa’s online publications give advertisers a way to reach beyond the traditional print audience.

As a provider of a variety of customized interfaces, we are well-positioned to serve customers like Koocanusa that have a diverse portfolio of publications. You can learn more about Koocanusa through their blog at: http://www.kootenaybiz.com/blog/ and learn more about Dirxion’s customizable interfaces at http://www.dirxion.com.

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