If you run a website, whether casually or for commercial purposes, you probably want to get as many people as you can to take a look. For e-commerce sites in particular, hits determine the difference between success and failure. One strategy worth exploring is submitting to some of the numerous web directories out there on the Internet. Web directories, also called link directories, are home to lists of other sites, mostly classified by category. Web surfers will generally arrive at web directories looking for a given product or service. In a few cases these categories can become very specific; for example, a person looking through the Yahoo! Directory may choose “Business and Economy,” and then go through the subcategories “B2B,” “Communications and Networking,” “Internet and World Wide Web,” “Network Management,” and finally “Traffic Management” before they come across the list of sites they’d actually like to see.

Website owners are able to submit their sites to various web directories depending on the nature of traffic they’re looking for as well as the nature of their own site. The directories accept submissions based on varying criteria. You can get a deal by looking for a BOTW promo code. There are some that offer free, open submission, meaning that there’s no charge for review or listing. All-free directories of this sort, including the Open Directory Project, can be human-reviewed, and therefore have specific policies and restrictions in terms of website content, and these are not easily circumvented. Webmasters must thus know what it takes to make their sites suitable for submitting to web directories in order to make the most of this process.

Other web directories may offer paid submission plans on a one-off or subscription basis; reciprocal link policies whereby the webmaster is required to put a referral to the directory on his or her website in order to be listed; or a bid-for-position plan, in which the top spots are given out in accordance with bid amounts. Some, including Yahoo! Directory, which is thought to be the largest general web directory, offer a mix of free and paid “premium” listings. Some web directories involve a specific category, such as those that deal specifically with e-commerce or shopping sites, or by area, so even local, small businesses have a good reason to think about web directory submissions.

Submission to web directories, in particular well-known ones, is considered a useful tactic for website operators. Although it can take time, since the impact on hits can be considerable, it’s worth checking out. Be sure to grab a best of the web promotional code before paying for a listing!