I'm new to the process of link acquisition via directories, and have been weeding through lists that people have shared with me. I've been attempting to craft an effective system to go forth doing this in the future with the best results possible, and had to ask advice on this subject: Does linking to directory sites (whose home pages are either a PR 1 or 0) yield any positive outcome in terms of google rank? I realize that google renders inbound links as an important element for authority, but have come across numerous sites with substantial figures of incoming links that are completely lacking authority. I appreciate any feedback on the matter!! I'm super new at this and am genuinely interested in what considerations are at play for the search engine.
One of the most important criteria in Google's algo is the linking site's topic in relation to your site. If the two sites are related you'll get a bump in the SERPs regardless of the PR. I'd start with niche directories, then look for general directories where the page you'll be listed on is ranked in Google for some of the terms on the page that are related to your site. After that, you can move on to some of the better know general directories.
Thanks a bunch! Thus far I've managed to adhere to that rationale, making sure that I'm navigating to the most relevant page on the directory to submit my link, but for many of the sites I come across for which I do this process, the home page lacks PR.. My only worry is I'm being inefficient and come 6 months, I'll have submitted my site to a bajillion directories on the most appropriate pages and still won't have yielded benefits from these. Should I shut up and suck it up, or is there some validity in my concern?
The trick with directory submission is submitting to well-run directories that are not part of someone's get rich quick scheme. That is somewhat easy to determine based on age, the size of the submission queue (if listed) and the quality of the listings themselves. Look for directories where the categories contain only sites that belong in that category. Read a few of the descriptions. Are they a few fairly well-written sentences or simply a list of keywords? If there are thousands of sites in the queue, it's generally a waste of time to submit. If the site proclaims itself to be new and have PR in the same breath, it is most likely built on a dropped domain that will eventually lose both its backlinks and its PR. They are usually built to be sold before that happens and submitting to them promotes this sleazy behavior as well as provides a link that usually doesn't last very long. The misguided directory owners or outright thieves almost always accept anything, anywhere. Submitting to those directories is a waste of time and linking back to them puts your own site at risk. Link back only to those directories that you would honestly recommend to another webmaster. Sadly, the vast majority of the directories being announced here on DP are garbage. You didn't mention which lists you are using. Make sure it is one that focuses on listing only quality directories. It won't guarantee that they are all good but you will avoid having to slog through dozens of sites to find one or two worth submitting to.
i have seen many people submitting to every known directory for the sake of getting backlinks and boost in serps but, do you think using the same title & description on hundreds of pages will give you a boost? i think it will act just opposite just like you can't submit same article in tons of article directories its kinda senseless to use same title and description when submitting your site in different directories also, it would be good to stick with your niche or else submit in general directories other then submitting in every niche as we all know, its always good to submit in relevant high PR directories and Quality matters over Quantity
The problem is that there are a lot of bad directories out there these days. You also can have the problem that many of them will never list your site as a free listing. Look for quality and remember that the little PR number is often not a sign of quality. Many directories use dead domains that already have high PR. In order to do well in the SERPs it is important to supplement your directory links with a wide range of links. Links from social media, websites, forums, blogs...