Paid directory links are a bit of a contentious issue in the search engine optimisation industry. Some companies support them, while some warn against them. The fact that money is involved means that the motive of the seller is mixed in among the confusion. It’s difficult for the average site owner to know what to do.
With directories, there is no clear line between ‘should’ and ‘shouldn’t.’ Some directories are beneficial; others are not. What you need to do, when assessing paid directories, is balance the following two factors.
*The risk. Paid links are always a risk. Google tends to be suspicious of paid links, even sometimes when coming from business directories. There is also a risk unrelated to SEO link building, in the form of the site itself. If the site is not all as it appears, your investment could be for nothing. This is why it pays to research directories carefully.
*The benefit. It can be hard to separate out non-SEO factors when link building, but organic search engine optimization benefits from a little distance. If your site will benefit from the directory in non-SEO terms, it’s a good sign. If the directory features businesses similar to yours, it’s also good. Look at it in directory terms as well as links.Talk to our experts at SearchEngineOptimisation.co.uk about organic methods of SEO.
There are a lot of paid directories out there that are, basically, just spam. They’re fairly easy to spot, and if you can spot them, Google will as well. Don’t forget directories have a genuine business function.
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Posted by Rory.
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