Directories & Search Engine Optimisation
A web directory links to other websites but rather than basing its results on keywords like search engines do, the web directory instead lists the sites by category and subcategory. There are different kinds of directories but the benefit that they have in terms of search engine optimisation is to generate ‘link juice’ effectively in order to build a website’s authority with search engines. Web directory submissions are considered to be an important part of a wider search engine optimisation strategy, but SEO submissions must be implemented correctly in order to achieve maximum SEO benefit. As with any links built as part of a search engine optimisation campaign, the key to effective web directory submissions is in the quality rather than the quantity.
With many thousands to choose from, a question that must be asked is which web directory submissions will be of most search engine optimisation value? There are different schools of thought within the SEO industry, with some agencies advocating web directory submissions to as many directories possible, yet others preferring a more selective approach. The latter opinion is one shared by SEO Consult Australia, because as with many search engine optimisation link building techniques, poor and irrelevant links can actually damage your online reputation with search engines rather than build it.
Quality Web Directory Submissions
Discerning the quality of a web directory is a vital part of ensuring that you get the maximum search engine optimisation benefit possible from your SEO submissions. Rather than submitting to all of the mostly ineffectual free directories, it makes more sense to choose each individual web directory to ensure that it is a worthwhile SEO technique. Often a very good indicator of whether a web directory will serve your search engine optimisation purposes is whether or not it has an effective and enforced submissions policy which ensures that listings are exactly what they pertain to be. Without an editorial policy in place, anyone could submit their website claiming to be anything they want, which leads to poor relevancy and a frustrating user experience. This is the sort of web directory which has no real SEO benefit and you would be wise saving your SEO submissions for other reputable directories. A web directory with an effective editorial policy is unlikely to offer free directory submissions because of the man hours involved in ensuring that the SEO submissions made are relevant and authentic.
Finding good quality web directory submissions sites is made easier by following a few pointers.
- Does the web directory submissions site have lots of back links from websites with lots of search engine authority? This will help to pass on some of that search engine optimisation authority to your SEO submissions and thus your website
- Does the web directory submissions site have a good reputation within the search engine optimisation industry? Reading blogs and forums can help you to find out whether a particular web directory is considered useful by other search engine optimisation professionals. Although bear in mind that they are just opinions.
- Does the web directory submissions site seem to produce good, relevant and high quality websites as results when you visit their category pages? If not then there is likely to be little search engine optimization benefit as they won’t be considered relevant or worthy of authority by search engines.
- Does the web directory submissions site lay down criteria which must be met before SEO submissions are accepted? Web directory submission sites which accept just any site without question are less likely to produce noticeable search engine optimization benefit. Web directory sites with clear editorial policies will be more beneficial to a wider search engine optimization campaign than those which don’t check on websites making SEO submissions.
- Does the web directory submissions site get rid of websites which have become obsolete or outdated? A good web directory, likely to give you the most search engine optimization benefit, will periodically check that the SEO submissions are still functioning websites as part of their quality control.
- Does the web directory submissions site use adverts as a major revenue source? Advertisers won’t want to be associated with a poor quality SEO submissions site and this gives a web directory the incentive to be careful about the quality of website they accept as directory submissions.
Multiple Benefits Of Manual Web Directory Submissions
By utilising quality directory submissions, ensuring that only relevant and authoritative directories are handpicked and submitted to manually, you can see a great deal of benefit to your wider search engine optimization campaign which includes aspects of both on-page and off-page search engine optimization strategy. At SEO Consult Australia, we see search engine optimization as a multi-faceted internet marketing strategy, in which web directory submissions play a vital role, as your website builds authority and becomes more visible online.
Intelligent and well researched web directory submissions can result in a marked increase in targeted traffic to your site through its direct linking to your site from category pages, but the search engine optimization benefits lie in the way that web directory submissions can provide high quality one-way links to your website. This can help to build your Google PageRank and shows all the major search engines that your site is worth them recommending in their results pages. Your website’s visibility in search engine results can improve greatly when web directory submissions are implemented well, and adds weight to your overall search engine optimization efforts.
At SEO Consult Australia, we offer a comprehensive manual web directory submissions service as well as bringing in other kinds of SEO submissions to your search engine optimization campaign, such as article submissions, press releases, social bookmarking and more. When developing the search engine optimization strategy initially, we look at the industry that you are part of very closely, as that can have a big influence in finding niche directories which will give you the most search engine optimization benefit, rather than carrying out SEO submissions everywhere we can indiscriminately. We have the experience to know when a web directory submissions site is of an exceptionally low or high quality and concentrate only on SEO submissions which will benefit you.
