Should Paid Directories Be A Part Of Your Internet Marketing Strategy?

[baqir]

Ten years ago the internet was different than it is today, as there was no social media, web 2.0, or popular free blogging platforms. The most important difference between then and now is that search engine technology had not yet been developed to the level that it is today, so the way that most people had to use to find what they were looking for was web directories.

For this reason some internet marketers today think that web directories are a relic of the past, but even today incorporating a listing for your website in a paid web directory can be a good idea if you are serious about the success of your website. A free directory site or a reciprocal directory site will probably not yield as much value as a paid directory, and sometimes low-quality directory listings can do more to hurt your website's search engine ranking than help it.

Just as in the real world there are certain neighborhoods that you would prefer to avoid, there are also certain websites and certain types of websites that you would like to avoid as well. While not all free directories are bad, many of them are banned from the major search engine listings because they are considered to be black hat "blog farms" or "scraper sites" that do not contribute any original or high-value content. 

best directory websites

This problem can be avoided by sticking to reputable high-quality paid directories, and the great thing about getting a listing at some of these websites is that many times you will only need to make a one-time payment in order to enjoy the benefits of such a listing perpetually into the future. Some of the web's best paid directories such as the Yahoo business directory require a recurring annual payment to retain a listing, but the benefits of such a prominent listing can far outweigh the cost to maintain it.

Many offline businesses will regularly spend thousands of dollars per year advertising in newspapers, the yellow pages, or television advertising. Yet many people do not believe that incorporating paid web directory listings can have the same result in their business, when the truth is that for the same amount of money you can experience great results over time and really reap the long-term benefits of higher incoming links and an increased ranking in the major search engine listings. Paid directories can give your website a tremendous boost, and serious internet marketers cannot ignore this as a simple relic of the past.