A key part of any traffic building strategy is directory listings. That is because directories are a key source of links. What are the benefits of directories and how do you get the best value from them?

Directories divide website listings up into categories and subcategories, and are a fantastic source of targeted traffic and links to your site. Having only one listing per website makes directories different from search engines. This site, Ecommerce Australia, is an example of a directory.

Many directories ignore automated submissions, so it is important to choose the directories you want to list in carefully and then submit to them manually.

Some directory listing strategies include:

Look for industry-specific directories
For the ecommerce industry, Ecommerce Australia is an example of a geographic and industry-based directory.

Submit to the Open Directory Project (also known as DMOZ)
One very important directory for your search-engine optimisation efforts should be DMOZ because it provides listings to Google, AOL, Lycos, Altavista, Hotbot and more. You can increase your chances of a listing if you can find a page that is not overflowing with listings.

List in Yahoo Directory
If you can afford it, you may benefit from a listing in the Yahoo Directory - it costs US$299 per annum but is considered a high-quality link by search engines. There are mixed views on Internet forums about the value of this directory listing. On one hand it is poor value because there are so many quality directories (DMOZ, Jayde, Zeal etc) which allow you to submit for free and on the other is the point made earlier in this section: Yahoo is a respected and quality link source - especially for the Yahoo search engine.

Also submit to local directories and second tier directories like About.com, Best of the Web, ExactSeek, Yahoo Local, Google Local and industry specific directories.