| <%if(!(request.getParameter("fullrss") != null)) {%>
<% } %> |
Yellow Pages Group is launching a new advertising campaign today it hopes will move the brand away from its print-focused past and towards a digital future.
The brand equity of Yellow Pages–best known for its print phone directory–has been threatened for years by online search and directory services.
Today, the company unveils a campaign meant to showcase its many online capabilities, repositioning it as a digital powerhouse to both consumers and the small- and medium-sized businesses that advertise with it.
Stephane Marceau, who joined the company as chief marketing officer in July, said market research revealed the brand had a lot of equity, pointing to high recognition of the fingers logo specifically.
However, “most Canadians associate it with the [phone] book,” he said. “What we’re doing here is really re-anchoring the meaning of the brand… We’re really committed about our digital leadership as a Canadian company and we want to convey it.”
Taxi 2, which won agency of record status last year, and creative director Dave Watson led the rebranding efforts. The first and most visible change is the company logo, which loses its square frame and yellow book elements, replacing them with a raised bean-shaped icon that contains a tweaked version of the long-used “walking fingers.”
“Some people see [the new logo] as a pebble,” Marceau said. “There’s a Buddhist association with the pebble that it represents inter-connectedness. For us, it’s the inter-connectedness of all our different activities, particularly digital.”
The company’s new positioning leans heavily on its digital platforms, which include Canada411.ca, RedFlagDeals.ca, PriceCanada.ca, and Restaurantica.com, which Marceau said will work together as an integrated network to serve various online communities.
Taxi 2’s consumer ad campaign in support of the rebranding focuses on quirky characters using their mobile devices for strange purposes, demonstrating Yellow Pages online expertise. Television ads drive viewers to YellowPages.ca to download a mobile application for local searches.
A business-to-business campaign is also forthcoming that will not only promote the new positioning, but tout Yellow Pages’ multiple creative and strategic services for small and medium businesses, which include web design and video production.
Marceau said 63% of the company’s more than 380,000 advertisers do online business with Yellow Pages.
French language elements of the campaign were created by Taxi Montreal.
