Niche Directories

[BobGW]

Hello,

I like the concept that a directory is good only if you would still want the link if it passed no link juice.

DMOZ and Best of the Web fall into that category.

And so do some niche directories.

How do you determine whether to go with a niche directory or not?

Also, what's the ratio of how many niche directory links you'd want compared to other types of links (being very safe) 3:1? 4:1? 5:1? Does it matter what your other links are?

Thanks.

[Ties.com]

If you find the directory useful as a user then it's safe to get a link there.  If you wouldn't use the directory yourself it's best to just steer clear of it.  I can't imagine many situations in which you would want more than 10 niche directory links because there just aren't that many quality directories any more.

[TakeshiYoung]

DMOZ, BOTW, and Yahoo are really the only directories worth submitting to, plus maybe a couple of niche specific directories and local directories. That's like maybe a dozen directories tops.

As long as you keep directory submissions to a minimum, it's not going to get you penalized, so there is no need to worry about "ratios" or anything like that, although you may want to vary your anchor text or stick to your brand name.

The bigger issue is that directory links don't carry that much value, so you'll want to acquire relevant, high authority links outside of directories if you actually want to rank.

[trickshotric]

I totally agree with the statement "I like the concept that a directory is good only if you would still want the link if it passed no link juice."

However... I have a bit of an issue with Best of the Web (and many other "quality" Directories). The only reason that you would want a link without link juice is if it was bringing in traffic.

We have been on BOTW for 3 years on 5 of our websites. I have just checked and we have received a total of 9 clicks (across the board) in those 3 years. Hardly worth writing home about.

I've never met a person that uses directories other than (yell.com perhaps). I have even forced myself to use BOTW for a week instead of Google and it only lasted 3 days before I gave up.

Am I missing something?

I also just did a search on BOTW for "Air Conditioning" and this result came up: http://www.kingair.com.au (just one example that took me 10 seconds to find)

Is this really "The Best of The Web". Why would Google trust their judgement?

[TakeshiYoung]

"I like the concept that a directory is good only if you would still want the link if it passed no link juice."

Yeah, I agree that this statement is pretty naive. You shouldn't expect to get much traffic from Yahoo or DMOZ. People use these directories for the link juice and the credibility boost, not traffic. Since both directories editorially approve their links, they still carry a bit of weight (although exactly how much is up for debate).