Off-page SEO is all about earned media- it’s what tells Google and other search engines what the rest of the Internet thinks of your website (Patel, n.d.). One of the aspects of off-page SEO that gets little attention is submitting to online directories. Experts seem to see this strategy as a mixed bag- Digital SEO agency Linchpin believes online directories don’t offer much SEO and can actually have a detrimental effect on your SEO efforts (2021). Moz says online directories are a necessity for local businesses (n.d.). I tend to believe it’s somewhere in between- while directories don’t have the luster they had in the past, being on quality local directories is a great way to get some SEO juice.
History of Directories
Long ago, in the prehistoric times before social media and the Internet, people would physically look things up. You’ve probably seen your grandmother’s Encyclopedia Britannica set or came across a giant print dictionary. Knowledge wasn’t at your fingertips- you had to look it up or go to a library. And if you wanted to find someone or a find a business, you needed two books- the White Pages and the Yellow Pages.
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This is the last Yellowpages I received, about three years ago. When I received it, I promptly threw it in the trash.
These sibling books that came from your phone company (or entrepreneurial directory company) were big, thick books with super thin paper that were literally colored white or yellow. Like any medium, it didn’t take long for people to figure out how to make money from the invention of the telephone in 1878- White Pages and Yellow pages were in circulation as early as 1883 (McDaniel, 2005). The White Pages were for residential look-ups- there was no Facebook or Google search to find people, so you’d flip through the White Pages alphabetically to find the phone number of people in your geographic area. The Yellow Pages were for business listings, arranged alphabetically by topic- Plumbers were in the “P’s,” while Mufflers were in the “M’s” (legend has it that the Yellow Pages were yellow because a printer in 1883 ran out of white paper to print his business listings, so he used yellow paper instead of waiting for more white). If a business paid more, they could have an enhanced listing, adding their logo, descriptions, images and more depending on how much they paid. The assumption was when someone was flipping through the Yellow Pages, they’d see these enhanced listings stand out more and therefore would get more calls. Being in the Yellow Pages was essential for any business before the Internet, and buying an enhanced listing was like search engine optimization for print.
The early ’90s saw the rise of the Internet as a streamlined service, heralding the beginning of the end of print phone books. In fact, there’s a great story about Elon Musk trying to start an online directory service with the people who printed the Yellow Pages in 1995 (Locke, 2020). At that time, most people didn’t know what an email address was, let alone were using online directories. Musk and his brother imagined a world where people could search an online database of businesses that would offer maps and door-to-door directions. They pitched their idea to an executive at Yellow Pages, who literally threw a phonebook at Musk and said, ‘You ever think you’re going to replace this?’ The idea that the internet would kill a multi-billion dollar business was absurd at the time, but Musk persisted and started his online directory on his own. Four years later, he sold that company for $300 million dollars and used that money to start PayPal, which led to Tesla and SpaceX. Meanwhile, Yellow Pages and other phonebooks would eventually go online, but like many analog businesses, pivoted too late and entered a crowded space that saw the end of their dominance of business directories.
Directories Today
In 2021, online directories have lost their luster- however, I believe this problem is more of a branding issue than a technology issue. When consumers (and business owners) hear online directories, they probably think of traditional vendors like Superpages.com or Yellowpages.com, or they think of their local newspaper’s website’s business directory. Businesses are probably also turned off by the sleazy marketing tactics that some listing companies employ- as someone who represents businesses, I am bombarded by emails from people claiming they could get me listed on 100 directories for a low cost that will bring X traffic. However, do you know what else is an online directory? Google My Business, the social engine for businesses that get you connected to customers on Google Maps and Google Search. Or there’s Apple Maps, which places your business listing on Apple Maps, the map app loaded on nearly half the smartphones in the U.S. There’s also Yelp, Facebook, MapQuest, Bing Places for Businesses and Angie’s List. In other words, consumers use directories all the time and don’t realize it (Garner, n.d.). And these business listings will only become more important as more consumers are searching on their cell phones and looking for local businesses.
The Benefits of Online Directories
On the surface level, online directories allow you to submit your business information to a searchable database and usually include business name, business description, address, phone, email, website, and other contact information, business hours, specials, logo, images, videos, reviews and much more. You can also pay more to have an enhanced listing, run ads or other advertising options to increase your visibility. In the old days of the Internet, people would go directly to these directories for business searches, but now these directory listings show up organically in SERP. For instance, a search of “coffee shops near me” will result in several online directory results.
In my search results, I see Google Map results at the top of the page, and Yelp, Foursquare and TripAdvisor directory listings. This is why online directories are still important- your customer might not be going directly to Yelp to find your business, but your directory listing might show up in search results. Therefore, submitting and managing your online directory listings is super important for reputation and rankings. Plus, most directories are free and many probably already have a basic listing for your business, so why not take control and optimize that listing with your keywords, updated information and awesome images to stand out?
The Do’s and Don’ts of Online Directories
So you’re ready to take control of your online directory listings? Awesome, let’s start submitting to all of them right? Wait- there’s thousands of online directories. Which ones should you focus on?
First off, make sure you submit on directories that fit your business and boost your online presence. For instance, if you’re an electrician, you should be submitting on Angie’s List but not OpenTable. This seems like a no-brainer, but you’d be surprised how many listing services just stick you on any and every directory out there. You should also make sure you are submitting to reputable directories. Again, do you really think those services offering you 100’s of listings are working with 100 reputable services (in fact, I make it a point to never work with a company that emails me to offer SEO services).
Here’s a list of reputable (and in my opinion necessary) directories to list on:
Google My Business- To me, having a Google My Business listing is essential SEO. This is how you control what information people see when searching for your business on Google or searching Google Maps. It’s probably the most important thing you can do for your business since Google uses that data as the initial search results on their pages, and most consumers have gotten used to searching for a business and seeing their contact info and hours popping up in their search results. Google My Business is also where you can manage your Google reviews, another important part of SEO and brand management you can’t afford to ignore.
Apple Maps- In my experience, Apple Maps has had a bad name after its initial launch was lackluster. However, the service has improved, and anyone using Apple Maps on their phone are seeing your business listings.
Yelp- For me, I find Yelp a bit pervasive. It seems like their listings pop up most, especially for restaurants, and they are always trying to get you to their app. However, Yelp listings are super powerful, and when you submit to their directory, you can control your reviews, enter updated info about your business and control what media people see when consumers come across your listing.
Angi (Angie’s List)- This directory is for home services. It started as a review site for things like plumbers and contractors and has seen grown to include quoting services and booking services. It’s free to set up a basic profile, and with reviews as the core of their business, you can’t afford to not monitor this directory. One thing to note is the rebranding- “Angie’s List” has been a household name for nearly 20 years, so I’m curious if consumers will transition to the new “Angi.”
Facebook- How can you not have a Facebook business page by now? With nearly 3 billion users worldwide, having a Facebook business profile is a necessity. And if you don’t have a page already, there’s probably one on Facebook, waiting for you (or your competitor) to claim as their own. I once took over managing a business’s social media and noticed one of these parked business profiles for that business basically being managed by someone not affiliated with the company. Trust me, you want to claim those listings and at the very least fill out the About Us section and post a few times a month.
There are other reputable directories like Foursquare, Yellowpages.com. Superpages, Yahoo Local, Local.com, NextDoor, LinkedIn, and a host of other minor players. If you aren’t sure which directories to submit to, I like to do some competitive analysis. Search a few businesses in your area that are competition or the kinds of services you’re offering to see what directories pop up, then check those directories to see if they are the right ones for you.
Another thing to look at is local directories. Many cities or towns have their own business directories you can submit to, and a lot of newspapers and news sites have directories of their own. These local efforts can help build authority for your business as you will associate yourself with an established (and hopefully authoritative) organization in your service area.
Finally, you can use a service to submit your business to online directories. I cautioned using a service that emails you- I believe most of these services that promise to submit to 100’s of sites are either using deceptive tactics or submitting you to directories that could lead to negative SEO. If you do use a service, use a reputable one- for instance, SEMrush uses a Listing Management tool to submit your business to authoritative directories with optimized descriptions and listings. Moz has a great tool to search your local listing score to see if your listings are accurate and in the right places. These kinds of tools can help manage multiple submissions, but remember that you’ll get more juice if you submit to the highly reputable directories I listed above, as well as good quality local directories.
The Most Important Thing to Remember...
Online directories, like any SEO, require patience and constant vigilance. You won’t get instant success by paying your way in (although enhanced directories will get you more notice over time). You also have to make sure your information is updated and accurate- for instance, if your business hours on Google are wrong, it will result in lost revenue, bad reviews and negative impressions about your business (Garner, n.d.). Inconsistency across directories can be detrimental to your SEO as well- if one listing has different hours from another, search engine algorithms might notice this inconsistency and rank you lower. Finally, you can’t just submit to a directory and forget about it- directories are updating all the time, changing what and how they offer information, and bad reviews can ruin a business. Being vigilant about your listings means managing and optimizing them on a regular basis. That’s why I recommend only focusing on a handful of reputable directories so you can manage them more effectively.
Online directories are still alive and well, just in different forms. However, the same holds true in the old phonebook days as it does in 2021- you won’t get business if people can’t find you. And as mobile becomes even more mainstream, you can’t afford to not have quality listings.
References
Garner, M. (n.d.). The ultimate list of SEO directories (plus 4 tips for maximizing your placements). CallRail. Retrieved from https://www.callrail.com/blog/ultimate-seo-directories-list/
Locke, T. (2020, April 4). Elon Musk pitched the head of Yellow Pages before the Internet boom. CNBC. Retrieved from https://www.cnbc.com/2020/04/03/elon-musk-pitched-the-head-of-yellow-pages-before-the-internet-boom.html
McDaniel, M. (2005). A Short history of the Yellow Pages. Frugal Marketing. Retrieved from https://www.frugalmarketing.com/dtb/yellow-pages-history.shtml
Moz. (n.d.). Local listings and SEO. Moz SEO earning Center. Retrieved from https://moz.com/learn/seo/local-business-listings
Patel, N. (n.d). The ultimate guide to off-page SEO. Neil Patel Blog. Retrieved from https://neilpatel.com/blog/everything-you-need-to-know-about-off-page-seo/
Team Linchpin. (2021, March 17). Does SEO friendly directory submission help SEO? Linchpin. Retrieved from https://linchpinseo.com/seo-friendly-directories/
I agree! If you do not have a GMB listing, you are making a serious mistake. Every business should have this listing as Google is so present in everything we do.
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