LOS ANGELES, Nov. 17, 2014 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- YP today announced its participation in this year's Small Business Saturday, taking place on November 29, 2014. Small Business Saturday is a day dedicated to strengthening the community by supporting local small businesses.
YP is committed to helping local businesses connect with consumers and is offering small businesses a free online health scan to help them reach customers. Many businesses have incorrect or missing information online, which makes it difficult for consumers to find them. The YP scan analyzes the online presence of a business and its listings across multiple sites to ensure the information is accurate and consistent, so that anyone who is looking for a business during this busy time of year can find it.
"YP recognizes the importance of supporting small business, having worked with small and local businesses for more than 100 years. Our mission is to provide the tools and services to help them grow their businesses and their communities," said Allison Checchi, YP Chief Marketing Officer.
According to the U.S. Small Businesses Administration, as of 2012, small businesses nationwide accounted for 64% of net new private-sector jobs created and represented 99.7% of all employer firms.1
Now in its fifth year, Small Business Saturday serves as the ceremonial kickoff to the holiday shopping season for small businesses across the United States. In 2013, nearly 1,500 Neighborhood Champions rallied local businesses and created events and activities to drive shopping at small businesses around the country. The day was also championed by elected officials in all 50 states and Washington D.C., including President Obama who took his daughters shopping at a local bookstore.
Merchants and consumers can learn more about Small Business Saturday and how to get involved by visiting ShopSmall.com and the official Small Business Saturday Facebook page.
Businesses interested in receiving a free online health scan from YP can visit: myfreeyp.com.
ABOUT SMALL BUSINESS SATURDAY
Nov 29 marks the fifth annual Small Business Saturday, a day to support the local businesses that create jobs, boost the economy and preserve neighborhoods around the country. Small Business Saturday was created in 2010 in response to small business owners' most pressing need: more customers. To date, more than 3.3 million Facebook users "liked" the Small Business Saturday page2. Just last year, 370+ advocacy organizations, 160+ corporations, and elected officials in all 50 states and Washington D.C. declared their support for Small Business Saturday.
ABOUT YP
YP is a leading local marketing solutions provider in the U.S. dedicated to helping local businesses and communities grow. YP's flagship consumer brands include the popular YP app and YP.com, which are used by nearly 80 million visitors each month in the U.S. (Internal Data, July 2014). YP solutions include websites, listings management, reputation monitoring, video ads, search engine optimization, search engine marketing, advertising on YP and the YP Local Ad Network, online display and mobile advertising, and advertising in The Real Yellow Pages® directory. YP solutions and services are backed by thousands of media consultants and customer service professionals in local markets across the U.S. with relationships spanning more than half a million advertisers. For more information on YP, visit us at http://corporate.yp.com. Follow us on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/YP and on Twitter: @YP.
1 Small Business Administration Office of Advocacy Frequently Asked Questions, September 2012
2 According to Facebook Insights, the Small Business Saturday page on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/#!/SmallBusinessSaturday received 3,316,569 "Likes" as of 5/20/2014