Back in the day of rotary phones and only three television stations accessible (four if you had a PBS affiliate), it wasn't uncommon to watch Mom or Dad reach for the thick phone book on the counter top when something went wrong.
If the sink didn't work, you looked for a plumber.
If the car expired halfway down the driveway, you searched ads for a mechanic.
Every service, every business in town proved just a phone call away provided you had that large stack of thin, yellow pages to guide you.
While phone books still exist, it appears lately ours gathers dust in the cabinet under the sink as we search for our maintenance needs via the Internet.
Not just through traditional engines like Google, either, but social media like Twitter and Facebook.
These days, if your business isn't in tune with social networking there is the chance you're missing out on a wide audience interested in what you have to offer.
With the Twitter search engine gaining ground on Google, for example, one might find it more necessary to "tweet" the occasional ad than place one in a book that may not get as much use as it once did.
Social Media over the Phone Book Granted, posts on Twitter may range from the absurd to the irrelevant where household issues are concerned, but if you know how to utilize the network to find what you need, you'll discover it can be useful tool.
If your phone can access Twitter, there's one advantage - it's more compact than a phone book.
Also, Twitter is interactive, meaning you can post a request for services or products, and if somebody is searching on your keywords, they may answer you quickly.
Let's say you want to find a plumber in Virginia Beach.
Go to Twitter's main search page and type in Virginia Beach Plumber.
You may find various results - people looking for a plumber, people recommending a company, or even a plumber in the area who tweets regularly.
Immediately you have access to information you may not necessarily find in a phone book, which doesn't offer consumer opinion.
One thing to note, too, is that with the Internet it's easier for a company to relay changes in location and phone numbers.
Not so much with a book that's published once annually.
Should one depend entirely on Twitter for finding products and services? It is helpful and handy to consult, but there is the chance the most obscure information may not be found there.
Don't throw away that phone book yet, you just might need it to call an electrician if you can't access your computer.