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Free vs. Paid: Two Types of Directory Submission

Directory submission is one of those everyday SEO activities that most people think they have pretty much down pat. You find a directory that accepts websites, you turn in your link, and then you find another directory. It’s almost the most idiot-proof, dead-simple kind of website SEO you can imagine. But there are complexities to directory submission that many SEO novices might not imagine; one of those complexities is the difference between free directories and paid directories.

Why would you ever pay to have your website listed in a directory if there are free directories out there waiting to be submitted to? We’ll explain that in a moment. Before we get there, let’s look at the things that make one free directory better than another.

Age — Obviously, Google values links from older domains more than links from newbie domains.
Relevance — There are lots of generic directories out there, but there are also plenty of niche-specific directories that will earn your backlink extra ‘juice’ for their relevance to your site’s subject.
Static Links — Directories with dynamic links are pointless for SEO; your link might not be listed on any given crawl of the Google spider. Static links are aussie pokies a must.
Dofollow Links — Should be pretty obvious.
Controllable Anchor Text — You can’t focus on a specific keyword if the directory forces you to use something like your URL as your anchor text.

So, now you know what makes a good free directory. When you discuss paid directories, you have to take all of those rules into account as well, but you also have to add in the extra factor of “cost-per-juice”. It might be worth it, for example, to spend $300 for a year of listing on the Yahoo! Directory — it’s got a cubic boatload of all of the attributes mentioned above, and it’ll be a powerful link.

It’s probably not worth it, however, to spend $300 to get listed on the Alive Directory. They’re trying to become as authoritative as Yahoo!, and they think that charging the same amount will lead to the same quality — but they’re far from worth it at the moment.

So, paid directories can be totally worth the cost it takes to get listed, but only if they’re everything a good free directory is and then some — so be cautious, but don’t hesitate if you find a few good ones.

90 thoughts on “Free vs. Paid: Two Types of Directory Submission”

  1. I am thinking of any low cost, yet average return online business which i can operate semi-automatic.

    And also, anyone knows how do i get part time SEO on the internet to customize my potential website at a very reasonable price? on project basis.

    Thank you.

  2. Where can i find affordable writers for my online blogs. Im looking to hire someone to add content to my www (DOT) OnlineDegreeInComputer (DOT) com just looking for someone to do reviews.

  3. I have a small business and a website now i want to market it through Internet. I have read little about SEO and PPC. I spoke to a few companies but they are charging beyond my capacity. Also i am not sure of their service. Can anyone suggest some good SEO consultant or affordable internet marketing company in India ( preferaly kolkata) ?

  4. Hey I am beginning to use free directories to submit.

    Also I am wondering can you submit your website more then once to DMOZ?
    Also does DMOZ always accept appropriate listings?

  5. I want to find a good company which can do SEO well.
    Keywords as below:
    shoes
    wholesale shoes
    clothes bag
    requirements: in the first page on Google.com after SEO.

  6. I want to know that directory submission is still beneficial for us , because my seo friend gave me advice stop directory submission , but first friends i want to know about your opinion. Please suggest me.

  7. I want some websites which provides latest seo tips & updates to help to promote my websites in search engine ranking .

  8. Im looking for Affordable Search Engine Optimization SEO Philippines?

    Cheapest Web Marketing, Promotion, SEO, Internet Marketer?

  9. I’ve a website which is multilingual and I want to do directory submission in French Directories. I don’t know French. Can anyone suggest me how can I do French Directory Submission?

  10. Where can i find Freelance Seo Philippines | Search Engine Marketer?

    affordable seo in the philippines

  11. In high school I was told to NOT make much noise on the internet. But these days the direct opposite is being said and done through facebook, twitter, linkedin… etc. People say that these are our resources these days but I’m not seeing Twitter or facebook really bringing up any real local jobs… and Linked in has a total of 5 jobs in my local area posted for ANY random job.

    I was also taught to go in to each business I’d like to work with one by one and ask if they’re hiring. I tend to get a lot of “I don’t know’s” from managers and all the applications are done online. And it tends to just be a waste of gas money when I’m out of a job.

    So I’m left at a loss at what businesses are actually hiring in the first place. I suppose I could just pop onto Google Maps and drive around all the nearby towns in street view and look at all the businesses and think “Hmmm… maybe they’re hiring” and pop onto their website and see what my chances are. But that seems counter productive too.

    Monster.com, Careerbuilder.com, and pretty much any other job board is completely littered with nothing but one scam after another. And what legit jobs that are posted there… it seems like they’re all jobs that demand far more experience or college than I have — and even if I went to college, I’m not sure if that’d really help. It doesn’t seem to help anyone I’ve ever seen. And the most that I’ve ever gotten from places like Monster.com is the military and colleges calling me up because you’re forced to fill out military adds and college surveys in order to JUST fill out an application. Either way, you walk away from these job boards getting spammed or scammed.

    What is the real genuinely effective way of getting a job these days? To know WHO is hiring and WHAT jobs you qualify for and where you should and should not apply?

  12. Can anyone recommend me an affordable freelance seo expert professional in Mumbai, Maharashtra, India based on your experience with them who would be able to deliver results for my business sites and help me get better rankings for my business keywords in search engines.
    Thank You

  13. I want my site to be advertised in online classifieds. Some SEO companies say they will put me in at least 50,000 places. Is this for real? How can I check to see if they did this?

  14. i am tried many companies directory submission services, i am not satisfied with this service.. anyone can recommend good directory submission service company?

    i need to submit at least 5000 directories
    need reports?

  15. MentallyCryppled

    I am wanting to start up a webstore selling products. I am very good at creating websites but have never really dabbled with search engine optimizing (SEO’ing) them, and if I were to create a store I think it would be vital to make it optimized for search engines. Also, I have never included a shopping cart on any of my websites apart from a paypal cart, which is very simple to include. I was wondering what books/software I should read to learn to SEO my website effectively and learn to advertise it on the net etc?

  16. I have noticed a definite bias to sites. For example do a search for atlantic city hotels. See the description for the top listing hotels.com.
    “Hotels.com offers great rates on top ” Now why are the rates of hotels.com GREATER than anyone else ? This was deliberate. How does the editorial people know they are great? The word GREAT is not in the page. Next. The top 2 sites are Hotels.com and Expedia.com. They are both owned by the same company.
    The description DOES NOT come from the site for the top listing. It is some yahoo who decided to editorialize and give personal credence. Who says hotels.com has “GREAT” rates. Greater than the next 3 sites down from it? “GREAT” rates is not on the hotels.com page. jeeez.

  17. i am looking for cheap search engine optimization services…please only recommend me to use one that you have personal experience with. thanks

  18. Can someone recommend me a company providing affordable website development and SEO services. Charlotte web development company will be plus for me.
    Thanks in advance!
    The web design firm must have full time PHP programmers and have experience with ecommerce and shopping cart websites.

  19. simply complicated

    Hi, I have got a new job of directory submission. I am newbie in that work. I have tried it and got two doubts.

    1. Most of the sites tell that the url submitted is under moderation, does they display the submitted url ? if so when?

    2. they will provide a column to fill in reciprocal link url, what’s that? what I have to fill?

    Please answer me clearly as soon as possible

    thanks in advance

  20. can anybody tell any Adult Internet Marketing Company/Search Engine Optimization Company that offers Adult SEO Directory Submission?

    am having 20 Adult Websites and need to promote that xxx websites.
    I want to submit to internet directories that allow adult submission.

  21. Hi, I’m planning to sell some stuffs online & for that I need a development company who can develop my website and make some market online. My budget is below 7K, please suggest me some good companies?

  22. Is there anyone that has tried hiring a submission service that bought good results, ie. high link popularity? Please let me know.

  23. Hello Friends,
    Now a days in SEO, Directory submission is totally stop, but I think good directory submission is beneficial for site… Suggest me friends..

    Thanks

  24. i want to know the best and affordable services of SEO which is popular and gives well service…

  25. Do directories with good PR, DmR and DmT, no reciprocal link requirement, and no payment for links, represent a good use of time in SEO efforts for new/recently established sites?

  26. i have new website…so i need some instant directory for submission
    fast approval instant directory

    anyone have plz give me url

    Regards
    Mark

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