Submission To Directories

Submission to directories is not a direct way to promote your home business website, and you will not get droves of traffic to your website from the links in directories. But directory submissions do have value in promoting your website. Submitting to directories is just another element in the equation, and an important one.

The value of directory submissions

There is  value in directory submission, but it will come in an indirect way. All search engines value backlinks in varying degrees. Each engine has it's own criteria, but all search engines value backlinks, and you will be hard pressed to get listed and get any kind of positioning with the search engines without backlinks.

By submitting your website to directories, and by abiding to their guidelines, and using good anchor text you can receive great value in getting your sites moved up in the search engines.

Directory submissions are time consuming

Submitting to a lot of directories can be very time consuming, so this should only be alotted so much time in your schedule.

Trends change, and the way search engines value different SEO tactics are ever-changing. At the time of this writing (June, 2011) the current thinking is that search engines are giving less weight to directory submissions.

To go even further, the current agreement among those who watch these things carefully, is that more focused submissions will give the best results.

It is generally thought at this time that it is far better to submit to directories that are focused around your niche. So, if your site was about jewelry, you should submit to directories that are focused around jewelry or accessories. Here is an example of a niche directory list.

You will also find directories that are focused if you do a search and use your niche keyword in quotes.

Selective directory submissions

If you submit to both general and focused directories, it is good to be selective.

1. Choose those that finely categorize placement so that you are listed with sites compatible subject-wise to yours.

2. Avoid directories that have too many entries on a single page.

3. Check the page rank of the directory home page and the category page. Also check to see if they have any backlinks and that they have been indexed.

4. Make sure that the links are dofollow. Explanation: Links in a web page can either be nofollow meaning that the search engine is instructed not to follow them. Or, they can be dofollow which encourages the search engines to follow them. A nofollow will do you little good, and is not worth pursuing.

By checking pagerank and backlinks you can determine if the directory has any reputation or history with the search engines.

To help in this and many other activities, I would suggest you download the firefox browser if you don't already use it. It has extensions and plugins you can select and download that can be very helpful. The search status extension will highlight nofollow links, and provide information on page rank, backlinks and much more. 

To sum up, directories can still be useful when you are first getting started. Many of them are free. Submit to some of the better general directories, being careful to choose the right category, follow their guidelines, and use anchor text.

Then select some more focused specifically to your niche. Just don't spend too much time on this, because with web 2.0 there are more productive ways to promote your site than just directory submissions. 

I

Profitable Home Based Internet Businesses | Link Popularity 
Reciprocal Links Get Attention