Phone directories seem as relevant as, well, landlines. But, just as the ubiquitous landline continues to hold on (while morphing into the neo landline we call VoIP), directories still stack up in closets, help turn landfills into mulch for our gardens, and are coveted by barroom strongman looking to tear them in half in exchange for a couple of beers. They also make excellent monitor stands.
In their own right, directories, especially those chock full of business listings and ads, still are important consumer tools rather than icons to days gone by. Despite the fact that virtually all the information in directories is just a mouse click away, there are still legions of folks who prefer to let their fingers do the walking. In fact, experts say 87 million American's used the books to perform some 13.4 billion searches last year, compared with 3.8 million online searches.
And it's those customers directory publishers are fighting over. Read how AT&T and other publishers are working to get a cut of the $31 billion industry in this Brandweek story.
