I was hoping that I could get some information on exactly what benefits you get from purchasing the Yahoo directory link for $299. Our website and articles all populate within the yahoo search engine now... So what are the end results of purchasing the directory? Does it increase your "authority" within yahoo and the links that show up are ranked higher? Thanks for the feedback!
More exposure because our links that are indexed in Yahoo already gain more "juice" because we are a paid listing? Or does Yahoo look at our site and index pages faster?
I don`t think Google penalise paid listings from Yahoo. I`m sure getting a site in the directory gives a lot of exposure, but whether it`s worth the $299 fee is debatable. Bear in mind of course that if your site is rejected the $299 is forfeited, so it`s a risk in submitting it.
So really all you are paying for is a listing in the Yahoo directory that nobody really looks through anyways? It does not give your website anymore authority within the Yahoo search?
Yahoo directory has a high PageRank, so you get the benefit of that- or at least that's the idea, I have heard others say that you need to check the PR of the section you're actually going in, as it's not all the same. Technically, you're not paying for a link, you're paying for a review.
I'd disagree with most here and say that it's worth it, assuming you have the cash to spare. If you only have $500 to your name, perhaps the $299 would be better spent elsewhere. If, however, you run a serious business then $299 is not a huge expense. A good way to look at it is to think of how much extra traffic you'll get (both from increased position in SERPs and from actual visitors the Yahoo! Directory sends you) and then think about what the annual cost would be if you paid for that same traffic via PPC. For me, the Yahoo! Directory expense has been massively profitable by these metrics as I've recieved a small trickle of direct traffic but a noticeable boost in SERPs as a result. Also, I actually chose not to pay the renewal fee for one of my listed sites and 4 months later it still remains in the Yahoo! Directory. Strange. Most recently, I've seen the most significant impact on my placement in Yahoo SERPs after purchasing the directory listing. I am now ranking for highly competitive terms on the first 1-5 pages of Yahoo whereas previous I was burried. Keep in mind, I the site I'm referring to has a world-class domain name which was registered almost 12 years ago, so it was likely already viewed favorably by Yahoo before the listing. The first site I listed (the one I'm not longer paying for) was an unknown site with a newly registered and not-so-great domain. Perhaps it was a coincidence but the day after paying for my listing it went from PR3 to PR4. Since then it's dropped to PR2 over the course of 1-2 years but the blame for that likely rests on my shoulders for neglecting the site. The bottom line, IMHO - If you have a quality site a Yahoo Directory listing can only help to further improve your placement in SERPs. $299 is not a lot of money for most serious web businesses and, in my opinoin at least, it's worth spending just in case there is truth to all the speculation about the preferential treatment Yahoo and DMOZ listed sites are given. If your site is low-quality than a Yahoo Directory listing may help a little bit (assuming you're even approved) but it's not likely going to have as major impact. I hope this post was helpful.
I have to say I dislike the idea that they`ll keep the $299.00 whether the site is listed or not. I suppose they are trying to keep out the low quality sites by doing that, but even so...