Solocal CEO Offers View on Transformation

I am personally looking forward to Solocal CEO Jean-Pierre Remy’s presentation later this month at the Local Search Association’s annual conference in Las Vegas. Solocal, which recently changed its name from PagesJaunes, is the leading search and directory company in France. The company has developed a reputation for strong execution in building or integrating (often vertical) consumer facing products as well as in sales performance.

Remy has been at Solocal’s helm since 2009. He has led the company through a transformation that many in the global search and directory industry would like to emulate.

Remy’s talk is entitled, “The Success Story: From Traditional Media Company to Leading Digital Business.”

BIA/Kelsey has just published a new Insight report called “Sales Transformation: Building a Sustainable Model.” The report takes a look at best practices for selling digital solutions to small-business advertisers. Solocal is one of the companies profiled in the report.

The profile focused on how Solocal has moved from a largely print to a largely digital (almost 60 percent in 2012) business, while suffering only minimal margin erosion. Solocal is currently focused on building a out a vertical strategy involving building deep content in key categories (classifieds, hotels, restaurants, beauty, retail, home improvement), supported by a vertical sales approach.

Solocal’s bread and butter offering has been the Web Visibility Pack, a product that combines digital presence (online and mobile) with placement on Solocal’s media properties plus SEO. What has set Solocal apart is its ability to produce websites for its advertisers within several business days on average, compared with weeks at many of its peer companies.

Here is how the Insight report summarizes Solocal’s success: “Underlying Solocal’s success is an emphasis on simplicity, backed up by nearly flawless execution, supported by tightly integrated systems.”

Remy will speak on Monday, April 15, at 10:15 a.m. The LSA conference will take place April 13-16 at the Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino. Click here for more information on attending this event.