How do I get into DMOZ?

DMOZ ignores submission but doesn't allow re-submission

[cssatsc]

I submitted my website to DMOZ 2 years ago. After 1 year of "nothingness", I submitted my website again. Still nothing. It is over 30 months now since my first submission. My website is a totally legitimate and stands that most scrutinizing morality and political correctness tests (it's an e-commerce website, the only one of its kind that offers 100% satisfaction money back guarantee and thus enjoys 100% customer satisfaction).

Is there anything I am missing in regard to DMOZ? Is there an item in their policy that doesn't allow e-commerce sites into their directory?

Thanks.

[martinibuster]

Are there any other ecommerce sites in the category you are submitting to? If not then probably the category doesn't accomodate ecommerce sites or may not be appropriate. You may feel otherwise and have very good reason why your site should be included, but the content of a category is shaped by the category description and the editor's discretion. Every category has a link to a description, located in the top right hand corner. It's important to read the description and honestly judge whether the site conforms to that description or not.

Where are other ecommerce sites listed in DMOZ?

The other thing that may keep your site out is a poorly crafted title and description. A description/title that is not unique or is promotional may cause a site to be rejected. Of course, if the editor is a good one she will take a look at the site and edit the title and decription but people are people so don't expect much or feel entitled to kindness.

Research how to properly create a title and description, find the best category, submit once and move on. There are too many link opportunities out there to worry about one link.

Good luck,

mb

[edited by: martinibuster at 10:32 pm (utc) on Sep 28, 2010]

[wheel]

Is there anything I am missing in regard to DMOZ? Is there an item in their policy that doesn't allow e-commerce sites into their directory?

Yes, dmoz is the most corrupt excuse for a directory there is. that's what you're missing.

Volunteer to edit your local town or city, get your site listed, then abandon it and move on. As you've noticed, you won't get your site listed any other way.

[ron15]

I wholeheartedly agree with wheel on both points. DMOZ is corrupt, and if you want a link become an editor.

I've become an editor in the past in order to get my site listed. In exchange, I cleaned up the category, fairly reviewed every site in my queue, and found appropriate links on my own.

Yes, I listed my site, but it was top notch and was not even monitized. A good resource for anyone in that niche. Had I not become an editor I doubt my site would have ever been listed, and certainly the category would have been left neglected.

IMO, its time for DMOZ to power down their servers. I just don't understand how Google can derive any value from it. Its time has come and gone.

[Swanny007]

DMOZ is garbage. I tried submitting a quality site a couple times and although it made it in, it took around 4 years to get listed. I don't even bother with DMOZ anymore, it's a waste of time. Too bad it had such potential.

[nielsenj]

It is possible to get into the DMOZ just by submitting your site. Mine did 8-12 months after submission and I do not know any of the editors.

But I was (and am) somewhat dissapointed with the lack of effect on search engine positions I have experienced afterwards. I have had very little direct traffic and no noticeable jump in the SERPs.

If you cannot get into DMOZ do not dispear. It is not worth it.

[SEOPTI]

Try to contact the editor for this category and offer him $$.

[g1smd]

Don't offer a bribe. Your site will be blacklisted forever.

[leadegroot]

One way to take a guess at whether your request has been rejected (without the politeness of telling you) or whether it is stilling sitting and waiting for review is to scroll down to the very bottom of the category page and look at the Last Update date on the last line of the page.

If it was last updated a long time ago, they may not have even seen your submission.

If the last update was since the date of your submission (which I hope you noted somewhere, because they don't even send an email acknowledgement of the submission for your records :( ) then they may well have rejected you.

[martinibuster]

Good information, leadegroot.

[OceanSky]

DMOZ is practically dead. Search engines don't give it much creed anymore b/c they've seen how poorly its working. It really has not had much affect (if any) on site ranking for quite some time. You are much better off to submit your site to quality directories in your particular field and also to white pages, yellow pages, or other general business directories.

[cnvi]

When was the last time you went to DMOZ to find a resource?

Any thought or brain energy spent on DMOZ is a complete waste of your time and resources in my opinion. And you should know I was DMOZ editor for about 14 months years ago. It was corrupt then and its still corrupt now based on what my contacts at dmoz have told me.

You should forget about DMOZ as much as you should forget about Google Pagerank. Both have zero value on today's internet.

[cnvi]

Just another thought.. if you try to become an editor which is a nightmare in itself, and you cleanup a directory and do lots of work to help and then you add your own site, it only takes one editor above you with his or her own agenda to reverse everything you have done and then blacklist you and your websites into eternity. It happens more often than you could ever imagine.

You will have a more enjoyable time banging your head against a brick wall. Dont waste your time with it.

[cssatsc]

@leadegroot OMG you are so right. I just checked the last updated date (as you suggested) of the aforementioned category (Computers: Software: Shareware: Windows: Utilities) and it reads:

Last update: Tuesday, January 2, 2007 7:57:27 PM EST

Thank you all for your answers & insights.

[leadegroot]

You're welcome, cssatsc - it wasn't original, someone told me the same thing years ago, so I am just paying it forward :)

[wheel]

Just another thought.. if you try to become an editor which is a nightmare in itself, and you cleanup a directory and do lots of work to help and then you add your own site, it only takes one editor above you with his or her own agenda to reverse everything you have done and then blacklist you and your websites into eternity. It happens more often than you could ever imagine.

This.

I've enjoyed the consequences of this. Some person with an ax to grind, after I'd spent quite a bit of effort working on a category. Who knows? SOmeone doing SEO for a competitor?

Quite frankly, it's extremely rare to get accepted doing it the 'right' way. Since you're not getting accepted by doing it that way anyway, there's 0 risk in screwing with their system. They blacklist you, what difference is there between that and you're not getting listed anyway? None.