Looking for business directory script.

First off I don't want to see a bunch of PHPLD plugger replies.

Needs the following fields Business Name, Address 1, Address 2, City, State, Zip, Web Address, Email, Phone 1, Phone 2, Fax, Short description, Full Description of goods and/or services offered.

Categories/subcategories at least 3 deep. Fully searchable.

Needs an easy to way make it mobile device friendly.

It would be used as a regional and mostly rural with small towns business directory.

I have been looking and haven't found anything that really fits either because of functionality or cost.

I could likely convert one of the Open Source scripts to meet my needs but time and learning curves are a problem.

Thanks in advance for any thoughts (except the typical LD rocks just to bump your post count)

 

I would check on ebay. search for php script, php website or website. I have seen several customizable scripts there and they usually go at a good price.

 

Yes phpLD is perfect for link directories but not good for industry or yellow page type sites. Here're many phpLD fans, they'll recommend this script without any consideration if you ask what's the best directory script.

IndexU: http://www.nicecoder.com
You can easily customize the detail page fields in the control panel, add related categories, and automatically link other detail pages under the same cat or the same memeber. The problem with this script is there're few good templates available.

esyndicat: http://www.esyndicat.com also has similar functions.

 

Hi Harkster,

I may have a good solution for you.
All requirements you have mentioned are there within the package, however, 'Needs an easy to way make it mobile device friendly' - I'm not sure how this will be achieved.
You may see the Yellow Pages Directory in action at QualityBusinessLinks.com
Please let me know if interested. We can negotiate the price. If you wish, I will have someone set it up on your server.
The payment gateway that I have on the directory is 2CO (2CheckOut.com).
This can be changed to Paypal or any other Payment Processor you prefer.

A few highlights of the directory:
Search Engine Friendly URLs.
Two way search: Either by State > City or by Categories > Sub-categories > Sub-Categories .....
Banner Advertisement can make you some extra money at later stages.
The duration and price of Listing packages can be set through the backend.
Totally customized scripting in Admin Area (No PHPLD or other scripts used at all).
Fully customized monthly newsletters right through the Admin Panel.
Individual Listings may receive messages from site visitors.
Merchants/Business Owners may list complete company profile along with Company Logo, Address, Phone Number, Contact Person, Company Email, etc.
Google Maps integrated with each listing.
Many other features which I can't think of at the moment lol.

Regards,
Andy.

 

I am sort of surprised at the number of replies so quickly.

I looked at Indexu some time ago and went on when I found they $$$ you to death after purchase and a couple other things.

I have one Esyndicat site and think it would be overkill for this.

Netproint, from what you describe I fear the price may be a killer as this will be a free service and hopefully pay its way by selling advertising and maybe 'premium' listings at some point. There are other reasons than 'direct' financial benefit in doing this and it could very well fall flat.

I currently have 8 phone books in my office with each covering some part of this area and none completely. It can be a real pain when looking for a business/service location or contact information.

 

It's a headache that it's difficult to find an indexu or esyndicat coder who offers a cheap price to customize the script. The esyndicat developer once did a job for one of my friends to convert the script into the business type. Their job was excellent but the price was high.

However, you won't find a cheap customized script if you only want to pay small money. I suggested indexu or esyndicat because they have more potential to be developed into a full-fledged business directory.

eDirectory http://www.edirectory.com might also be considered, but they charge $$$$

 

I understand what you have mentioned, however, it is upto the directory owner to charge for packages or keep it free.
But yeah, an account needs to be created even for a free submission.
Free submissions are good for an year. But the Paid submissions are good from 1 month to 12 months. Buyers can purchase a Silver or Gold package for 1 to 12 months.
I guess, its not the best solution for you. If you have 8 phone books to deal with and you add up sites and details on your own, man, it will require a LOT OF hard work.

 

Jeeeez lol $1500 for an owned license. Wow, I wonder how many copies they may have sold so far. I was thinking of selling my directory script for $100 or so for the owned license. LOL .. how much do you guys recommend I can sell mine for? I mean what would be a good price?

DragonGuy's suggestion is good. You should buy some script that fits your need (generally the scripts are priced around $99 or low) and then get it customized according to your needs from a freelancer. You can find a lot of such freelancers here at DP. That way, the complete site/directory will cost you less than $500 (maybe less - $300 or $400). But yeah, finding a freelancer to do the job maybe a little painful. Try DP, rentacoder.com, getafreelancer.com or other sites.

Regards,
Andy.

 

I know you said not to,

but

The latest version of phpld does have address, zip etc and also adds Google maps, and any field it doesnt have can be added easily.

 

You might want to try installing Joomla and using the free component Sigsiu Online Business Index 2 Sobi2.
http://extensions.joomla.org/component/option,com_mtree/task,viewlink/link_id,1113/Itemid,35/

Their demo is http://joomla.sigsiu.net/directory.html

The basic skin is pretty awful, but I have used it many times for business clients wanting a directory.

Only thing I am unsure of is the added deep links, as I have not used it in the last couple months.

 

Ive seen a number of high quality scripts posting in threads here over a year or so, but then when the person realises how much they will have to pay for the script they usually change their mind.

Or talk of having something coded but again it will cost.

If you have specific requirements and the cheaper scripts dont fit what you need then you have to consider paying substantially more to get exactly what you need.

That, or settle for less.

Most ready made scripts will have something missing that you require or have somethng that a user finds annoying or less than ideal.

 

Excellent! Very well said Pipes (+rep).
Thats why my directory at QualityBusinessLinks.com costed me over $2000.
I used PHPLD earlier, but wanted to get out of the crowd. Other scripts had something or the other missing and a lot of peeps were already using them, so paid a lot of $$ to have a unique classifieds directory.
I guess, its not bad to sell the script for a cheap price. Let me know if anyone interested in buying the script

Andy.

 

phpMyDirectory comes to mind for a businesses script.

 

Thanks for all the quality input. If nothing else it has given me information to work with. Only thing I am ruling out at this point is I want nothing to do with LD.

When I started thinking about this project I went to look at Lynx and noticed they had shut down. I wish I could justify a large investment but since the total population of the 6 counties is only around 60,000 and the largest city? is around 10,000 I can't see it as a big money maker.

My instincts are telling me to take a GPL script and start digging into the code to do exactly what I want. I can deal with the PHP and starting to get the hang of smarty stuff but am a total SQL dunce.

But, I am off to take a look at PHPMyDirectory.

Can anyone provide me URL(s) to live PHPMyDirectory sites - the demo doesn't look to bad?

 

Im suprised you haven't started already on something of your own if current scripts are not impressing you.

Try http://www.google.com/search?client...MyDirectory.com+(v.+1.0.3)&btnG=Google+Search

 

I have been looking at doing something myself.

I just want to make sure that I am not missing something before I invest a lot of time modifying an existing script.

I kinda might like PHPMyDirectory but their license is extremely tight and I am 'gun shy' from having been burnt badly by buying without being able to fully evaluate a piece of software. Their demo gives an error if trying to see how add a listing works (looks like advertise is where that is done). One of the reasons I am a big supporter of Open Source and GPL software.

Oh yes, about current scripts impressing me. First about LD; that is just that I like traveling a slightly different path and when I took a look at it I saw nothing which made it stand out. Before I started CeramicArtsIndex.us I spent several months downloading, testing, reading, asking questions and checking what the cost of plugins and modules would be before deciding on Esyndicat so I am not totally uninformed. Granted their free evaluation versions are not fully functional but can give a general feel for the product. I could buy a second Esyndicat license cheap but not sure that is the right option.

Yes, my wife gives me fits about the time I spend evaluating options before making decisions. But I think that is one of the reasons I was a damn good 'code cranker' with a fancy title. Sort of like a Sanitation Engineer is a Garbage Man and a Software Engineer is a Programmer (code cranker).

 

Here's a new directory for Aussie businesses, not many listings yet but I'm working on it. It uses phpMyDirectory.

search-australia.org

 

That looks pretty clean. Very nice design. Good directory SB.

 

Thanks a lot. A couple questions if you don't mind.

Setting mobile option - is that a .mobi template?
Can a use have multiple listings?
Template system smarty based?

I think I better contact them cause the list is growing.

This may be best option but didn't like seeing security issues on the above Google search but they were all over a year ago.