884 Directory links in one shot?

[tonynoriega]

So im considering buying 884 links from a directory submission service...

Bad idea?

quick run down....

site is just over 6 yrs old...(by domain age) although i just really started developing this companies site in February of 2006...

it was basically junk before that....

since then i have put the site in the top 20 in google, top 5 of Yahoo and MSN, ASK....

for our major key phrase "new widgets in our city"

i have been studying SEO for about 2 yrs or so...but cant seem to crack the top 20 in Google for my site...

i have 44 back links, and most of those are from the community of sites i have developed for this company....

just not cutting it...

what is the consensus on this? ( i know its a repeated topic) sorry...

[buckworks]

Do your own directory submissions if you do it at all.

[daveshap]

Without knowing too much about your situtation, I would still recommend strongly against this. A large majority of the directories are likely going to be low quality, and getting 800+ new low quality links all at once is unnatural for a site that has accrued 44 links over the past 6 years. Since you're already in the top 20, you're probably a few trusted links away from cracking the top 10. Trying to find those links would be a better investment of your time in my opinion.

[walkman]

IMO: you might as well block Googlebot yourself...it will have the same effect. G will not like dozens upon dozens of links from cheesy directories (assuming that only 1/8th or so make it)

[wheel]

Daveshap is bang on. Spend some time scratching your noggin on how to get a half dozen really really great one way inbound links. My estimation is that will help your rankings more, be longer term, and be tougher for the competition to crack once you rank.

[tonynoriega]

my industry is so freaking hard though....

am i allowed to say it involves, dwellings that you can purchase in a certain north potato state...

its a fight tooth and nail, and its as competitive as it can be...

i thought about and decided against it....

i just need to keep my seo tactics "real"...

[machine11]

chances are that the links submitted to the directories will not get automatically accepted anyways. So you'll probably get those links over time once the directory owners accept your site.

[Rosalind]

I would recommend against this, but not for the same reasons as DaveShap. I don't think you have to worry about a Google penalty for unnatural linking patterns, simply because the majority of those directories will not accept you. Some of them will have turned paid or been abandoned, and the ones that are being run as serious, useful directories do not take kindly to the sort of mass-submission approach that you get from most of these services.

Very few directory submission services are any good at all. I know this, because I run a couple of niche directories and I see what they submit. If the submission service is not charging at least 20p per submission, it's likely to be done with automatic software (very low success rate) or by someone who doesn't speak your language, and therefore can't understand the submission guidelines of each directory.

That number of directory submissions should take a reputable submission service around a week to complete. There are good services out there, but they are rare and fairly expensive.

884 is approximately the number of directories in a prominent list of SEO friendly directories, including both the general list of 559 and all of the niche and regional ones. This suggests to me that your submission company is planning to do a blanket submit to a bunch of irrelevant niche directories.

[tonynoriega]

well, after some thought, and after some responses, and my better judgement, i have decided not to do it...

i was just getting impatient and needed a quick fix...

i will try some manual entries into localized directories....try to solicit some local sites and such...

ill keep it real...thanks all.

[Animated]

i think low quality links from directories do have srong counting when you have lots of them, just make sure its not a link farm.

[glengara]

".. i have 44 back links, and most of those are from the community of sites i have developed for this company.."

Not something I'd want to spotlight, I'd agree with your choice, the softly softly approach to link building....

[7_Driver]

IMO: you might as well block Googlebot yourself...it will have the same effect. G will not like dozens upon dozens of links from cheesy directories (assuming that only 1/8th or so make it)

If that IS true - I'll just go and get a directory submit done for all my competitors, who will fall out of Google, and I'll have the market to myself.

Obviously that won't work - and equally obviously for that reason, getting a bunch of links from directories won't damage you. Google can't tell who made the submission, so it won't penalise you for it.

Whether it will do you much good is another question.

I sometimes use a submission service when launching a new niche site. They do it by hand, and I usually go for around 100 directories - of which about 30-40% accept the submission. (They do sadly submit to some off-topic ones).

You can get a package of 1000 directories (which will be mostly off-topic and low quality, or a package of 10 (which will be high quality).

I don't think directories are "the answer" - but when you have a new site with no links, they're a start.

Just don't do too many or too fast.

[phloam]

I've never heard about a 6 year old site getting sandboxed because of a aggressive link strategy (someone?), this can also happen when you get digged. Personnally I would give it a try.

[pageoneresults]

Obviously that won't work - and equally obviously for that reason, getting a bunch of links from directories won't damage you. Google can't tell who made the submission, so it won't penalise you for it.

I wouldn't be too certain about that.

Congrats ! Your sabatoge techniques work
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