This is an often talked about topic, whenever search engine marketing options are being discussed, and rightly so.

It is a very important part of your search engine marketing strategy.

In a Directory ( e.g. – Dmoz) the sites are organized and categorized by a person like you and me. To submit to a directory you have to search for a category that is most appropriate for your site.

Tip – Search for sites’ related to yours’ in Dmoz by typing in the keywords (e.g. – ‘steel manufacturers’). Check out the categories the sites are listed in. Select the category that suits your site’s profile the most and submit to that particular category. Do not use any promotional terms while describing your products and services. The title should be the official name of your site.

The advantage of having your site listed in directories such as – Dmoz, Yahoo! Zeal, Joeant, Gimpsy etc. is the one-way non-reciprocal link that you receive from these directories.

The fact that your site has been accepted in these directories is a sound achievement for your site. These directories are very choosy about the sites’ that they include in their directory.

Other than Yahoo! which charges $299/ annum for registering your site, most of the directories include your site free of charge or charge just a nominal amount.

The bonus that is yours for keeps is the permanent link from these directories. (Except the paid directories where you have to pay annually in order to keep your listings active).

A Dmoz listing is a sure way of getting listed in Google.

Too often we are short sighted about our online marketing objectives. We think only in terms of what would fetch us results faster. Instead of blindly following what others are doing, it is advisable to not get impatient. Start by submitting to the directories. Give it some time, at least a minimum of three months, to show results.

Going a little away from the topic, you can in the meantime start building a resource list. This would contain a list of sites that are related to your products and services, but are not your competitors. You should be careful about selecting these sites. Ideally the sites that you select should have a lot of useful content and should be user friendly. Once you have a list in place, add these sites to relevant sections of your site. For details refer to my article on ‘Linking for visitors’. Link to only a few sites and only those sites that you think will be useful for your visitors.

You really don’t need to invest too much time in this. If you are well represented in the directories, most search engines will list you anyway. After this, it is your site’s content and useful features that will help you stay at the top.

‘Submission to Directories’ should feature at the top of your list when planning out online marketing strategies for your site. Will discuss blog directory submission in my next post.

Check out linking for users ; for tips of providing links on your website that are of value to your visitors.