I see so many web directories in the forums starting P0 till P9 rankings. I don't think many people are using these directory in normal life. As I know majority of the people use top search engines like google, yahoo, msn. Etc.. I have a doubt that web directories made only for back linking purpose & not as a directory. What is your opinion on this? Can any one correct me if I am wrong.
like any type of site people make them for different reasons blogs for paid posts and adsense for example directories are no different some to sell backlinks, some as a resource to the main site etc no hard and fast rule, different people, different aims
I used to think the same thing until I actually started looking at the amount of hits that the links get in a couple of my directories! People get used to finding things and using different resources in different sites, including me. For instance: I like to use the Google PR Prediction tool at either linkforever.net or 2kstar.org. I know that they are using Iwebtool for their source but i am comfortable using those two sites. Bottom Line: I think that ANY site that achieves success in getting term positions and traffic will get regular users that visit and use what they have to offer if it is a comfotable site for them!
Some directories do very well, but they may not necessarily take the form of the typical directory that you might look at. One good example is OVGuide.com which is basically a directory of top TV and video sites. I think that in order to have some success, then you have to have a target audience with meaningful content - and a way to attract this audience. One thing to avoid, I think, is getting into the zero sum game of paying for entries into directories and have the owners of those directories paying into yours. It is an interesting game of circulating money but I don't think it does anything beyond that. Rich
Yes you are right, probably over 80% of directories out there are just crap and made to sell or give away links. There are however a number of directories, both general and niche that are there to help users and provide decent content.
Directories defination atm unfortunately is a site to get desired backlink from a related category. Almost 80% directory out there are crap and just for living for submissions (as mike said). But in coming years they will slowly start dying, all those who were 1year back QBC and thought only investing $$ makes a directory successful are near their death beds. This cycle is gonna continue. Those following the content and development feature are rising and living.
What I would like to see are directory scripts that are clearly designed to benefit visitors. Unfortunately, I don't think such scripts exist at this point though two are getting pretty close. One is the In-Portal directory that I am going to use for my new site. There are enough basic visitor oriented features there, e.g. news, ratings, reviews, forum, to make the extra cost worthwhile for me. The other directory that I was looking at was jReviews which also has some nice visitor oriented features, but I decided not to go this route because it uses Joomla as a platform and it is encrypted using Ioncube, which would be to chaotic and risky for me. Rich
I think this is true for most directories, but I think there are exceptions. OVGuide does get a good amount of traffic. I believe Alibaba also does quite well with traffic. Among the thousands of directories out there, these are certainly the exception, but they do demonstrate that it may be possible to develop a good traffic direct based upon quality content and a visitor oriented perspective. As long as most directories are built for backlinks, then I agree that they are only good for links - and even then I question their value. In any case, I am willing to invest in some money to try to build a quality directory along the lines of the more successful directories with traffic. It should be interesting to see what happens. Rich
Don't worry about what w3bmaster said, he posts that reply in all the directory/traffic related threads. He doesn't realise there is more to directories that free general directories.
Thanks all Looks like most of them have same opinion like me. If the web directory’s act as resource for back links, then there is no point subscribing for featured link I believe. Any opinions on this?
Hi, IMO, getting featured in directories does have a point - Your link is on the first page - that's substantial, both to visitors and SE. I still believe both paid and free dirs have their own place in the community - no matter how crappy they are - will they survive? Sure - some said directories are dead a decade ago, but in the past few years, new directories are established and the market is there - and thriving. Basic supply - demand, I guess. As long as related, quality backlinks are important, directories are here to stay. And, oh, directories help SE to determine the topic of your URL - very, very important in getting you ranked well in SERPs for a certain keyword related to the topic of your URL. Cheers!