Strategies for Submitting Your
Website to Web Directories
By Brad M. Callen
© 2005 All rights reserved
Webmasters like you and me are always on the lookout to enhance the link
popularity of their sites. One method of doing so is to seek out authority
sites in your niche – sites that are widely known on the Internet (through
the sheer number of back links) and have been around for some time (think
more in terms of several years). Unfortunately, such websites are often at
a Page Rank of 6+ and as such, link exchange or text link ad placement is
very, very expensive.
Luckily, there is a cheaper alternative. You can use web directories to not
only enhance your search engine visibility (through increased link popularity),
but by targeting niche categories and using sponsored listings where necessary,
you can get a big jump in your traffic as well.
So, let's get started.
What is a web directory?
A web directory is a collection of links broken down into relevant
categories. Think Yahoo! and their directory, the Open Directory Project or even
the Google Directory (which, incidentally, is pulled from the ODP). At its most
basic level, a web directory is a collection of bookmarks made available to the
public. In other cases, like Yahoo, it is a professional resource for people
actively looking for information.
To get listed in such a directory, you can either get listed for free (which
might take a while), or in many cases, pay a one-time fee to have your website
reviewed and entered in the directory. One major exception is Yahoo, which
charges a recurring fee for its commercial listings, and we'll look at that later.
The benefits of being listed in a web directory
In theory, there are two main benefits of being listed in a web directory:
- Increased link-popularity due to a one-way link from a highly-respected resource.
- Increased traffic due to being listed in a directory that is searched by many people every day.
In reality though, these benefits are directly related to how popular the
directory is itself, and how much money you have paid for your listing. Of
course, if the link is for free, there is nothing to worry about.
But if you are paying for submission, you need to know some very important facts.
Link popularity
As far as link-popularity is concerned, you need to factor in several
variables:
- The Page Rank of the directory
- The Page Rank of the category page on which you are listed
- Where you are listed on the page
- The number of competing websites on that page
- If there are other websites in your niche that can offer you the same conditions for the same price or less
(very, very important).
The last point is very important from the cost/benefit angle. A web
directory, while being a hub itself, is NOT a niche website or an authority
site. Even within categories and sub-categories, the lack of valuable content
means that web directories are, at the end of the day, link pages and nothing
more.
Where directories win out is the fact that they require one-time fees. In
contrast, authority sites (or most websites with a Page Rank greater than 5 or
6) tend to use text links as a source of revenue, and thus charge monthly fees.
A directory listing then becomes a much better option (but only for link
popularity).
More traffic
Directory listings are also used as traffic building opportunities. How this
works is that many directories are searchable for their visitors, so that users
can look for information. In theory this is great – you can get lifetime traffic
for just a nominal payment, but you should not expect a sudden deluge of traffic
from just one directory listing. Here's why:
Most directories, apart from the top twenty or so, are usually used for
link-building and not pure searching. This means that while people may use
GoGuides or Yahoo for regular searches, you should expect that the smaller
directories are mainly for link-popularity, and plan your investment as such.
Many directories offer listings based on an alphabetical ordering, or a
first-come, first-serve ordering. In both cases, your website has quite a big
chance of being lost out in the noise.
Directory-search algorithms differ greatly. Some directories, like JoeAnt,
base their search on keyword relevancy (which makes it more of an exercise of
stuffing your directory listing with keywords rather than making a good
website), while others take a more "editorial" approach by factoring in editor
ratings. And still, many directories display sponsored listings first,
reinforcing the adage that even on the Internet, it's your advertising budget
that talks, and not necessarily the quality of your website.
After you factor in the above points, you realize that there are only a
handful of web directories where it is a definite benefit to "pay" to be listed.
And even then, you cannot just rely on just being listed – sponsor listings get
much more exposure. But before we discuss these dozen or so web directories, I'd
like to tell you how you can make sure your website is accepted.
How to get listed – an overview
Getting listed in a web directory is a function of three things:
Time
It takes a certain amount of time before an editor can review your website
and approve (or reject) your request. This is usually anywhere between a week to
almost never (in huge web directories like Yahoo and Dmoz). You can reduce this
to within a week by using the paid listing option.
Money
Apart from Dmoz, the big directories usually require a nominal payment for
your website to be listed. While you can calculate the benefit of such a listing
from reading the previous section, know that usually there are several listing
options, which for the better services (that give your website more directory
visibility) obviously cost more.
Quality
In some cases (very rarely nowadays), directory inclusions can be rejected
due to the poor quality of a website. Maybe the editor considered that your
website was not 'useful' enough (meaning it had little or no useful/original/any
content), or sometimes, there may be moral issues (although editors are
urged to abide by directory guidelines and not personal beliefs). If rejected,
you will almost always receive feedback (you might have to ask for it) on how to
improve your website.
In earlier days, quality was a big issue. Today, it is still a major concern
for top directories like Yahoo, but this is more to separate the truly atrocious
from the rest rather than to separate the best from the rest.
Each web directory has their personalized criteria, but there are two crucial
elements to getting listed:
Paid inclusions – Apart from Dmoz, and
some directories where you can sign-up to be an editor, the top directories require
payment – anywhere from $15 to $299.
Website quality – By this I don't mean
design; I'm talking about having truly useful information – even if your website
is a commercial website, simply putting up a bunch of affiliate links will not
count as a quality website.
The big guns
Yahoo and Dmoz are the two biggest directories on the Internet, and it's only
fair that I talk about how to get listed on them individually.
Yahoo
A listing in Yahoo's directory has direct benefits:
Google – and perhaps other search engines as well – give your website an added
importance if your website is listed in the Yahoo directory.
Yahoo is the portal of choice for millions of users. This makes your
potential target market at least in the hundreds of thousands, even for obscure
niches.
To get listed in the Yahoo directory, you have to access Yahoo Directory Submit
and work from there. You will be required to open a Yahoo account, if you don't
have one already. The review process will cost $299, and there is no guarantee that
your website will be listed.
However, if you have a useful website, and follow the guidelines detailed by
Yahoo, there is no reason for your website to be rejected.
The Open Directory Project
Dmoz, or the open directory project, is a directory that rivals the reach of
Yahoo. Why? Because directories like the Google Directory and many others are
powered by the results from Dmoz. This gives a listing in the ODP a very high
premium.
However, because a listing in Dmoz is essentially free, there is very
little you can do about the time factor. Many websites that are submitted are
never indexed, and that happens mainly due to a lack of time.
On the other hand, quality websites that are added into their relevant
categories are almost always accepted, so make sure you follow their guidelines.
Instructions for submitting the Open Directory Project can be found at:
http://www.dmoz.org/add.html.
Resources
Getting listed in Yahoo and Dmoz is the bare minimum for any website looking
to establish themselves at the top of their niche. And if you're looking to move
beyond the big two and move on to second-tier directories, here's a quick list.
Directories
Editorial Note: The author failed to provide links to the directories
below so we took the liberty of adding them. Hopefully, we got them right.
Directories of directories
In addition, there are several directories that are focused completely on
directories (you can find similar listings by looking through Yahoo or Dmoz).
A directory listing is, in most cases, useful only for the link popularity.
In such scenarios, if you can find better deals on authority sites in your
niche, then you should go for them. However, a directory listing is cheaper
(one-time versus monthly payment), and with the big directories like Yahoo, Dmoz
and GoGuides, it can also bring you reasonable traffic.
As always, remember that directory listings make up a small part of your
overall online marketing strategy. If you don't have the budget for a Yahoo
listing, don't sweat it – focus on other forms of marketing, and come back to it
when you can afford it. Directory listings are important, but only when you are
looking to squeeze every possible drop of search engine placement out of your
links and your website.
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