According to people who know these things, i.e. The Kelsey Group, 54% of people have replaced the Yellow Pages with the Internet.

According to Digitrends, “52.7% of the online business directory users visit a merchant because of what they saw online, and 87% of the online users depend on the Internet to access local information.”

Even the U.S. Department of Commerce has stated: “Those businesses that use the Internet grew 46% faster than those that didn’t.”

Numbers (and statistics like that) only frighten and confuse ELV. But it doesn’t take an idiot to recognize that the world of eating out and the Internet have become inextricably intertwined. For this reason we sat down with Erik Foubert, a Vegas dude with a great website- www.MenuSearch.Net – that’s ideal for finding what’s on a restaurant’s menu before you show up.

ELV: Where did you come up with the idea for MenuSearch.Net?

EF: I worked in a pizza shop for a few years and learned some of the mistakes restaurants make. I also learned that they spend more time trying to bring in new customers in than actually feeding them. Since then, I’ve worked in many office environments where you order as a group or go out (a couple of times a week) and need to decide on where and what you want to eat. We’d always go to the same places because we didn’t know what other places had or couldn’t find the menu.

I then met a buddy of mine, Mark Junium from Henderson, who helped me with the technology side of building the website. He’s a foodie and this was right up his alley. I told him my idea and after he thought about it over a weekend, he said, “Let’s do it” and we did just that. We were able to launch November 15th, 2005. We used a few focus groups to compare our site to similar sites or just plain directories and they told us what they wanted. MenuSearch.Net is what you want.

ELV: The Internet has really opened the doors for restaurants like not other media in the past, at much less expense to boot. How does your website differ from a standard city directory?

EF: Well, one of the first rules we have it that a restaurant will not appear unless they have a menu “attached”. They may only have a sample menu or menu without pricing, but you’ll get a feel for the restaurant right away. I will say, we prefer the menu with prices and hopefully, the restaurant is keeping us up to date on changes and prices.

ELV: Small restaurant owners are notoriously tight-fisted and difficult when it comes to advertising. How do you deal with that?

EF: To be diplomatic, let’s just say these are some of the challenges we at MenuSearch.Net have to deal with:

First there’s the: “I have a website and that’s how my customer’s find me!” This one kills me. Then there’s “I have enough business, what do I need you for?” – I had a client that said this to me. Six months later, he came knocking (it was email actually) because business had fallen off. He took his customer’s for granted and wasn’t continuously bringing “new” customers. Finally, I always ask this question and usually get a confused look “How do visitors or newcomers know the name of your restaurant?” Many restaurants have no idea how they find them. They don’t ask or track it for that matter. If they don’t know the name of your restaurant, how can they search for it? That is where a menu directory like MenuSearch comes in handy. Our biggest challenge is working hard to keep it up to date and current – restaurants are busy and changing often.

ELV: I noticed some of the menus aren’t exactly award-winning with their graphic designs….

EF: Well, we’re continuously trying to improve quality and it will take some time. In fact, we’re working on getting those menus “re-typed”. Some of the restaurants are giving us these menus and really don’t think about the presentation factor that should be considered when developing a menu. I’ve actually had a few given to me that were hand-written. (ELV is guessing these were vegan/vegetarian restaurants) Early on, we just scanned what they gave us. Live and learn.

ELV: How do you differ from competitors?

EF: We try to limit the number of photos, so the site isn’t graphic heavy causing long wait times. We’re focused on what I call the “ma and pa” shops or the “hole-in-the-wall” restaurants. I try to stay away from franchise restaurants or chains as they get plenty of exposure and it’s time someone focused on the little guy.

ELV: How do you feel about other websites like Restaurant.com or others offering 2 for 1 coupons, discounts etc? Those always seem like an act of desperation by the restaurant and the website.

EF: My main issue is that a website like this (Restaurant.com) makes money, the customer saves money but the restaurant loses money. That doesn’t make sense to me. I understand the “theory” behind return customers when the program is over but everyone I’ve talked to about it says the restaurant lost money and the customer’s only came back with a coupon (ELV has found this to be universally true among the 2 for 1 crowd). No coupon, no customers. I like the idea of a coupon to attract new customers and track your marketing efforts but I think overall that the program just stinks.

ELV: Bottom line: How do you make MenuSearch “pay” for the restaurants?

EF: For most restaurants, if we can bring them 10-15 customers in a year, they’ve made money. MenuSearch.Net is the most niche marketing you can do. Newspaper, magazines, radio and other forms of advertising cannot deliver this specific set of “eyes.” Consider this: when users look at your restaurant, they’re looking with the intent to buy. They’re either planning a night out or preparing to call in a takeout or delivery order. I had a Las Vegas client that has had his menu viewed over 3k times in one year. He’s a believer!