Web directories are special websites that list other websites by category. They also offer brief descriptions and links to the websites. Most directories are human edited and allow website owners to submit their site’s URL to be listed. In the early days of the Internet before the advent of search engines, web directories were the tool of choice for users to browse and locate websites of interest. Tim Berners - Lee the architect of the world wide web, put together the first of these collections of web links when he created the World Wide Web Virtual Library.

Web directories are now in great abundance and run the gamut from general web directories like Yahoo and the Open Directory Project to highly specialized niche directories that may only target specific websites. General directories may contain a variety of categories from art to finance, while niche directories may only categorize pet websites, for example. Some charge for inclusion, but the vast majority are free. While search engines have taken the place of web directories as the tool surfers use to locate websites, webmasters have discovered their usefulness for Search Engine Optimization.

Utilizing web directories has become an important part of SEO strategy for webmasters who are looking to improve their website’s link popularity. Search engines gauge a websites’ popularity or “relevance” by the amount of quality incoming links it has. Linking to several highly ranked web directories that contain relevant content can greatly improve a website’s ability to gain search engine prominence. When choosing a link partner, the closer in theme and content you come to your own, the better. Niche directories are especially useful in this regard as well as providing targeted traffic from a narrow group of people with a shared interest in a particular subject matter.

Although search engines have taken away some of a web directories usefulness, the future of web directories remains bright. As long as search engines utilize complex algorithms to rank pages and assign popularity, web directories will continue to play a role in helping website owners achieve the backlinks needed to gain web credibility.

Article provided by Web Directory and should be reproduced with the link together.

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Nice article sizzler, no fluff straight to the point writing with some very good pointers in there.

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A good read there sizzler, although there seems to be some kind of noise happening with directories linking to one another as it creates dupe content, cant remember where I read it but will try and find the link and post it here.

-MGS-

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I recommend the phpLynx Business Directory Script

Thanks for the appreciation

Yes i read those kind of article somewhere in some blogs too, but its my bad habit.. I dont save those things!

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Good Article,

I do not understand why any seo directory has not become as popular as google.

Please comment.

nice article thanks

Good discussion.
My frustration and opportunity is to find relevant directories to list for my niche.
I deal in the micro niche of probate attorneys. For me to find a category in this niche is nearly impossible in the general directory world so I will have to create them.

I have a high price / high content directory for attorneys $997 per year. I now want to create a lower priced "link directory" (no content) for the niche (kinda like a farm team) and then migrate listings from the low cost / low service to the higher cost / higher service platform.

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probate info | suffolk county probate attorney