Web directories are special websites that list other websites by category. They also offer brief descriptions and links to the websites. Most directories are human edited and allow website owners to submit their site’s URL to be listed. In the early days of the Internet before the advent of search engines, web directories were the tool of choice for users to browse and locate websites of interest. Tim Berners - Lee the architect of the world wide web, put together the first of these collections of web links when he created the World Wide Web Virtual Library.
Web directories are now in great abundance and run the gamut from general web directories like Yahoo and the Open Directory Project to highly specialized niche directories that may only target specific websites. General directories may contain a variety of categories from art to finance, while niche directories may only categorize pet websites, for example. Some charge for inclusion, but the vast majority are free. While search engines have taken the place of web directories as the tool surfers use to locate websites, webmasters have discovered their usefulness for Search Engine Optimization.
Utilizing web directories has become an important part of SEO strategy for webmasters who are looking to improve their website’s link popularity. Search engines gauge a websites’ popularity or “relevance†by the amount of quality incoming links it has. Linking to several highly ranked web directories that contain relevant content can greatly improve a website’s ability to gain search engine prominence. When choosing a link partner, the closer in theme and content you come to your own, the better. Niche directories are especially useful in this regard as well as providing targeted traffic from a narrow group of people with a shared interest in a particular subject matter.
Although search engines have taken away some of a web directories usefulness, the future of web directories remains bright. As long as search engines utilize complex algorithms to rank pages and assign popularity, web directories will continue to play a role in helping website owners achieve the backlinks needed to gain web credibility.
Article provided by Web Directory