A new poll has revealed that 35% of Brits no longer want to receive printed business directories at home - preferring instead to look up information on the Internet or better still receive recommendations from friends. The results of the poll commissioned by local search website and conducted by YouGov revealed that 67% trust word of mouth more than advertising.

Max Jennings, founder of local listings web-site Welovelocal.com, commented: "more than 17.5 million(i) unwanted directories are produced every year, the waste is staggering, particularly when this survey demonstrates that 51% of all British adults are now using the Internet to find local businesses."

Welovelocal.com harnesses the power of word of mouth online, helping people find the best businesses in their area by reading reviews and recommendations from people they can trust. Business owners get a free, customisable listing and can update their information regularly and even respond to reviews, providing an opportunity for a two-way dialogue to take place between businesses and their customers via the web.

Headline stats from YouGov / Welovelocal.com poll

- 35% of the British public would prefer not to receive printed business directories at home.

- 32% of the British public have not used a printed business directory to look up local businesses or service in the last 6 months.

- 51% of the British public use the Internet most to find local businesses and services.

- 67% of the British public trust word of mouth more than an advert when trying to find local businesses.

- 17.5M+ - Number of unwanted printed business directories delivered to British homes each year.

Total sample size was 1,974 adults. Fieldwork was undertaken between 15th - 17th January 2008. The survey was carried out online. The figures have been weighted and are representative of all GB adults (aged 18+).

(i) Estimate based on distribution figures found at Yell.com and ThompsonDirectories.com, two leading business directory publishers. 28 million Ye