In my personal opinion no. Two reasons: 1. They are not that important anymore in SEO (I stopped using them) 2. There is too much competition and simillar junk sites.
You must have caught it on a bad day, because it's the fourth result today, on a search of "Aviva." On a search of "Aviva Directory," which is the name of the directory, it's the first result, by the way. My point was -- and remains -- that it is not penalized by Google, as that 7 year-old article stated. Seven years ago, it was a new directory, and that is not the case today. In general, it is not useful to cite a seven year-old article as proof of something today, because things change rapidly on the Internet. What Google penalizes today, it will reward tomorrow, and practices that once guaranteed success in the SERPs might get you penalized today. Web directories are simply a type of website and if it seems, to you, that Google hates web directories, that is probably because so many of them are indeed worthless. Gone are the days when someone can put up a $30 directory script and sit back waiting for people to submit to their new directory. That never was a good idea because such directories add nothing of value to their users. Like any other website, in order for a web directory to be of value, it has to offer something more, and those that survive will find ways in which to do that.
Traditional directories no longer have any value in Internet marketing, neither it is used by general users of Internet. Directories have evolved. Traditional directories had title, category, website link and description of a website. But the new kind of directory are different. The new kind of directories have address, map, and many other information that would help users understand the business. Take an example of Manta, Google Local, Yahoo local, Yelp and other similar sites. These sites are called business directories, rather than web directories or citation websites. Instead of web directories, webmasters now focus on citation building through these authority websites. So if you are investing in a web directory website, then better go for a business directory rather than traditional web directory. Where there is more than just a basic info of a website/business. Take inspiration from Manta, Yelp and other similar sites. This type of websites are also used by normal Internet users and it will have significance for a long time to come.
For traditional web directories to be profitable, you'll have to travel back in time to the year 2005!
I am sure glad you're wrong about that because my wife and I have both been earning a living, mostly through web directories, for well over a decade now, and I just turned down a job because I don't have time for it. True though, they were far more profitable in the early 2000s, but the good ones are still moving along.
I am not sure why traditional directories are still alive. Maybe people are still using it thinking that traditional web directories still hold any value, which I am sure about that there is little to no value of traditional web directories. However, if a directory provides citations (NAP), map, proper categories, and reviews; then it will have value and good authority as citations and reviews are major ranking factors. I think people should invest in citations and reviews instead of traditional directories.
Two things about directories that I can not understand: 1. Who actually submits to any directory today>? 2. Who actually uses a directory to find a site?
You are absolutely right in that directories are going to have to evolve if they are going to remain relevant. Gone are the days when someone can put up a directory script, call it a directory, and have it be considered useful. There are, however, many ways in which they can evolve, including, I am sure, many that I haven't even thought of. A few that come to mind may include actual reviews of sites rather than non-descriptive site descriptions, providing useful, informative and well-written information about the subject of each category, far more discretion as to which sites are going to be included, and more emphasis on proper placement. Directory categories need to be more than repositories for paid back-links. When creating a category, the idea should be to seek and include the most relevant sites for that topic. Then if someone wants to pay to have their on-topic site includes as well, that wouldn't be a problem. Too often, the only sites listed in a category are those that paid to be listed there, and they are generally not the most useful resources on that topic. As it is, there are some good directories. I am sure that I'm not the only one to have noticed that search engines don't generally return the most appropriate sites on searches either. In my job of building up web directories, I use search engines often, so I spend hours each day searching on various topics, and it is not at all unusual for me to find that the first two pages of results may yield only one or two useful sites. When I am unable to find something that I am looking for, whether in my work of in general, I often turn to some of the better directories. Too often, I am disappointed but sometimes we forget how often the search engines disappoint us, as well.
Exactly. Good Answer. Directories must include reviews along with description. Description tells what company is about, reviews tells the quality of their service/product, both are very important. There are many popular and high authority directories today. One can take inspiration from "Best of the Web" directory and "Business.com". But still, for directories to succeed, they must keep up with the latest trends.
open www.TrafficHeat.com click any category , open any site, u will see comment and review box their with ratings box too.. i think this is fine enough or not ?
Are you logged into your google account when searching? It's definitely not listed on the first page for me, or even the 5th page.. I stopped searching after that. To answer the OP's question.. You can start a directory if you want but the days of ranking your directory easily and being able to charge $50 for a premium listing for a new site are long gone. I'd focus on affiliate marketing if you're wanting to make quick money online. spammers no one
I don't know what to tell you, I wasn't anywhere on page 5.. this was google.com not another google.ca or whatever. Also being on page 4 isn't anything to brag about, but I'm sure we all know that.
I think good idea is to start a local directory or niche directory. (If competition is quite low). Also making unique as possible is good.