Does a Yahoo Directory listing boost Yahoo search traffic to a site?

[ichthyous]

Hi there...I used to have a Yahoo directory listing and let it expire. I didn't see the point of wasting another $299 as the listing brought in no traffic whatsoever. I did used to get a considerable amount of traffic from Yahoo search though, which suddenly dried up around Oct/Nov of 2003 and has never returned. I am wondering if anyone has noticed a relationship between being listed in the directory and Yahoo search traffic? Has anyone else been dropped from Y search after a listing expired and then bought a new listing? What effect did it have on your Y search traffic? I'd appreciate any input before putting another $299 down a hole! Thanks

[tedster]

No, you don't ever see much traffic straight from the Yahoo Directory. But a listing there is a very strong, authoritative link. In my mind it's worth every penny of the annual fee just for the extra shot of link love it generates around the web, and that's not just in the Yahoo SERPs.

So, I'd say that a Yahoo Directory listing improves ALL search engine traffic. It is, after all, a human edited directory of real substance. I don't know if a directory listing is a specific factor in the Y! Search algorithm, but as a BIG link, it is still one of the factors. Our clients always see a nice traffic jump when their entry kicks in, and that increase is sustained over time.

When it comes to the money involved, have you ever seen what kind of marketing $300 will buy you from a newspaper, radio or magazine? $300 is not all that big a marketing expense.

[ichthyous]

I have to be honest, having my Yahoo link dropped from the directory made no difference to my traffic at all that I could see

[JaySmith]

Yahoo directory no longer provides a direct link.. it's a 302 redirect which has been a problem at another engines (which will remain nameless).. :)

But if your site is a clean site and has a few other clean authority links, then it should help in yahoo serps..

[martinibuster]

>>>Yahoo directory no longer provides a direct link..

Yes, but it's a direct link from it's mirror sites in other languages.

[Bard]

Yahoo Directory 302 linking is quite frankly a rip off in my opnion. Any site I pay $300 bucks a year to list with better put my damn link straight up on their page.

[Eltiti]

you don't ever see much traffic straight from the Yahoo Directory

Well... I have quite a few listings (for different sites), and one of these sends me a steady trickle of visitors --it has earned the listing fee many times over! (Of course, the fact that it has been "grandfathered in", i.e., I do not pay an annual fee, helps quite a bit with my ROI...)

[ichthyous]

Don't fool yourself...no link is grandfathered in. Mine was there four years before they yanked it. I only paid once

[Eltiti]

no link is grandfathered in

Well, let's say I submitted them before the fee became a recurring fee, and they haven't been removed since... Maybe I've been plain lucky!

[edd1]

I don't think there's a relationship between the directory entry and search traffic. The only 2 things I can be sure of are

1. They'd like you to think there is but

2. They'll never actually say it.

[Natashka]

well, I paid $300 not to improve my Yahoo search results, but Google ones. It is a strong backlink, it improves your PR and position in Google serps.

I am one of those lazy ones who doesn't like all that link exchange hype and I simply don't have time for that. So I prefer to buy some strong inbound one-way links (strong from Google's point of view), rather then spending days begging those snobs for link exchange LOL.

And it DID help, I have 10 times less inbound links than my competitors, but my position in Google is better, I guess coz my inbound links are stronger - quality vs quantity.

And though you talk about 302 redirect, Google still recognizes it as a backlink, coz it shows up at link: command, not to mention all other regional yahoos.

[reaper]

If it is a paid inclusion better ways to waste your money.

[nzmatt]

Yes