Re: Value of Yahoo! Directory Listing?

From: Steve Werby <steve-lists_at_befriend.com>
Date: Fri 07 Nov 2003 09:08:36 -0600

"Charlie Rowan" <CAROWAN_at_aol.com> wrote:
> Everyone I have asked really uses it for the search engine,
> not the directory.

My anecdotal evidence is different. Many people I know have stopped using
it for searches, opting to use other search engines, but still use the
directory.

> Is it worth the reoccurring fee?

It can be. The decision really comes down to whether your forecasted
incremental # of sales * your profit margin per unit would generate a high
enough ROI to risk investing $300 for a one-year listing. Since your site
hasn't gone live yet you really don't have any way of coming up with
anything close to an accurate forecast. You might consider a PPC campaign
through Google Adwords or Overture (which appears in Yahoo SERPs amongst
other places) to generate leads and ultimately referrals and word of mouth
to start, then forecast the value of a paid Yahoo directory listing. Once
you have information about the search engines/directories referring traffic
to your site, positioning for said keywords, research how often said
keywords are searched and estimate the benefit of being listed higher in the
results you can decide whether a paid listing makes sense. Or you can save
yourself the hassle, drop $300 and see what happens, but in any case you'll
want some way to measure its effectiveness so you can decide whether to
renew.

Consider approaching others in online retail, but outside your market, who
are listed in Yahoo's directory and ask them whether they measure its
effectiveness, how long they've been listed and what the ROI is in general
terms. Most won't tell you squat, at least not without some incentive, but
you just need a few to get an idea.

--
Steve Werby
President, Befriend Internet Services LLC
http://www.befriend.com/






Received on Fri Nov 07 2003 - 09:08:36 CST