| The Yahoo!
Directory Submission Process
Although there
are many excellent sites on the internet, the majority of these are not listed in
Yahoo! Directory because many people are not willing to follow simple instructions.
Many webmasters
make a mess of their first submission and ruin their chances for ever.
Some use automatic submitters and are doomed before they even start. Do not use
automatic submitters!!! The vast majority never even try.
Getting listed
successfully in Yahoo! Directory could mean a lot to your business, so take your time and get this
correct the very first time.
Step One – Select Your Category
One way to decide
on your category is to compile a list of keywords and then search Yahoo!
for each. The results shown will indicate where similar sites have been listed. You can
then check out these categories and decide which is the best for you. Remember our hint in
the preliminaries section, you might want to register a
domain name with your keywords to make it more difficult for Yahoo! reviewers to refuse to
list them. We highly recommend using T-Rex to get your
domains, the are literally devouring domain name prices™ !
Some experts do
not agree with this method, since it is possible that your site should actually be in
another category not shown in the search results. They suggest you browse down
through the Yahoo! directory and decide yourself which category is best.
We suggest that
you do both. Before you make a final choice have a look at other listings
in the category selected and ensure that you really fit there. It is also wise to submit
your site to the most specific category possible, since it increases your chances.
You should also apply
for a second category, so decide on this before you continue any further. Once you have decided on both categories take a
note of the complete category path.
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UPDATE !!!
Yahoo!
Directory is now
charging a $299 non refundable recurring annual fee to review all
websites added under their business & economy sections.
W A R N I N G -
You are not guaranteed a listing in Yahoo! even if you pay this fee!
How come? Because
they are Yahoo! and they can do what ever they want. You may have noticed that it is
becoming really difficult to get listed in any search engine for free these days. NBC, Webcrawler, Dogpile, and Excite (just to name of few of the big ones) are all
charging to submit to their sites.
It used to be
possible to get a business & economy link in Yahoo! through the regional
categories free of charge. Yahoo!
has corrected this loop hole and to my knowledge it is now totally impossible to get a
business
& economy link without paying the submission fee. Worst of all, this fee is a
recurring annual fee!
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UPDATE !!! - April, 2004 & March 2005
Other submission
alternatives now available from Yahoo!, including a free submission to
Yahoo Search™!
Read more on our
"About Yahoo!" page!
Step Two – Select Your Title
Yahoo! insists
that this be your company name, or the name of your website
as listed on your home page. The title should contain as many keywords as possible,
but avoid making it sound like advertising. Change your website name if necessary.
New and useful
tip:
Another useful
tip is to register your keywords as your company name. For example, if your are selling
domain names, your could register the domain name "buy-cheap-domains.com" and
list your Company as "Buy Cheap Domains LLC". Make sure to list this
company name
as the Registrant of the domain name record. We highly recommend using
T-Rex to get your domains, the are literally devouring
domain name prices™ !
Step Three – Your Site Description
We recommend a maximum
of 14 words so think about this part carefully. The reviewer may shorten this
further, so be sure that all vital parts are at the beginning. Once again it is wise to
look at sites already listed and see what is acceptable.
Reviewers are
looking for a normal sentence with a full stop at the end. Nothing fancy
and definitely no strings of exclamation marks. Your description should tell the visitor
what is at your site.
Although the
description must not be a 14 word advertisement for your site, you must weave in
as many keywords as you can. Avoid repeating words already used in the
category and title.
Step Four – Your URL
Today most folks
generally believe that keywords should be included in your URL – this is a very
inexpensive way of promoting your site and shows those reviewers at Yahoo! that you are
serious about your site. We highly recommend using
T-Rex
to get your domains, the are literally devouring domain name prices™
!
Our main advice
is, however, to make sure you type the URL correctly. It is very easy to make a costly
mistake.
Step Five – Record Your Submission Details
Before continuing
the process you must carefully save your submission details. We recommend that you type
(and save) a text file with all details, as you will need them again. This file
should contain the following (as a minimum):
- Date
of submission: you need to keep a record of this.
- Categories
selected: the full path for both categories.
- Title:
the name of your website.
- Description:
14 word description.
- URL:
complete URL for your site.
Step Six – Submit
Go directly to
the first Yahoo! category selected and click on the suggest a site link. You then should select
the standard submission option. Copy the information from your
text file to the appropriate fields and then submit - after checking everything.
Step Seven – Wait Patiently
It is recommended
that you wait at least three weeks before further action. If you have not
been listed proceed to submit your website once again. Make sure that it
is an identical submission, using the same submission information saved
in step number five.
Step Eight – Contact Yahoo!
If your site is
not added within seven weeks, contact the Yahoo! directory support department
for assistance. Send a note to url-support@yahoo-inc.com
asking for help and requesting a review. A lot of people do not take advantage of this
possibility.
Include
submission dates and all other information saved in step five. Be brief and
concise, and never send more than one email.
Step Nine – If You Are Listed
If you site has
been listed in Yahoo! you are in there for life and can count on a large number of
hits coming your way. Your ranking on search engines should also take a dramatic
leap since you will have greatly increased your link popularity.
Step Ten – Get listed in other search engines too and increase your
visibilty!
Step Eleven – Help Others Get
Listed and Link to Yahoo4u!
If this
information helps your site get listed in Yahoo! Directory please help others (and us) by linking to
Yahoo4u! from your website and telling all your friends
about us!
Linking instructions:
Click on the image below
and it will open in its own window. Save it to your computer by
right clicking on it when it opens in its own window. Next upload the image
to your host and link to this site at:
http://www.smart-shop.biz/yahoo4u/
or click here for more help.
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