Website directories can work, just as @Nicholas Pope stated. You do want a directory that has more than just a list of websites. Look for a directory that has a blog and other types or regularly added content that is useful to people. Many directories are just one page or so and just have a main page that is nothing but links. Those types of directories offer nothing in return to their visitors, other than just links to sites. A quality directory will have more benefits to it's visitors so more and more people will visit the directory and come back again. You can usually look at the main page of a directory and tell it's nothing more than just a source for links. It's also best if the directory is human audited so not just anyone can post up their spam sites just to get a link. There should be human quality control.
No, quality directories are ok for Google. They can actually benefit from them in "related:" searches.
First I'd look at the domain name, then at some approved sites to see if they are ok and properly categorised, then I'd look at directory's backlinks, pagerank and template.
I like finding high quality domains and then building my own directories using the Listify theme. I then create a high quality, relevant listing to my website. The best thing about this method is, I can also sell listings on Fiverr to other website owners. 2 birds with one stone
Except for a very small number of directories, the rest are useless. Just seeing the talk about quality directories having high PR, when PR has not been updated in 1.5 years and wont be exported to the toolbar, just goes to show what poor advice is being disseminated by people that don't even have a clue about what they are talking about. For example, a quality directory is Yelp. Useless directories can be found in the announcements forum.
My only gripe about YELP is a business's inability to easily combat fake reviews and attacks on a business that may not be warranted.
Which directories you submitted? Any improvement in your Google rank post submission? Do you have a list of directories which are still valid in 2016 please? Thanks -Rutuja
You don't need a list to figure out which directories work. It's simple: Go to Google and type in your niche + directory or your niche + directories. Whatever shows up on the first page is obviously doing something correct. Another method is to search for general directories and check their CF, TF, DA and category PA in Majestic - submit high, ignore low! EDIT: I went ahead and did an example for you...
Thanks a lot Matthew! My niche is Stock Market, apart from DMOZ, I am really confused as to which are relevant directories Kind Regards -Rutuja
T Thanks again Matthew! But as I said, the links and their Alexa rankings are worse than my own website I tried the best 6 results, but all are asking either for premium account or link reciprocal I had heard that directory submission is free of cost. Also I fail to understand that even of their poor alexa rankings how did these sites manage to get into google first page results? This is something which I had never known Kind Regards -Rutuja
You need to completely ignore Alexa - it's absolutely worthless, especially in the SEO world. Does Alexa determine the quality of a website? NO! It's only measuring traffic, which Google could care less about. Google's ONLY mission is to provide a searcher with the most relevant information on the topic in which they are searching for. For example, if someone searches "How to cook a pancake" - they want to find the BEST piece of content for that search, period. That being said, the only metrics you should be concerned with are PAGE authority and DOMAIN authority. I placed those in that order for a reason, PAGE authority is more important than DOMAIN authority. Google doesn't rank domains, they rank pages. I also just gave you a secret glimpse into doing proper keyword research - find a keyword in Google that is ranking low PA websites, THESE are the easiest keywords to rank for. Now, let's get back to your directories... One of the first results I found in your niche is: http://www.stockmarket-directory.com/. Using my favorite DA and PA checker http://www.seoreviewtools.com/website-authority-checker/ I found that the homepage is showing a DA of 28 and a PA of 39 - this is GREAT! You won't get the full benefit of the PA, because you're not going to be displayed on the homepage, however it's safe to assume that this website obviously has enough juice to increase your rankings, IF you're targeting a good enough keyword. Would you mind sharing your keyword? I can tell you if it's even worth the effort.
Who told you that? Did you do a few case studies? Or, are you just blindly assuming because some guy on YouTube told you so? Use your OWN mind and stop being a robotic parrot.