Is it the end for website directories?
Something curious has been going on with all the web directories on the Internet. For reasons known only to Google, website directories are being penalized. Google is yet to announce why it’s doing this, but these must be desperate times for owners of website directories, as is evident with the sheer number of Review Me reviews John Chow has been doing for directories recently.
So, what is Google doing? Once again, nobody knows, but there is plenty of speculation going on in forums and on blogs. Some people are suggesting that Google is just adjusting its algorithms, but it appears much more sinister than that because some directories (not all) are now not ranking in Google for their own names. It could be that directories that sell links are being targeted for this reason.
It’s clear that these directories are being penalized, but we just don’t know why. Paul Barlow recently wrote an interesting article questioning what good directories actually do for bloggers, in particular ones that you have to pay to submit to.
I have never understood why anybody would pay decent money to submit their blog to a directory. There are literally thousands of directories, many of them with high PR, that you don’t have to pay to submit to. Why would you spend good money on a directory submission when you could buy much more beneficial links on a real website or blog?
Paul also wrote another article about how useless directories are in general. This goes against what a lot of people say about directories, as many (including myself) simply assert that the backlinks are beneficial in terms of SERPs and PR.
Are we wasting our time with website directories, especially now that Google is actively penalizing them? Clearly the issue of website directories is not clear cut. I’ll have some results about directory submissions in the near future as I will be pushing at least one site on directory submissions alone to see if there really is any benefit.
Some bloggers recommend submitting your blog to directories daily, but I’m starting to wonder if that time could be better spent.
Thoughts anyone?
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2 Responses to “Is it the end for website directories?”
You have to ask your self if you’re submitting to a directory purely for the [debatable] search engine benefits.
If so, I don’t think it’s a worth while link to have - especially if you’re paying for it!
I’m of the school of thought that you should only buy a link if it is going to help build your brand and drive direct traffic.
If, however, the page in the directory you’re thinking of submitting to ranks in the SERPs then I would say it is a good place to submit to as you get brand awareness/direct traffic/link juice.
A few decent [botw/rubber stamped etc] directory links are a good start to link building efforts for any site. But don’t go crazy, even if a directory is free you still having to invest your time and there could be better uses of it.
P.S Really like your sidebar for some reason
(but not so much your nav bar or font for post titles)
I hate wasting money, and I’ve wasted a lot on directories in the past. Yahoo and DMOZ are where it’s at, a couple more will give you small numbers of referrals but the rest, well….
If you’re serious about testing directories in terms of website benefits then I can give you the names of some of the people I’ve used in the past who’ll do mass manual submission for a small fee?