Dex offering hard copy, online directory options

As more Iowans use the Internet to look up phone numbers and the pile of unused directories grows each year, online and print publisher Dex One Corp. is trying a new tactic.

Cary, N.C.-based Dex One, formerly R.H. Donnelley, has set up a web site, http://selectyourdex.com, that offers a variety of phone directory options, including the ability to stop delivery.

After entering a Zip code, residents can tell the company what directory they want to receive and how many they would like to get. Two directories - the Dex full size white and yellow pages directory and a smaller DexPlus yellow pages directory - are available for residents of Cedar Rapids, Iowa City and surrounding communities.

Dex One also is offering a Community Edition in larger cities that focuses on the user's immediate neighborhood. It is not available for Cedar Rapids or Iowa City.

Residents also can use www.DexPages.com to view the phone book for any community in Iowa or other states. They also can download an entire directory - including advertisements - to their computer.

Dex One distributes its Dex-branded yellow pages and white pages directories in more than 600 markets. It also maintains the DexKnows.com online search site for white and yellow page listings.

Yellowbook, a competitor of Dex One with operations in southwest Cedar Rapids, offers online users the ability to order a phone directory or opt out of delivery at www.yellowbook.com. It does not allow users to view a directory online or download it.

Charles Laughlin, senior vice president and managing editor of The Kelsey Report in Chantilly, Va., says directory publishers like Dex and Yellow Book are looking at a variety of options as the online search trend grows. Laughlin notes that yellow page advertising is still the bread and butter of the industry, producing $13 billion a year in sales revenue.