Getting listed in web directories is one of the most effective endeavors website owners pursue as they aim to market their website. Web directories give listed websites the advantage of increased visibility on the internet. They help website owners direct the inflow of potential customers. For websites that aim to sell products and services, being listed in directories increases the number of site visitors and therefore increases the likelihood of selling. For non-retailing websites, the upsurge of traffic brought about by web directory listings also increases search engine rankings pages and websites’ income generated by attracting advertisers. The value of web directories cannot be denied as website owners can benefit from them in more than one effective way. If you are a website owner who is looking into getting listed, it is important for you to be familiar with the types of directories and listings available. Getting yourself listed involves either time or money. Sometimes it involves both. Therefore, it is important for you to know exactly what your website needs in order to minimize opportunity costs.

There are two types of web directories. These include the general and the human edited directories. General directories often make use of broad categories and are generally restricted to them. Human edited directories, on the other hand utilize more specific categories that link to sub-category after sub-category until one is taken to the most specific point. As its name implies, human edited directories have indices built by professional staff and are therefore more trustworthy in terms of information. This, however, also means that being listed by them will cost more than general directories. Internet users prefer human edited directories because they are more often easier to use and are very efficient in terms of directing them to the right information. However, this does not mean to say that general directories are ineffective tools for internet marketing. General directories still serve their purpose of increasing page rankings as they are often used as references by search engines.

Apart from the two types of directories, one must also be familiar with the types of listings available. There are generally six types but some other types have also emerged. The six general types include the following:

1. Free Submission – one must simply fill up a form and prove that the website exists
2. Reciprocal Link – the website to be listed must include a link to the directory
3. Paid Submissions – webmasters must pay and submit necessary documents to be listed in more specific and organized classifications
4. No Follow – listings designed such a way that the entries cannot be tracked by search engines
5. Featured Link – an entry will remain as one of the top results under the category in which it is listed
6. Featured Homepage Link – the website will be given a position in the web directory home page

Nowadays there are Bid for Position listings wherein websites are listed according to the amount they offer the web directories to be listed.

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Many speculate that getting indexed in web directories is a defunct internet marketing strategy. They say that the number of internet users who prefer web directories have declined exponentially. This is due to the rapid development of search engines. For this reason, internet marketers now aim for their websites to be listed in search engines. True enough, it will be very difficult for internet users to gain access to your website if it is not visible through any of the search queries. However, internet marketers must understand that web directories are actually tools through which they can efficiently and effectively get their website indexed by search engines. Searched engines have databases built by automated machinery which are normally called “crawlers” or “spiders.” These spiders are designed to search for web pages, list keywords, and automatically place them in their search engine’s database. Because of the organized listings that web directories provide, spiders are lured into getting their information from them. For this reason alone, internet marketers should realize that web directories have not become defunct in their own sense. They simply have had a change in function.

As soon as your website is complete with design, programming, and content, you are ready to launch. However, it is not anymore enough to tell the people you know about it and wait for more people to come. It is important to come up with a plan to attract traffic and at the top of this list should be for you to get your website indexed. Because many internet users now prefer search engines, take getting indexed by them as your goal. These search engines accept manual submission through forms available in their website. However, one thing you must know is that it will be easier for you to attract spiders through other means.

Getting your website indexed in web directories first is an advantage. For one thing, spiders will be able to track you more quickly. Another reason why it is good for you to get indexed by web directories first is because spiders also recognize the web directory’s categorization. This will be beneficial when the spiders have already listed you in their index. Linking to an already indexed site will also help. For this, make sure that you link to a related site and preferably one of the more popular ones. This will help you get indexed very quickly.  Also, if you have a blog, link your site to it and try to get your friends to link to it as well. Remember, the more sites are linked to your website, the more entries you will have in search engine databases.

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