Is directory submission still a valid practice?
-
Hi Guys,
I have few doubts running in my mind on directory submission, do you think it is still a valid practice in link building?. If your answer is "YES", then please correct me..
-
How submitting to directories is a natural link practice?
-
According to Google, links should not be purchased, it should to be created naturally, but if you see, a lot of high authority directories charging amount from people to index links, why Google not stopping those directories (I mean penalizing) and stopping the people who are trying to get indexed by paying.
-
According to me directories holds only bunch of links to some external domains (I hope I am not wrong), then how submitting to them can bring rankings to me?.
Sorry, if I sound stupid in any of my points, but expecting some good answers from you folks..
-
-
"bunch of URLs which doesn't have even a single inbound link to them, but ranks #1 on Google for so many competitive keywords" ... competitive keywords ranking at #1 without ANY backlinks? I find this hard to believe, but I'll be happy to be proven wrong. Share some?
-
Yes, I think it works in some cases with the actually benefits of relevancy and authority of directory we going to take link from in the specific related category we might think a good FIT for us.
-
Bear in mind there are different types of directories. For example human edited directories. My testing seems to support these are defo valid. Without taking what Google recommend too literally, there is also a question of relevance and the fact that there is a marketing world outside SEO. For example if promoting a restaurant in York, a link in a directory of restaurants in York may not necessarily count in pure SEO terms but it would be unwise to not include.
In my view and experience certain directories will help SEO as part of a balanced mix of links.
-
Hi HDDEPT,
Just wanted to pop in and add that in Local SEO, directory listings are not only still valid, but are the core of citation building which is one of the main practices of Local Search Marketing. In this specific area, Google rewards rather than punishes inclusion in local business directories.
-
Honestly, I am not insulting your intelligence, but do you think they really rank higher because of those directories?. I have bunch of URLs which doesn't have even a single inbound link to them, but ranks #1 on Google for so many competitive keywords. If I am not wrong, then your links are ranking because of your page's content. Please correct me If I am wrong!.
-
Yes it's honestly still a valid practice. I have multiple keywords that rank number one on both Google and Bing where the only links are coming from directories.
-
no it is not. it doesn't work anymore.
-
If it is a valid practice, then how it is natural?, according to Google a link should be acquired, rather than created by a webmaster himself (Am i correct?), then how directory submission will satisfy this condition?. Also how a directory holds authority if it doesn't have great content, instead it was just stuffed with few bunch of links to some external domains?.
I agree with you on the local listings part, because local lists help find people about the local businesses (people might be naturally want to search there to find the local data accurately), but web directories works on the concept of indexing anything..
I believe in what I see, and whenever I search for something on Google or any other search engine I found some great useful blogs or businesses website with great content inside them, I never see any directories in those results (at least in 99% of the cases).
Please correct me if I am wrong!,
-
Yes in my opinion directory submission is a very valid SEO practice however there are ethical ways to do directory link building and the unethical/borderline black hat methods. Adding your client in sites like local and national directories related to the client's subject matter expertise is a recommended method for link building. A good list is the one recommended by SEOMOZ below:
www.seomoz.org/directories
Kurtis did a great post on this topic that you can read here http://www.seomoz.org/blog/web-directory-submission-danger
Browse Questions
Explore more categories
-
Moz Tools
Chat with the community about the Moz tools.
-
SEO Tactics
Discuss the SEO process with fellow marketers
-
Community
Discuss industry events, jobs, and news!
-
Digital Marketing
Chat about tactics outside of SEO
-
Research & Trends
Dive into research and trends in the search industry.
-
Support
Connect on product support and feature requests.
Related Questions
-
Is it a good practice to get link for your original page by shorter URL links
Hello Moz Community, I have a question regarding getting links on bitly, tiny, or an other url shortner, Is it a good practice to get link for your page by shorter url I mean lets suppose i am getting natural guest post link from content for my blog home page
Link Building | | JoeySolicitor
https://coupontoaster.com/blog/ ; and shorten it with bitly and then hyper link so is it a good practice am I getting the same power and SEO consideration as if i would have done this without url shortener. And what anchor texts shall i be using like rich anchor text or any other like click here, visit here, bitly or etc Please kindly help me with this thanks1 -
Rss Directories Worth the time? If so Which ones?
All I could find was a bunch of ancient posts on RSS directories. Just getting a new site set up and I want it distributing content as far as possible all white hat. Are Rss directories even worth my time these days. I was thinking of submitting to the top 10. We blog about 2-10 posts per week. Your thoughts would be appreciated. Thanks
Link Building | | photoseo10 -
Paid Directory Links
To my surprise, I couldn't find a clear answer to the questions "Do paid directory links violate Google guidelines?" I know Matt Cutt's recently had a video on paid links, but it didn't really cover paid directory links. Are well-curated directory sites that charge for inclusion violate Google's guidelines? A good example would be the business.com directory.
Link Building | | RickyShockley0 -
Is Back Link Building still Good Practice
Since all the updates from Google I'm unsure as to whether I should be pursuing good quality back links and how many per month?for my website www.polesandblinds.com . We don't have a very large back link profile and its at least half of some of our competitors, we are currently active on blogging and the 4 main social sites. Many Thanks I look forward to your suggestions/advice/criticism.
Link Building | | JonnytheB0 -
Anchor Text Distribution and Link Profile Best Practices
Hi, Since Penguin is about regulating link building, here are my questions: How many percent of a site's overall links should be branded terms? How many percent of a site's overall links should be related to the site? How many percent of a site's overall links should have nofollow? Any recommendation on anchor text distribution? Lastly In your opinion, which e-commerce site you think has the best link profile? Thanks!
Link Building | | WizardOfMoz0 -
Blog Directories
Will links from blog directories to our subfolder-located blog within our website help the ranking of our overall site? In other words, will it just help the rankings of the main blog page (where the directory links are pointing to), or will it pass the link juice to the rest of the site? Thanks!
Link Building | | NiallTom0 -
Listings, paid profiles and directories
Hi, In the industry I am working in (education), we do have a lot of portals offering paid listings (for example profiles featuring a school, the courses you offer, sometimes with reviews etc). Almost all big competitors and big names normally do have these kind of listings. Besides from having to decide if these sites really bring the relevant conversions, I am wondering about their impact on SEO. An example for an offer:
Link Building | | ecnic
Our Top Picks listing is a 40 word listing and logo we put on any 30 pages of our web site, example.com for 12 months, for $595 US. You can choose the pages you want, or we can put you on all our [category] pages, or certain continents/countries you want to target. Now, I am wondering: Do I have to worry about my linking profile ? (All of sudden a bunch of links with the exact same anchortext and content embedding to our site?) Or can I just decide to go with a paid listing based on the link value the page offers me? Looking forward to reading what you think!
Nicole0 -
Are paid directories considered paid links?
I've only ever submitted my sites to tons of free directories, not the paid ones. I'm thinking of getting into a few paid directories now, but just wondering, anyone had experience with a paid directory link being treated like a paid links an penalized or anything? Has it helped you? My competitors has a lot of backlinks from paid directories, so I"m thinking of doing the same thing. But if Google thinks of paid directories as paid links, I would be better off just turning him in 🙂
Link Building | | DanDeceuster1