SBC's New Yellow Pages Spots Dreamy Yet Direct

Looking to boost one of its underperforming units, SBC is abandoning its information-resource positioning of recent ads and taking a direct swipe at the competition in a new national TV campaign for its Yellow Pages directory. But the effort features more than a little whimsy as well, as it delivers its pitch via "fables." The new work warns against using rival directories in three new commercials directed by Roman Coppola (son of Francis Ford Coppola and director of CQ) and created by Omnicom Group's GSD&M in Austin, Texas. All three of the spots feature dreamy music that might have been imported from a Dr. Seuss special and the voice of actor Roscoe Lee Browne, whose narration was heard in the hit 1995 film Babe. The storybook touch is extended in the creative as well. In one commercial, pedestrians on a city street walk around with their copies of the SBC Yellow Pages directing them on their various errands. That is, all but one woman; she clutches something called "Different Book," which is out of date. The woman is seeking a drug store, and in the midst of a sneeze attack, is instead directed to a florist. In the second spot, people reading their SBC Yellow Pages are shown taking their cats to the veterinarian. But a man with the "Different Book" takes his Great Dane instead, which sets off a chorus of cater-walling. Had he owned the SBC Yellow Pages, he would have known that the vet catered to cats. The final spot takes a different approach, showing adults sleeping fitfully as they wait for their new directory, and even leaving milk and cookies behind in anticipation of the new SBC Yellow Pages delivery. All sleep through the actual delivery and awaken with the new books, unaware once again how they got there. Jonathan Silverstein, vp/account director at GSD&M, said the creative addresses the "magic book mentality" that used to be associated with the Yellow Pages. "They were great at one time—you got everything," Silverstein said of the books. "But almost like a fable, something bad happened. Something needed to be corrected." Previous ads have touted the books as a reference source, but the new ads take aim at competitors. Silverstein said the change came as SBC realized that rivals had made inroads. "They needed to make a statement, remind people that there's a choice and a quality difference," he said. The effort comes as ad sales for the books are down. SBC reps could not be reached for comment, but in a recent filing, the company noted a decreased demand for Yellow Pages advertising. Though many believe that the Internet is stealing such sales, the Yellow Pages Integrated Media Assocation, a trade group in Berkeley Heights, N.J., completed a survey last year that showed 85 percent of Internet users continue to use the Yellow Pages.Spending for the campaign was not disclosed. SBC spent $23 million on measured media last year, according to Nielsen Monitor-Plus.

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SBC's New Yellow Pages Spots Dreamy Yet Direct

Todd Wasserman

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