One of the most critical factors for ranking high in search engines has been and remains the number of quality websites that are linking to your website  using relevant keywords. The  more you get, the higher (usually) you will appear in the search engine results. One of the best ways to get quality websites linking to you  is by submitting to quality web directories - and here I must stress QUALITY.

I have compiled a list of directories you should submit to that search engines trust the most, and ones that you should avoid. And remember, always put your chosen keywords (like pacific beach condos)  in the description and title when submitting to these directories - this will help your SEO efforts further.

1: DMOZ (FREE). This is one of the most important directories you should submit to, largely because Google uses it for their directory results. As a result of it being free, it’s notoriously slow and hard to get listed in. Pick a relevant  category, then suggest your website in it. And hope for the best! It can sometimes take months to get in  here, and that’s if you get in at all.

2: Yahoo Directory  ($299 per year). Yes, it’s not that cheap, but it’s well worth it if you are serious about your SEO link building efforts. It is also a great way of making sure you are in the Yahoo search results.

3: Best of the Web ($199 one time). This is a great directory to be listed in because it has a high page ranking, which Google relies on heavily for prioritizing its search results. It’s also great because it’s just a one time fee - others require annual fees.

4: Business.com ($199 per year). This directory seems to be going places, fast. Nicely organized, so it is good for web visitors, not just for link building. Definitely worth the money. There are opportunities for sponsored categories on there too.

5: Starting Point ($99 per year). This is a good cheaper option that is also a high page ranked directory. Get in soon - probably won’t be $99 for much longer.

Directories  NOT to submit to:

1: Anything that looks like a link farm (pages and pages of links). This  could potentially  harm your SEO efforts, and you might even get spam in the process. These usually look very unprofessional and ugly. If in doubt, don’t submit.

2: Any directories that require you to  add a reciprocal link to your website. It’s a sure fire way to get lower SEO rankings if you have links pointing to poor quality directories that search engines don’t  rate well  because of their poor content.

Remember, submitting to many of these directories is only just the beginning of a focused and successful SEO campaign - to improve your link building success further still, it’s important to partner with  a successful  SEO company.

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