I would like to have an open discussion about the value of directories. Personally, I see the values of directories dropping among link building techniques. I even believe submitting to high quality directories such as Dmoz is starting to lose the value it once had. What do you guys think about the value of directories in link building? Has it gone down like I believe, or am I wrong?
I believe it is. I am no expert on link building and SEO, but submitting to directories seems be decreasing in value. Google seems to look the other way when your website is submitted to multiple directories. I know low quality directories do nothing for you, but the high quality directories I have personally submitted to, seem to have decreasing value to Google.
no specific link building method works the same forever. while submitting to SEO friendly quality directories will help to some extent, you will need to use a mixed link building campaing using various link building methods for better result. don;t just rely on one
i think directory is also important part of link building .. its easy est way to increase your backlink if you went strong backlink the submit in high pr directory . .. Dmoz is starting to lose the value it once had. i don,t thinks so .
Directory submission is still a good linkbuilding technique. In fact, I still get backlinks from it. However, I only link to directories with PR.
Directory submission is a quick way of getting massive inbound links. Submitting to free directories takes time but is one of the cheapest methods to get anchored backlinks.
Personally I never placed a real importance on directory submissions they were just something I did when I was to tired to write articles. They are still good for geting a few backlinks, but don't think you will beat out your competition if you get a bunch of backlinks from directories. This type of link building should only be a very small part of your marketing campaign.
I see tons of directory submission services nowdays. If this thing works, all people websites are in the first rank. However, I still believe that getting your site in good directories helps your pages ranking. Unfortunately, almost all good directories cost you so much.
I think still directory submission has its own importance for getting enormous inbound links. Thats true it takes time; but if you are using link building for your site then you must have patience for the good output.
Hello, Yes, All of the comments are correct but we cant get quick backlinks from the directories. We have to wait for some days. Before submitting directories we have to check whether the page has been indexed on the particular category page? If it is indexed we proceed with the submission If the page has not been indexed, there is no value for that backlink If it is approved and don't do directory submission alone, concentrate on other link building strategies also. Thanks
I've always considered directory submissions to be a more mid-range to long term backlink strategy - certainly not an effective way to get good backlinks quickly. Due to the low PR of most of the category pages your link would actually appear on, it can take days or even weeks for your links to get picked up, even on a high quality directory. I think that most of the search engines are penalizing many directories due to poor quality control, creating directories on dropped domains with fake PR, and a number of other factors. I personally tend to shy away from submitting to PHPLD directories that still have the footer link just for that reason - I think it's a dead giveaway to the search engines that the content within may be low quality, and those sites bear additional scrutiny as a result. That being said, I don't think the penalties are being applied across the board, and selective submission to high-quality, SEO-friendly directories is still effective.
Absolutely - I think Google is devaluing a majority directories that sell links or approve everything that is submitted. Further, most directories don't have a lot of pagerank flowing to the pages that have your links on them. For the most part, I only look at directories that are niche-specific and have few links. Then just submit & forget (and try to deal with all the junk email it tends to bring in)
Directories are an important step to link building, but the value of directories are going down because of the increasing number of low quality directories that sell links and have no PR in their categories. Then the discussion poses the question: how important is submitting to directories compared to other strategies such as social bookmarking, submitting articles, etc...?
The quality of DMOZ has been in question for years now. The only reason it is as popular as it is has been due to the previous hype it once had and by low quality SEO bloggers posting for content (over quality). There is also the horrible wait time (often years) for getting a listing and the fact that many editors claim the submission queue is an optional source for the editors to find sites (allowing submitters to not bother submitting as there is now an equal chance of getting in by just having good SERP). Yahoo has been getting pretty lax as well and is now riddled with dead links and of course there is still the high cost of inclusion. Other paid directories lost a LOT of value last year when Google said something about lowering their value. Free directories are the definition of "you get what you pay for" and if you've ever submitted to the list of free directories out there you'll know that submitting to many of them equates to never getting a listing but getting more junk emails then you had the week before. (NOTE: Some are still pretty decent). To top all of those points back when Directories first started directories were the BEST way to get the word out because search engines SUCKED. Now that Search Engines are FAR better at what they do directories themselves are simply obsolete. Expect their value to continue to drop, especially general directories. Topical directories still have some value and some life, as people are actually starting to use them again.
See, that's what I am trying to say. You are completely right Qryztufre. Directories were very important in the beginning, even free directories. Though, within the past year or so, the value of any directory has become less important in linkbuilding. DMOZ does have a horrible wait time and though people should still submit to it, it's very irritating how its quality has gone down. It is filled with dead links because of the long waiting time and the value it once had. All directories seem to be scumming to that. What is the point in submitting to directories anymore if Google is denouncing its value?
IMO I agree that SE are giving less importance lately. My own experience: 1- I got my site listed on DMOZ about two years ago. My keyword is really really competitive and at that time I was ranking 9-10 for the two most important. Google get me up 3 positions after the listed. 2- I finally decided to pay Yahoo Directory and believe me, this is a TOTALLY WASTE OF MONEY. If you haven't done this, DON'T DO IT. I paid two months ago the listing and I don't move up one position EVEN IN YAHOO. Other side with Yahoo is that Google might don't like (and don't count) your Yahoo listing. After all, I'm convinced that getting in Yahoo PR4 page is exactly the same as getting a link at any PR4 web page. I got now my CC changed so they will not get more money from me. This is what I have to say. Good luck!
While directories won't get you top10 for online casino they will increase your PR and slightly improve your SERP. The little trick here is not to rely to directories only. You should have a diversified link profile in order to rank high.