Don’t Overlook the Benefit of Internet Directories For Link Building

Utilizing internet directories as a link building tool is an often over looked method of link building. Many in the search engine optimization field simply default to the belief that unless the directory is DMOZ or Google’s Open Directory Project, you won’t gain any benefit from the directory submission at all. But the truth is, not only do directory submissions provide you with a one way link to your site, they actually offer up plenty of often overlooked opportunities for link building.

Before you start listing your site on an internet directory, make absolutely sure that the ones you have chosen are in fact reputable. Listing your site on an un-reputable internet directory or a link farm can hurt your site as they do not follow the guidelines set forth by the major search engines. After evaluating the internet directory in question, proceed with listing your site by filling out the information they request.

Once you’ve listed your site on an internet directory, your site is placed in a specific category representative of the content that you provide. By finding that specific category, you now have a highly detailed list of your possible competitors. You should take advantage of the fact that their listing on that internet directory provides enough information for you to find their keywords used and reference how successful they have been with them. Knowing your competitors allows you to see what has worked for them and determine if it will work for you as well. Scour their site for details on who they’ve partnered with, because many sites that they advertise through them or link to them may also be interested in doing the same for you depending on what you have to offer.

The sub category and up category features that directories offer up provide a webmaster with a large cross section of complimentary sites that would provide a very useful partnership. If your site offers your services as a professional photographer, you’ll find that professional photography is a sub category of weddings, graduations, anniversaries, and many more that are perfectly relevant to your services. By contacting these sites, you can easily establish a link trade that will be mutually beneficial for your site as their traffic is at a much higher conversion rate then you will find through the search engines as well.

Before contacting them however, do make sure that you have already linked to them beforehand so that they know you’re serious about working together and so they will feel you have already deemed their services relevant. If they decline your offer or don’t respond, don’t remove their link right away or even at all. If the link provides relevance to your visitors, it can be considered a benefit already. Also, the more people that visit the linked site from your site, you may find that they contact you back after seeing the traffic you are sending them.

But the benefits don’t end at traffic, most directories list the sites within their database in order of highest page rank to lowest. If you start at the top of the list when referencing relevant sites, you’ll be contacting sites that can provide you a greater page rank as well as the traffic that a relevant site would offer. Higher page ranking sites provide a higher page rank to your site as well, and considering a site doesn’t simply gain page rank without links to it, your link will be seen more often in that high traffic environment.

The benefits to using internet directories for link building are numerous, but you need to be aware of everything you are doing. If you happen to list your site in a directory that doesn’t follow the terms of service of the maj

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Internet Directory Submission, Sure Way To Link Popularity

Most website owners fail to differentiate between a directory and search engine, failure to do so has resulted in failure to harness the powers of Internet directory effectively.

Search engine uses the spiders – (an automated software program) to locate and collect data from web pages for inclusion in a search engine’s database and to follow links to find new pages on the World Wide Web. While directories depends on human editors, who in most cases examine every single new listing before they are added to their directory. Most major search engines these days use links from human edited directory to measure the quality of the site they index. That is why you should place emphasis on the type of website or directory you list to and how to do that effectively.

Below here are the steps to be followed, before you will list in most human edited Internet directories that place emphasis on building an effective directory. DMOZ, Yahoo and other new human edited directories consider the following before they consider your site for inclusion.

(1) Design or look of your website:

Is your website properly designed? Most website owners do not take into consideration on how their website is designed. The look or design of your website is the most important factor for success in web marketing – its effectiveness also applies to site visitors. Website designers offer to help you create an effective website that will boost your website marketing and also enhance your site visitors experience thereby increasing sales or repeated visits. Spending money in building an effective website for Internet marketing should be the first step for Internet marketing success.

(2) Follow Directories Submission Guideline(s) Carefully:

Reading the instructions before submitting to directories is one of the keys to success to listing effectively in directories. You can neglect or even bypass the instructions in most search engines since spiders can take care of your listings, while in directories the result is the opposite. Make it a point of duty to read twice the instructions in every directory you are listing in and follow what they need.

(3) Telephone Number in Shopping Sites:

Most directories rate shopping sites without a phone contact as an affiliate sites. Telephone also plays a very important role in selling products to Internet shoppers. Most 85% of Internet shoppers may not buy from shopping sites that do not include a contact address or telephone number or both. One question that goes in the shoppers mind is – what will happen if I need to call for help? For technical support, returns etc. The same emphases are placed by editors of most directories like Yahoo, Dmoz and other new directories.

Although this rule may not apply to some paid directories, but there are some paid directories that still adhere to the above principle. Most paid directories may not refund your payment when they fail to include your listing in their directory.

(4) Listing with the Right Title, Description and Keywords To Appropriate Category:

Lay emphasis in the Title, Description and Keywords you are using when submitting to directories. Make it a point of duty to study the directory you are submitting to, prior to submission and find out how majority of their listings are placed. Use simple keywords or phrases that relates to your site content. Do not include keywords that do not relate to your site content, since most directories rely on keywords to structure results, placing wrong keywords may inflame some editors.

Since most major search engines these days lay emphasis on quality links from human edited websites like directories, make it a point of duty to do your homework and save time doing it.

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