Why Is a Business Web Directory Paid Sometimes?

If you are a website owner trying to do some SEO on your site, then may find a lot of confusing things on the internet. One question you may wonder is why some business web directories are paid. You know that it's good for SEO to submit your site to many different directories, but you probably don't want to do that if the directory is going to charge a fee - especially if it's a big one. Let's look at paid web directories and see if they're really worth it.

First off, a brief word about Search Engine Optimization, or SEO. SEO is a confusing and complicated process because no one really knows exactly what the search engines want. Even for professionals, it is almost an art, requiring lots of guessing and trying different things. One thing that we do know about SEO is that links are good. Generally the more links you have, the better.

You never know which one it'll be that directs a search engine spider to find and index your site, so having as many as possible is a good idea. For this reason, it's good to submit your site to various directories - they link to your site. It's really great if they are free, because they you get a free link, which can be hard to find. However, sometimes they're paid, but that doesn't mean it's not worth it to submit your site to these directories.

Most of the directories you encounter are free. They simply want you to submit your site to help their index grow bigger, so that they get more traffic and use. They are probably supported by advertising. These sites can be good, but they have several problems.

For one thing, the ads can be annoying. More importantly though, they let just any business into their directory. This often means that there is no way to judge quality and that there are just as many bad businesses as good ones in there.

Using a pay wall as a barrier to entrance creates a couple of benefits. It creates a sort of exclusivity to the directory - only real businesses that have a bit of cash can apply. Ideally the cost shouldn't be too high, but even a cost of just a few dollars helps keep out spammers and other completely fraudulent businesses.

Also, these directories may be a little better to navigate and a little better moderates than some of the free ones. For one thing, these directories have a source of income, so they aren't plastered with ads, and are usually nicely maintained. Secondly, they may moderate the businesses they accept - like checking them out, rating, and reviewing them, so potential customers can actually see how good a certain business is.

There are, in general, a couple of kinds of paid web directories. The most common one will only charge a few dollars for inclusion - a simple maintenance fee. There are a few that will charge very high prices - these aim at achieving exclusivity by only including businesses with a very high income.

Unless your business is very high profit and really wants to be included in those directories, there is really no need to pay those prices. In general, only the sites that charge a low fee, just for the maintenance of the site, are worth submitting your business to.