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Directories Explained - Directory Submission
Directories are loosely analogous to an online edition of Yellow Pages. Whereas the Yellow Pages lists the telephone numbers of local businesses according to category, directories list website addresses according to category.
Users can usually choose to search through a directory either by traditional search engine methods (input a query and let some algorithm or other determine the most valid return) or by drilling down through the main categories in various directions, e.g. geographically, topically, latest added sites and so on.
Many directories also specialise in niche markets, and these can be equally as important as directories with much higher traffic levels since the visitors they send your way can be much more targeted.
Directories vs Search engines
The main difference in results between directories and search engines is that directories are edited by humans and search engines are automated. This means that the quality of websites found in directories is usually much greater than in standard search engine results, because where a search engine will sometimes deliver spammy results, the human editors will spot and weed out a great deal more of the rubbish than an algorithm can, and the submissions policies for a directory require a deal more human interaction as well.
When you submit a website address to a search engine, that is usually the full extent of your interaction in order to get your site noticed and indexed. However, directory submission requires you to select which operating category your website falls into, or requires you to place your site in a regional category, i.e. which country or continent you operate from. You are usually required to flex your copyrighting skills by writing your own description, which they then re-edit anyway.
Directory submitting "do's and don'ts"
The process of submitting your site to a directory is full of do’s and don’ts – the site must not be under construction, the site must be of sufficient ‘quality’, it must fill a niche and not just be yet another site among hundreds of similar sites, often it must be suitable for a ‘family’ audience and so on. You can see an example of directory submissions guidelines at:
http://www.dmoz.org/add.html
Paid directories
Some directories (like Yahoo Directory) require you to pay a substantial amount of money for them just to consider your site for inclusion. That’s right! You pay Yahoo $299 just for them to take a look at your site. If it isn’t accepted, there’s no refund although you do get the right of one appeal. It is pretty obvious that submissions like these have to be handled carefully. Thankfully, Position Lab has years of experience of getting it right.
Oh yes, nearly forgot. If you are accepted into the Yahoo directory, that’s $299 per year for inclusion! For most businesses however, it is well worth the price of having a Yahoo listing.
The other point worth mentioning is that with an authoritative page about a particular aspect of business as is found in a directory (computer security companies, say), people are very likely to link to such a page if it is comprehensive and trustworthy. Moreover, they will often link to the page using very similar words to the category description itself.