You may have heard that directory listings help SEO but is that still relevant today or is it an outdated practice? In this article, I’ll explore what directory listings are and whether they are relevant to SEO in 2021.

What Are Directory Listings?

If you are from the UK, the best way to describe directory listings is that they are the online version of the famous Yellow Pages. For the unfamiliar, the yellow pages was a large paper catalogue that was provided free through people’s letterboxes. It listed a huge selection of businesses local to your area, allowing you to find the right service when you needed it. This was the Google of its day before the mainstream adoption of the internet. It listed the business name, telephone number, address and sometimes more information on the services offered.

The Yellow Pages are long gone now in their paper format, but continue today on yell.com. This is just one example of the current style of a directory listing. Businesses are listed online to help users find the relevant services and products. They are usually focused on local businesses that service your area. Most directory listings still contain the same information as the Yellow Pages did but frequently have links to websites, social media and feature reviews too. Their main goal is to provide relevant business information to consumers. To fund the running of this free service, they may charge businesses. Sometimes they charge an ongoing fee to businesses listed on the platform or provide advertising space in prominent areas of the website.

Are Directory Listings Relevant to SEO in 2021?

In the earlier days of the internet, Google and other search engines (SEs) were not as sophisticated as they are today. Directory listings were considered an easy way to improve rankings on your site because any link to your site was rewarded by SEs. However, today SEs do not consider them as relevant. This is because anyone attempting to game the system can easily submit to them and it does not always provide a good enough indicator to SEs that a site is worthy.

There are even submission sites and paid agencies that will submit your site to 1000s of directories for a fee. While they will likely do the work promised, these unscrupulous companies will likely damage your SEO strategy rather than improve it. However, directory listings can still aid your domain authority, on-page rankings and exposure when done correctly. Read on to find out how to do this effectively.

How To Use Directory Listings Correctly for your SEO

Utilising directory listings for your off-page SEO strategy is about providing quality, relevant information to customers looking for your type of company. Here’s how to use directory listing to help your SEO in a productive way.

Quality Sites

The type of site you submit a listing to is important. There are millions of directory sites in the world by this point and all are not created equally. The vast majority have poor rankings themselves and are used by Black Hat SEO to provide an inferior service. When selecting a site, it must have good domain authority. This is determined by:

Age of the site. The more established a directory is, the higher its worth in the eyes of SEs.
Popularity. A site that gets lots of traffic is clearly doing something right, and SEs will reward it.
Size. A directory service with thousands of relevant businesses that are updated frequently will enjoy a better rating than a small directory site with less than a hundred businesses.

Find directory listing websites that are worth your time.

Relevant To You

A key component of SEO is relevancy. Choosing a directory to submit to is not just about its site’s authority but that it is appropriate for your business. There are different types of directory listings websites that can aid your business. Choose directory listings that are based on one of these factors:

Locality. The most popular directory listings are based on geographical closeness. These are perfect for any company servicing a particular area or that has a brick and mortar shop.
Industry. Some directories are focused on particular industries. For example, Spotlight is a directory for the performing arts and casting industry. While Avvo is a directory for lawyers and legal professionals.
Deals & Coupons. Some directories are more focused on providing offers to consumers, so for businesses that frequently provide discounts and deals, these types of websites are perfect.

Variety

Directory listings are more varied than may first appear. Some are simple listings with basic information, while others allow for articles and imagery to accompany a submission. A variety of different styles of listings can indicate to both users and SEs that you are putting in the work. They will make your online presence more established and provide better relevancy to consumers looking for your service. Select directories that can be updated adequately and easily to ensure your profile across the internet is up to date and showcases your services or goods effectively.

Don’t Forget Your SEO Strategy

While directory listings help SEO, it is in a minimal way. You should not abandon the harder, but more effective, work of a quality on-page SEO and content marketing strategy. Nor should directory listings be your only form of off-page SEO. Guest blogging, PR, influencer marketing and organic link building strategies should also be considered. Directory listing is just one branch but is not the be-all and end-all of your off-page SEO.

Don’t Buy Listings

My most important piece of advice is don’t buy listings. You may feel like you are getting a bargain by buying 1000 links for £9.99. But it won’t do you any good. Spamming your website link all over the internet will result in SEs not trusting your site. This in turn will affect your chances to rank. The right consumers won’t find your site on some dodgy website no one has ever heard of. All in all, these types of link building strategies are a waste of time and money. One quality submission will be worth one thousand spammy links every time.

Off-Page SEO Strategy

If you need help with directory submissions or other off-page SEO tactics, I can help. Slow and steady wins the race when it comes to improving your domain authority. So, my services provide SEO campaigns that are focused on longevity and relevancy for my clients. Get in touch to discuss your needs and we’ll find the right strategy together that grows your business.