Specifics of Directory Submissions

Directory submission is something that could bring visitors to your site, mainly indirectly through an improvement in one-way links. Such links from relevant sources are considered highly by search engines in ranking your particular site among numerous competing sites.

There’s a catch, however. Directories do not accept all submitted sites. Some require a return link from your site. Others need payment either for reviewing or speeding up the review of your site. And if your site does not meet their criteria, even paying money might not result in a listing.

Your chances of getting listed are improved if you follow certain practices as discussed below.

Submit All Required Details

Directories need certain standard information about the sites submitted to them. These include:

• URL – The Web site URL is needed so that both the directories and visitors can access your website
• TITLE – The Title is the headline for your listing
• DESCRIPTION – Description is what appears under the headline. The Title and Description together must accurately describe what your site is about
• CATEGORY – Directories classify the sites and list them under appropriate categories. A listing under a relevant category improves the link value of your site to search engines and its information value to directory visitors
• KEYWORDS – Some directories allow you to specify the keywords (search terms) to be associated with your listing
• NAME – Most directories want to know who is submitting a site to them and ask for your name
• EMAIL – An email address would enable the directories to communicate acceptance or rejection to you (and also to send you spam).
• ADDRESS – Directories might also ask for your address.

Three Distinct Audiences

The details you submit must cater to three distinct audiences – the directory editors, Search engines and Web surfers. Let us look at each.

Directory editors must ensure that the policies of their directory are complied with. So your site must not have content that the directory does not index. Adult, hate and copyright-violating content are examples that many directories generally do not care for.

Secondly, you could create a good impression with the editors if you provide accurate Title and Description about your site, and submit it to the most appropriate category. Editors are not impressed by false claims or promotional language. Instead, they look for evidence of quality right from this stage.

Directories also typically insist that you drill down to the relevant category first before clicking the ‘Submit URL’ link.

Search engines consider the words in the Title and Description to determine what your site is about. If you include desired keywords in both the Title and Description, it could help you to be found under those keywords.

Your most critical audience consists of the Web surfers. It is they who bring you business (or fame). If your Title and Description tempts them with the information or entertainment that they are looking for, they would click and visit your site. Else, all your efforts at pleasing the directory editors and search engines would just go waste.

Search engines might take the Title and Description from the directories and so even search engine traffic could be affected by how you describe yourself.

General Guidelines for Directory Submission

The following actions could help you succeed at your directory submission campaign:

• Read the guidelines that the directories provide
• Look at the Titles and Descriptions of existing listings
• Review your own title and description and make them accurate, informative, crisp and tempting
• Include your keywords without affecting the above aspects
• Check that the lengths of Title and Description are within the allowed limits, number of words or characters.
• Look at the existing listings in different categories and find the category where sites similar to yours are listed
• Drill down to the selected category and submit under that category.

Submit to New Directories

Here is one specific guideline that could help you greatly.

As indicated already, directory submission, even manual directory submission, does not mean that your site would be listed in the directory. If the site does not meet listing criteria, it would be rejected.

Even if the site meets listing criteria, if the directory is a well-known one that accepts free submissions (the best example is DMOZ), it would be receiving hundreds or even thousands of sites every day.

Free directories usually cannot afford to engage paid editors and so the owner of the directory, or volunteer editors, would have to review the submitted websites. This would almost always mean an increasing backlog of sites to be reviewed and months or even years, of delay before your site is taken up for review.

What’s the solution? Answer: Submit your site to new directories.

These directories are not yet well known and they would be eager to list as many sites as possible, as quickly as possible.

If your site is reasonably good, you have the best chance of getting a quick listing in these new directories. The value of the listing might not be all that good now. However, in time, many of these directories could become reputed sources of information well regarded by both search engines and Web surfers.

And your Web site would benefit from the directory submission at that time. Find new directories at http://forums.digitalpoint.com and http://info.vilesilencer.com/

Current Manual Directory Submission Specialty Packages:

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