Yeah i trimmed 2 or 3 off of mine a while ago, i could probably condense it more though, even on a paid directory they probably dont get read fully but just skimmed/scanned.
And what is wrong with telling submitters in details what we want them to follow if they want to be listed? Our Submission Guidelines are mile long (as you know ) but it still takes less than 3 minutes to read them. Would you rather read them and get listed or ignore them and get blacklisted? I always read Submission Guidelines no matter how long they are because I don't want to waste my time on submitting and them get rejected not to mention called spammer because I didn't played by the Rules. Ignoring Submission Guidelines or not follow them is like to show disrespect to that directory and if that is the case, then don't get upset if Editors show you the same disrespect as result in return. Granted Submission Guidelines can be Short and Concise as long as you remember that they are placed in there for reason and nonnegotiable as far as submitter concerns. fastreplies
As many people have pointed out over the last couple of year, the value of general directories is not what it used to be. Having said that, it is still worth submitting to some directories if it can be done in a reasonable amount of time. You should be able to select the appropriate category, read the guidelines and fill in the submission form in less than 2 minutes (1 minute would be even better). If you spend have to spend than that then I would not recommend submitting (there are some exceptions). Your time can be better used building your site content or using other traffic building methods. For submission guidelines, short and concise would be best.
Where from you’re getting those numbers? I just ran submission test and it took me 3 ½ minutes from the moment I opened site then Submission Form and C & P Title, URL, Description, Keywords, found appropriate Category, typed Name and email address and CAPTCHA Mind you, initially I didn’t read Guidelines. It took me another 2 minutes to carefully read 20 lines of Guidelines text. I don’t know which Submission forms you’re using but as far as I know standard form used by everybody is the same. So, what 2 minutes you are talking about? Well, I’m sure we all would be more than happy to learn which exceptions you’re talking about. If you don’t mind, please educate us and give us some examples. fastreplies
Why the big rush. When I submit my websites I care about them and the whole submission process is for their overall benefit and I take my time and do it right. I see no reason to rush through the process and if I did feel the need for speed then I suppose I really don't care much wither I get it right or not. I imagine a large part of the submissions I reject or delete are from those trying to rush through and in the process screw something up. As far as submission guide lines, no need to cut corners here either.They should contain as much important information as possible. Now people actually reading them is a different story. I don't worry about folks not reading everything but if some issue does come up, I can point to my guide lines and TOS and say it's right there. It's simply about CYA. Sort of like all the PayPal rules and legal speak. I never took time to read all that stuff and the only time I ever had an issue with them they were quick to point to their TOS and sure enough it was right their in black and white and I couldn't argue with them. That why they have pages and pages of guideline and terms....CYA
Most of the times terms of use / submission guidelines can be 'enforced' with programming, unfortunately directory owners make a huge list of submission guidelines that no-one will read and they get a lot of undesired submissions..
We had directory with 1 Condition only: Select and submit to right Category and yet 40% of submissions went to wrong Categories. I don't believe amount of Submission Guidelines ever effected real people. Submission Guidelines are for those who are visiting site in person to learn about inclusion conditions and who are really care to be indexed by X Directory and not for those who are using Submission Scripts. fastreplies