McLeodUSA's Art Christoffersen, US West Dex's Jim Smith To Keynote At Simba Information's Inside The Yellow Pages '99

Business Wire, Oct 29, 1998

STAMFORD, Conn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 28, 1998--Art Christoffersen, Chairman, President and CEO of McLeodUSA Publishing and Jim Smith, President and CEO of US West Dex, will deliver keynote addresses at Simba Information's 11th annual Inside The Yellow Pages conference to be held on March 14-16, 1999 at The Wyndham Miami Beach Resort in Miami Beach, FL. The theme of the conference is "Building Long-Term Customer Loyalty."

"Competition for ad dollars is intense. Yellow pages publishers are focused more than ever on building lasting relationships with their customers," said Megan St. John, Vice President and General Manager of Simba Information.

On the first day of the conference, Christoffersen will present his views on what the customer really wants, based on his experiences growing the McLeod brand throughout the Midwest. Christoffersen has been heading McLeod (previously known as Telecom*USA) since 1990. He has also been President of Consolidated Communications Directory Co. since McLeod purchased the company in 1997. McLeod, which is estimated to grow 20% in 1998, is the second largest independent yellow pages publisher.

On the second day, attendees will hear Smith's views on how to build breakthrough customer relationships in the face of increased competition. Smith took the helm of US West Dex in October 1997. Prior to that, he headed US West Communications Group - Local Markets organization. He also held senior management positions at US West's Mass Market and Small Business Markets units. US West is a $1 billion utility publisher based in Englewood, CO, that serves 14 states.

Simba's Inside The Yellow Pages conference also features panels of key yellow pages executives, including Bryan Foster, Vice President of Marketing at BellSouth Advertising & Publishing Corp.; Tom Pall, Vice President of Sales at SBC Directory Operations; Pat Marshall, Vice President of GTE New Media Services; Bob Beran, President of Bell Atlantic Internet Solutions; Jeff Tarr, Vice President and General Manager of US West Dex Internet Yellow Pages; and Mark Stevens, Vice President and General Manager of BellSouth IntelliVentures.

Conference attendees can also take advantage of the Annual Simba Golf Outing, to be held March 14, 1999 at the legendary "Blue Monster" course at the Doral Golf Resort & Spa.

Other Simba Information products include Yellow Pages & Directory Report, a bi-weekly newsletter, and various reports, including Yellow Pages Market Forecast; Independent Yellow Pages Markets, Internet Yellow Pages; Worldwide Yellow Pages Markets; White Pages and Directory Listings; and Yellow Pages Sales & Marketing. Simba Information also hosts the Inside The Yellow Pages Europe conference each year. For further information, contact Sophia Pilkiewicz at 203-358-4308, or by e-mail at sophia_pilkiewicz@simbanet.com.

Simba Information (http://www.simbanet.com) is a leading provider of news, analysis and market research reports on the media and information industry. Simba Information Inc. is a PRIMEDIA Information Company in Stamford, CT.