5 replies to this topic

[kevs]

What I'm asking, is, do the words in your description for directories get plugged back into Google, via your website -- ie, do they help ranking for those words?

[joedolson]

Possibly. The description of your site will be a set of relevant words in close proximity to the link back to your site on that directory. Some search engines may analyze the directory page and be able to associate those terms with the link to your site to influence whether those terms are more or less relevant to your page.

Hard to confirm, though.

[kevs]

thanks JOe, well I remember with Yahoo, it was critical you description because that ended up in a their important search engine. But lot of these directories -- ok, so the keywords are good for folks who search in those directories, but as far as them translating back to Google no one knows, then?

If directory does not state characters, how many? go with large version I have of 500?

and also e mail address. don't use my pop up? use a garbarge web based one? or make a new pop up and throw it away in three months?

Joe, do you have your own personal list of recommended directories you want to share?

[sonjay]

Kevs, you didn't ask this specifically, but I think it's pertinent to your question. You can exclude both your Open Directory Project description and your Yahoo directory description from serving as the description for your site in search results.

For Yahoo, you would use one of these tags:
<META NAME="ROBOTS" CONTENT="NOYDIR">
<META NAME="Slurp" CONTENT="NOYDIR">
source: http://www.ysearchbl...ves/000418.html

For Google, to exclude the ODP description, use one of these:
<META NAME="ROBOTS" CONTENT="NOODP">
<META NAME="GOOGLEBOT" CONTENT="NOODP">
source: http://sitemaps.blog...e-snippets.html

So if you like being in those directories, but you don't like the directory description used in search results, you can block it. Google and Yahoo will then use either your meta description or a snippet from the on-page text, but will not use the directory description.

[joedolson]

If directory does not state characters, how many? go with large version I have of 500?

and also e mail address. don't use my pop up? use a garbarge web based one? or make a new pop up and throw it away in three months?

Joe, do you have your own personal list of recommended directories you want to share?

If it doesn't state a limit, sure---start detailed. It's entirely possible that they haven't stated one because they don't care; it's also possible they just didn't think to mention it. Sometimes there's a limit to how many characters you can type in the box and you'll just be stopped right there. But if it's not obvious, you might as well start long.

Email address - I always create a new email address for any new registration. Period. Has nothing to do with whether I expect something to be sold or whatever, that's just what I do. So I'd say yes.

Recommended list: nope. Every site has it's own needs, and I'll look at directories with that site in mind. I don't have a base list of directories --- other people do a great job of keeping lists of directories and I'm perfectly willing to use those directories as a source for decision making.

The fact is that I do so little directory submission that it's not worth my time to take the effort to worry about it.

[kevs]

Joe, you submit so little because.....?
thanks for help