Yell introduces ecommerce sites

Yell Group has confirmed that its first pilot ecommerce sites are now in operation.

These were successfully launched last month as part of the company's plans to grow an eMarketplaces business as a means of providing sources of growth to act as a substitute for its declining core directories business.

The firm's number of digital customers increased by 9.8 per cent to 945,000 in the four months to December 31st,while its digital revenue per customer dropped by 2.5 per cent.

Yell chief executive Mike Pocock said: "Our digital services revenue continued to grow strongly, reaching an annual run rate of over £140 million. We expect this growth to accelerate as our strategic new products come to market."

News of Yell's new ecommerce sites comes after PrintRepublic.co.uk's Stefan Boyle advised companies to concentrate on building relationships with internet users in order to pick up regular custom.

Mr Boyle also warned businesses not to take a laid-back approach to ecommerce, due to the intense competition in the market.

Posted by David Roberts