Directory Submissions: Still a Tool for Gaining Traffic and SEO Help

Are you looking to increase the popularity of your relevant links or simply build traffic? A common opinion of directories today is that they are quickly becoming an outdated tool. Personally, I believe the people who have that opinion are likely to be those who don’t know how to utilize directories correctly.

There are few reasons people may be suspicious when it comes to submitting to directories these days. First of all, Google is getting smarter each day and is quick to recognize duplicated content. If Google suspects submissions to be paid linking, the search engine will pay less attention to the link, therefore decreasing the links opportunity for decent PR and traffic gain. Also, there is no doubt that directories are fading in popularity because they are having to compete with blogs and wikis which typically provide interactive opportunities such as videos, linking, and commenting.

Directories can be beneficial for SEO if those using them know what to look for. Before going into the areas that should be avoided, it is important to know how directories can help. Directories can increase page rank and search referrals. Most importantly, the more you get your link exposed, the higher the chances are of receiving traffic. If a directory, like a link, is sending you traffic then there is no reason that Google or any other search engine should devalue their links. Directories will only benefit you opposed to hurting you unless of course the link is submitted to an awful directory. Avoiding bad directories is simple once you know what to watch out for.

Stay away from Directories with the following:

• Bad directories will lack in substance. By this I mean there will likely be many categories and very few listings within each category.
• Some directories will often notify you of a reciprocal link request. A request is fine but if a directory demands a reciprocal link, you will not want to use it.
• Concentrate on recognizing spammy content such as pharmacy and casino linking, especially in the sidebars of the directory.
• If a directory asks for your e-mail address but doesn’t provide a privacy policy then it is not worth utilizing.
• If a directory is lacking in quality links then its very likely the links are not being indexed. Dig into the links within your most relevant categories. Are they relevant to the theme and to your site? Are they trash links to a bunch of .infos? If submissions are made to a directory which is not being indexed, then there is no link juice being directed to your link.

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