SEO - Manual Directory Submissions and Why You Still Need Them
- By Lloyd Roberts
- Published 06/14/2011
- Search Engines
- Unrated
Website submission is considered a powerful and inexpensive link building tool now used by most SEO experts. It includes directory submission to web directories and article submission to article directories.
Why Manual Submissions Are Important
Web and article directories require manual submission to discourage spamming. Most directories have anti-spam devices and any auto-submissions detected by these devices may be construed to be spam that need to be rejected.
Web and article submissions are pretty much advisable when you're launching your website. Unless you have links coming into your site from other websites which the search engines can follow and trace to yours, then search engines will have no idea you exist. A few well-placed submissions to good directories, search engines and social media sites can let the search engines know you exist.
You will also benefit from a fair volume of traffic from these directories if you choose reputable, relevant places to submit to. Coupled with your own backlinking activities and creation of fresh content regularly, Google should soon be spidering your website.
You may have seen offers of "we'll submit your website to X number of search engines for 50 bucks". These types of offers, while they probably do just what they say on the tin most of the time, are probably just not worth it. You might as well download a piece of free software. Web CEO, for example, has a completely free version that will submit your site to about 100 search engines, and there are
others out there.
A note about manual submissions. There are 2 directories out there that really matter: DMOZ and Yahoo. DMOZ is free, but sometimes difficult to obtain a listing with. Yahoo charges a few hundred bucks with no guarantee of being listed.
DMOZ is now one of the directories that are debated and slated yet highly rated all across the web. Accusations of manipulation by Editors with vested interests are rife. Despite this, Google respects DMOZ listings enough to use them as the basis for it's own Google Directory. That should be enough said. Submit your site, and forget about it. Forget about it for a long, long time. Recently, I had a reply from an Editor who was good enough to tell me that for some categories there was a backlog of up to 2 years. I know, I know...
If you have the urge, you can submit to Yahoo for a few hundred bucks and no guarantees, unless you're a non-profit site, from what I remember. But if you're building a reputable, genuine website that is useful to your visitors, then you're in the right area to submit to Yahoo Directory without too much fear.
Quick Tips:
1. Search for:(your business niche) directory
2. Check the quality of the directory. If it's been spam-bombed, forget it.
3. Submit your website details to a handful of quality, relevant directories.
4. Submit to DMOZ (aka ODP). Forget you ever did it, and don't resubmit. Resubmitting might put you backwards in the queue. If you really have waited a while, contact the Editor for your category politely.
5. Submit to Yahoo Directory if you want to shell out the bucks. You won't be waiting as long as the ODP.
Why Manual Submissions Are Important
Web and article directories require manual submission to discourage spamming. Most directories have anti-spam devices and any auto-submissions detected by these devices may be construed to be spam that need to be rejected.
Web and article submissions are pretty much advisable when you're launching your website. Unless you have links coming into your site from other websites which the search engines can follow and trace to yours, then search engines will have no idea you exist. A few well-placed submissions to good directories, search engines and social media sites can let the search engines know you exist.
You will also benefit from a fair volume of traffic from these directories if you choose reputable, relevant places to submit to. Coupled with your own backlinking activities and creation of fresh content regularly, Google should soon be spidering your website.
You may have seen offers of "we'll submit your website to X number of search engines for 50 bucks". These types of offers, while they probably do just what they say on the tin most of the time, are probably just not worth it. You might as well download a piece of free software. Web CEO, for example, has a completely free version that will submit your site to about 100 search engines, and there are
A note about manual submissions. There are 2 directories out there that really matter: DMOZ and Yahoo. DMOZ is free, but sometimes difficult to obtain a listing with. Yahoo charges a few hundred bucks with no guarantee of being listed.
DMOZ is now one of the directories that are debated and slated yet highly rated all across the web. Accusations of manipulation by Editors with vested interests are rife. Despite this, Google respects DMOZ listings enough to use them as the basis for it's own Google Directory. That should be enough said. Submit your site, and forget about it. Forget about it for a long, long time. Recently, I had a reply from an Editor who was good enough to tell me that for some categories there was a backlog of up to 2 years. I know, I know...
If you have the urge, you can submit to Yahoo for a few hundred bucks and no guarantees, unless you're a non-profit site, from what I remember. But if you're building a reputable, genuine website that is useful to your visitors, then you're in the right area to submit to Yahoo Directory without too much fear.
Quick Tips:
1. Search for:(your business niche) directory
2. Check the quality of the directory. If it's been spam-bombed, forget it.
3. Submit your website details to a handful of quality, relevant directories.
4. Submit to DMOZ (aka ODP). Forget you ever did it, and don't resubmit. Resubmitting might put you backwards in the queue. If you really have waited a while, contact the Editor for your category politely.
5. Submit to Yahoo Directory if you want to shell out the bucks. You won't be waiting as long as the ODP.
Lloyd Roberts
Need help with your business SEO? Lloyd Roberts can help you with that. For more information on 123 Bournemouth SEO please visit his site at http://www.123webdesignbournemouth.co.uk
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