Research Shows Yellow Pages Spending Influences 15 Percent of 2002 U.S. Gross Domestic Product; Yellow Pages Advertising Can Affect Over $1.5 Trillion in Commerce

    BERKELEY HEIGHTS, N.J.--Sept. 19, 2002--New analysis from the Yellow Pages Research Institute(SM) (YPRI(SM)), part of the Yellow Pages Integrated Media Association(SM), estimates that the value of commerce related to consumers' use of the Yellow Pages for shopping and purchasing goods and services will represent approximately 15 percent of U.S. gross domestic product (GDP) and 21 percent of personal consumer expenditures in 2002. All told, Yellow Pages may influence more than $1.5 trillion of American commerce this year.
    "This demonstrates how the Yellow Pages play a fundamental role in the basic fabric of economic life in the United States and why more than 3.6 million local and national brands depend on the Yellow Pages to reach their target market," said Joel Raphael, director of the Yellow Pages Research Institute(SM). "Clearly, this shows how important the Yellow Pages are in influencing consumers in their shopping habits, how they serve to drive American commerce and, specifically, how they will contribute directly to the nation's GDP in 2002."
    The figures were compiled by CRM Associates, a Denver-based company that provides research and analysis of the Yellow Pages industry. Based on U.S. Yellow Pages industry revenue of more than $13.6 billion, CRM Associates calculated estimates for the dollar value of commerce influenced by the Yellow Pages by using the average dollar spent for every dollar invested in Yellow Pages advertising. For 2002, that figure could reach more than $1.5 trillion.
    According to the U.S. Commerce Department's Bureau of Economic Analysis, as of August 29, 2002 (the latest date for which figures are available), U.S. GDP (the market value of the nation's goods and services) was $10.4 trillion. Personal consumption expenditures were approximately $7.3 trillion.
    Therefore, $1.5 trillion of commerce would represent approximately 15 percent of the nation's 2002 GDP and approximately 21 percent of personal consumer expenditures.

    About the Yellow Pages Research Institute(SM) (YPRI(SM))

    The Yellow Pages Research Institute(SM) (YPRI(SM)), part of the Yellow Pages Integrated Media Association(SM) (Yellow Pages I.M.A.(SM)), is focused on identifying trends in consumer purchasing decisions and assisting its membership, the publishers and marketers of Yellow Pages, in reaching consumers.

    About The Yellow Pages I.M.A.(SM)

    Founded in 1988, the Yellow Pages Integrated Media Association(SM) (the Yellow Pages I.M.A.(SM)) has been instrumental in leading, serving and growing a global print and electronic media industry valued at more than $25 billion. Association members include Yellow Pages publishers, who produce more than 95 percent of all Yellow Pages print directories, as well as leading-edge electronic products, and who account for 98 percent of Yellow Pages revenue generated in North America; the industry's international and national sales force, including certified marketing representatives, who handle national accounts and complement publishers' extensive local sales forces; and associate members, who include various industry stakeholders such as vendors and suppliers to the industry--from paper producers to "high-tech" companies--as well as major Yellow Pages advertisers. The Association has members in more than 30 countries.
    The Yellow Pages I.M.A.(SM) is a member of the Ad Council; the Association of National Advertisers; the Advertising Research Foundation; and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Association's "Committee of 100," including its Association Advisory Council.
    John A. Greco, Jr., is the Association's president and CEO, and a board member. Katherine J. Harless, president of Verizon Information Services, currently serves as chair of the Yellow Pages I.M.A.(SM) Board of Directors. Other board member companies include the Association of Directory Marketing, Bell ActiMedia, BellSouth Corporation, DataNational/Volt Directory Systems, QwestDex, R.R. Donnelley & Sons Company, SBC Directory Operations and Wahlstrom Group.
    The Yellow Pages I.M.A.(SM) recently changed its name from the Yellow Pages Publishers Association to reflect more accurately the makeup of its membership and its role as the cornerstone of an integrated advertising media mix. For more information, please visit the Yellow Pages I.M.A.(SM) Web site at www.yellowpagesima.org or call (908) 286-2380. (The Yellow Pages Integrated Media Association(SM), the Yellow Pages I.M.A.(SM) and yellowpagesima.org are registered service marks of the Yellow Pages Integrated Media Association(SM).)