BOTW - Best of the Web directory
It focuses on content rich, well-designed websites and aims to list quality sites rather than going for a scattergun approach and letting anybody in. Describing itself as 'the internet's oldest directory' its stated aim is 'providing the Internet community with meaningful guidance that it can trust.' What is the point of a directory?Directories are an essential part of your link-building programme. Once you have established a content based website which is generating a reasonable amount of traffic, it's time to start sorting out reciprocal links with websites that complement your own, without directly competing with it. When you link exchange you need to focus on value: - Link exchanging websites should be similarly themed ... I wouldn't link this website with a gardening website, but I might link it with a 'start your own business' website or a 'live and work abroad' website, where linked pages relate to the themes covered in my articles. - You shouldn't link to poor quality websites - You should avoid being added to pages full of links - it's best to have a contextual link from a related content page - Avoid link farms and other scams
Inbound links from credible sources help to validate your website in the eyes of the search engines. The benefit of a quality directory listing is in the Google Page Rank that it 'sends' to your site - an 'endorsement' if you want to think of it that way - and an indicator to the search engines about the credibility of your own site. Every website owner should aim to get a couple of quality directory listings and a good stock of reciprocal links with other websites. The two best directories to look at in the first instance are: - DMOZ, the Open Directory - Yahoo! Directory DMOZ is free, and it's very difficult to get listed (see more on my SEO tips page) and Yahoo! costs $299 and you're not even guaranteed an entry at that price, it reflects the price of an editor review rather than a listing. With DMOZ being very difficult to get listed in and Yahoo! costing a small fortune, most of us are left having to look at second tier directories for listings and that's where the Best of the Web directory comes in. What do you get from a Best of the Web directory listing?As you'll see, BOTW is pretty basic. You get a link, a short description, and links to search for the website on all the major search engines. Note how deep down my listing lies, about 5 levels into the directory: Business: Business to Business: Small Business: Home Office: Resources and Guides:
Note that these fees are recurring, so directory listings are quite a financial commitment to your website. I have Yahoo!, BOTW and Aviva directory listings for this website and although it has seen no boost in traffic as a result, my link popularity index determined by my web host is currently above 40, with my target being about 50 as a small site. So, directory listings are very much something that you'll have to make a personal judgement about, based on your budget, your aspirations for your website and your view of how important all this is for your 'battle plan'. My recommendation would be to submit to DMOZ - but not to hold your breath - then select two or three suitable second tier sites, like the Best of the Web directory, which offer a combination of good Alexa ranking/Google Page Rank and a price that is within your budget.
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The
Best of the Web directory (also known as 'BOTW') is one of the longest
established web directories, having been set up in 1994.
At
the time of writing a BOTW directory listing will cost you $99.95, but
if you compare what you get for this money at a very useful directory
website called 
