I have been looking into purchasing and developing a directory recently, however there seems to be lots about to choose from, I have narrowed it down to eSyndiCat or PHP Directory but would like some advice. Can anyone give me some tips on what they think would be the best to invest in. I did leave a comment on the PHP Directory forum asking how to make money using it, however the response was very short so not much use. Cheers -Lee
I'd go with esyndicat...they have a lot of useful plugins and you can read their ebook on how to monetize the directory.
Sounds like from your post that you should do more research. I say that because you asked how people make money with directories. If you do not already know the answer to that, it doesn't make sense for you to start a directory. And, besides, no successful webmaster is going to tell you why they think their site makes money. Both of the scripts you mentioned have their good and bad points. You are going to have to build your directory on paper first. Decide what things you want to do with it and then evaluate which of the two scripts best meets your needs. Without more specific information about what type of directory you hope to build and what specific features you want, this thread will just degrade into yet another useless pile of posts with people voting for the script they use.
My personal choice would be phpLD as there are many designers and coders who are familiar with the script.
press like button to @YMC i using phpld from i start directory business... and try running using eSyndiCate and SBD directory(close sales don't know why) my review :- PHPld still is good script,support,have mods... eSyndicate good to, but i not dare to explorer they code(maybe new with this)... SBD directory good, but don't have support and don't know how long the support tickets will open (still using, and play with code) please do what @YMC said, after that make research for script that good for your directory... about money making.. is not easy like what you think...
I believe I replied to you about making money, and I do somewhat agree with some of the above comments. Re-rolling something that other people are doing is full of pitfalls, as generally this approach is not likely to succeed unless you sort of have an "in" on a strategy that someone is sharing with you. For example, while I don't condone this, you might be able to buy some high pagerank links and get an elevated pagerank and sell link reviews more rapidly. This is usually a short term strategy that can backfire, but there are some who have thrived longer term. It is viewed by many as black hat. A better strategy is come up with your own idea, and build on it over time. Spend the $30-100 on getting one of the scripts and try it out. Give yourself time to learn and develop a strategy. Doing something in your community can be a good and unique approach (a directory of gamers and gaming shops in Orlando for example). Sorry for being so non-descript, but regardless of the script you choose, think about a plan that you can make your own, and you will be happy you did a year from now.
After you have decided on how you will make money from your directory, I strongly recommend you use eSyndicat, its has a much more sensible licensing structure than phpld with is extremely confusing and annoying support licensing structure. If its making money you are after though, the directory business is not where you should be looking. Its an over saturated industry.
I actually use both and I have many webmaster friends that like both. I actually have always preferred phpld so far however. Adding a list of categories mass mode is awesome not to mention the easy to use setup features when starting a new directory. Esyndicat on the other hand can be confusing and a headache at the beginning. So PHPLD definitely wins my vote for usability and ease. As far as pricing I prefer esyndicat only cause they offer unlimited license which is nice if your starting a ton of directories or projects that need directory script structure. However if your looking to create just one directory either script should and can be considered. The best is to extensively just try out both scripts demos ALOT see what you like for yourself.
In addition to the above about eSyndica, the support is also straight forward. Before I replaced my 3 PHPLD directory with esyndica, each time I try to use PHPLD support forum I will prevented from doing so saying my support for a particular licence has expired blah blah blah, so you have to purchase forum support access for each PHPLD license you have, its ridiculous and extremely annoying, that made me convert all my PHPLD to esyndicat where you don't get all the daft support complications you get with PHPLD
I must admit I recently had to pay $10 to join the phpld3 forum again which initially annoyed me. However when I told the mod I didn't understand how to follow his advice to resolve the problem and offered to pay for him to do it he did it himself with no charge. So from being annoyed I was well pleased, how else could I have got the job done for $10?
If it works for you, that is excellent. I do have the support guys at eSyndicat fix things for me regulary or point me in direction of where to find solution for no new charges other than what I paid the first time.