Local Business Directory Listing Benefits

Directory Listing Benefits

Business Directory is aimed at promoting businesses however possible. Promoting your business through an online business directory listing is a smart as well as time-saving and cost-effective business move. It positions your business among the leading providers. WDD Business Directory listing is a great way to promote your product or service directly to a focused audience. For a flat fee, your product or service will be listed for a lifetime.

Link Popularity

Link popularity refers to the number, quality and relevance of inbound links from other websites to yours which is an important variable in determining search engine rankings. WDD Business Directory can improve the link popularity of your website and draw continuous traffic into it.

Generate Targeted Traffic

Submissions in WDD Business Directory will expand your website more admired over the Internet and wait on you to drive a high-quality flow of traffic to the website from those who are interested in your website services which will successively improve the business.

Increased Visibility in Search Engines

In order to formulate a website more popular between the web surfers, web masters seek any advertising and exposure they can get. Submitting links to search engines is one of the ways to achieve this goal. Listing in our directory will improve your search results position in major search engines and your site will get picked up by search engines more frequently.

Direct Advertising Exposure

Addition of your business web page in WDD Business Directory will provide direct advertising exposure for your business or organization to a large demographic in a variety of ways and will enable additional people to find your business and its products or services.

Get Noticed

Making a profit is provocative where competition for most goods and services is intense. Being listed in WDD Business Directory is a good way to get your name out there. People enormously use search engines and business directories for help in picking out products. You need to be listed in order to have a chance for success.

A listing in WDD business Directory makes your website popular, generate targeted traffic and reach new customers. We want your business to grow and gain exposure, so take the next step to make the best of this opportunity and submit your web site to WDD Business Directory.

Local Citation Building Service

With this service we will ensure your Business Name, Address & Phone number are properly listed across the most important local directory sites like Yellow Pages, TrueLocal, Hot Frog and more.

Not only do the these business listings (otherwise known as citations) drive targeted traffic for your local area… additionally they will provide great high domain authority backlinks to your website and are one of the secret ingredients to boosting your Google Places page.

This is a MUST HAVE no questions asked service for any business owner even thinking about competing and having a presence on the Internet on a local level.

We ensure that we have the most up to date lists at all times, only giving you the best possible citation sources. When we submit your business details, we ensure that we match you website to the most relevant options in our list of resources and directories. However if there is a specific website or directory you’d like us to to submit your business too, then you can simply leave this in the comments field of your order form and we’ll ensure you’ll be listed on those as well.

Upon completion of the service you get FULL control of all your citations. You’ll get a complete submission report along with all the log in details for each submission. You’ll be able to use this information to continue building out your listing and keep them up to date.

We provide our “Simple Done For You Option” where we will submit your business details and create listing on the most popular local directories.

However if you already have a presence on some directories, but want more listings… or if you’re not sure if you already have a presence on any directories then our “Cross Check” service is perfect for you.

With this service we will cross check all our directories to ensure there isn’t already a listing of your business on this directory to avoid duplicate listings. If your business already exists on a directory we will simply skip it altogether. All you need to do is add skip listing in the order for of the cross check service.

Best Google Tools for Small Business

Google may be a global search giant, but there are lots of ways to leverage the power of search to promote your small business to local customers. If you haven't yet embraced digital marketing for your local business, Google is a good place to start.

Consumers' increased reliance on social media and online research to make purchasing decisions is helping drive the value of using Google to promote small companies. Yet, many companies still don't even have a website. In fact, nearly two-thirds (63 percent) of businesses do not yet have a website, Frederick Vallaeys, Google's AdWords evangelist, told BusinessNewsDaily.

Google Places is a good place to plant your flag, he said. These are free directory pages for local businesses; there are 50 million "Type in your business name in Google," he said. "If a Google Places page exists, it will show up in the results."

When you're ready to invest in advertising, you can take advantage of Google's AdWords. This is self-service, keyword-based advertising that works on a cost-per-click basis. You only pay when someone clicks on your ad and comes to your site.

Learn with Google can help business owners get acquainted with Google's business side. Entrepreneurs can check out free video courses, read how-to guides and follow worksheets to promote their businesses online.

Here is a brief overview of Google tools that will help you get your business going in the digital direction.

Ad Words Express

Since many small-business owners don't have a lot of time or advertising agencies at the ready, this is a quick and simple solution. Business owners provide some basic information and Google creates their ad.

Google will also manage your ad, pushing it to the right people whether they're searching on laptops or mobile devices.

Google+ Your Business

Facebook has become an unstoppable marketing force for many businesses, and Google has its own version.

You can share links, photos and promotions with the right customers at the right times.

The posts can be public so people can find them using search, or you can use the Circles feature to tailor specific messages to specific followers. You can even initiate live video chats with potential customers who want to dig deeper.

Google Analytics

You need to know that your marketing efforts are not being wasted, and Google Analytics can measure your success. You don't need an army of analysts or even an enterprise to use this enterprise-worthy tool.

The free system allows business owners to track sales and conversions and measure your site engagement goals against thresholds. Once you know who is coming to your site and what they're looking for, you can write more highly targeted ads and strengthen your marketing initiatives.

Google Offers

Customers are still driven by deals and Google Offers matches your business with relevant customers in your area looking for discounts.

Customers prepay for these targeted discounts and small-business owners are paid a few days after the offer runs.

Google AdSense

While Google can drive customers to your business, it can also be a money maker.

Small-business owners can add custom search engines to their site and earn cash from ads on the search results pages.

With AdSense, entrepreneurs can also display ads that match their audience's interests on their website and earn from valid clicks or impressions.

Google Keyword Tool

It is all about the keyword, and it is important to select the right ones to attract the right customers to your business. This feature enables you to test-drive keyword ideas using any combination of keywords, a URL and categories.

Users can compare statistics for your keywords with one or more match types at the same time.

The mobile search component provides data by search volume and competition types.

Traffic Estimator

Once you perfect your keywords, you want to know how much your campaign will cost.

Business owners will get a report on average estimated cost per click, total estimated clicks and total estimate costs for each keyword.

+1 Button

Word spreads on the Web like wildfire, and Google's +1 button makes it easier for customers to share their experiences about your business.

The +1 button that connects Google+ makes it easier for your customers to start conversation with their circles while also providing timely recommendations. In addition, +1 annotations on Google search help bring these recommendations to users who are searching for your products and services.

Google Mobile

There are Google Search, Display and YouTube ads, but mobile is becoming a prime methods for targeting consumers at the point of decision.

It is also important that your website displays well on an array of mobile devices. Using howtogomo.com, business owners can see how their site looks on a mobile device and get customized recommendations for creating a mobile-friendly experience.

Google Apps for Business

Communicating with customers and potential customers is key to your business, but it is not always easy without tech support.

Google offers a suite of online tools that are ready for business, including email, a calendar and documents.

Google AdMob

The name AdMob is a portmanteau for "advertising on mobile". It was incorporated in April 2006 while Hamoui was in business school at Wharton. The company is based in Mountain View, California. In November 2009 it was acquired by Google for $750 million.

Google Flights

Find cheap flights in seconds, explore destinations on a map, and sign up for fare alerts on Google Flights.

Google Flights can now help you be more confident that you’re booking your flight at the right time to get the best price. We now show you when prices are expected to increase for some specific flights and routes you’re interested in.

Google Drive

Get access to files anywhere through secure cloud storage and file backup for your photos, videos, files and more with Google Drive.

Any files you create within Google Drive, including Docs, Sheets, and Slides, don’t count toward your storage limit. The only files that count against your storage space are the ones you’ve uploaded to your Drive, like photos and videos. Considering the fact that most online storage providers count every file against you, this is an extremely valuable offer. If you do find yourself in danger of exceeding your storage limit, just upgrade your plan.

Google’s pricing is highly competitive, making it a good choice if you’re on a limited budget. One thing to note about your storage limit with Google Drive, though, is that anything stored in your Gmail or Google+ Photos accounts also counts toward this storage. Be mindful of this when deciding how much space you need.

Google Sites

Thinking of creating a website? Google Sites is a free and easy way to create and share webpages.

Google Site’s pricing is non-existent; completely free. The only cost would be if you want a custom domain name, in which case expect to pay an annual fee of $10-$15. Also, if you accept payments/donations using Paypal, Paypal rates apply. Business email is also an additional $5/month through Google Apps for Work.

The Top 20 Places Your Local Business Needs to Be Listed

Remember when you had to find a phone book and flip through hundreds of pages in order to find a local business?

The use of Yellow Pages has declined over 50 percent in the last five years. People now conduct quick searches on one of the many popular online directories. Since Internet search is the primary tool to finding businesses today, it’s vital to make sure your business is listed on all applicable online directories.

To get you started, here’s a quick guide to the top 20 online directories and links to their sign-up pages:

Google Places for Business

Listing your business on Google Places for Business should be at the top of your priority list. Google outperforms every other search engine by a long shot. In fact, Google receives nearly 6 billion searches per day.

Advantages

• Registering for a business listing on Google is easy and free
• Business listings appear in Google Maps
• Happy customers can leave reviews on your Google+ page

Create your Google Places for Business listing.

Bing Places for Business

Bing is the second most visited search engine on the Internet. If people aren’t searching on Google, chances are, they’re searching for your business on Bing.

Advantages

• Quick, easy, and free to register
• Add multiple business locations at one time
• Include other content in your business listing like photos, videos, and more

Create your Bing Places for Business listing.

Yahoo! Local Listing

Yahoo is the Internet’s 3rd most popular search engine, bringing in millions of searches per day.

Advantages

• Yahoo Local Basic listing is free
• Include photos, company description and more for $9.95/month
• Get maximum exposure and listed on 40+ other directory listings for $29.99/month

Create your Yahoo Local listing.

Yelp

Yelp is one of the best places on the Internet for consumers to find a quality review. If you’re looking to tap into the word-of-mouth advertising world, then Yelp is the perfect place to start.

Advantages

• Create deals for loyal customers right in your Yelp account
• Send messages to your customers, publicly or privately
• View business trends in Yelp’s reporting tool

Create your Yelp listing.

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MerchantCircle

MerchantCircle is an online directory that helps small businesses connect with local customers, and other local small businesses. They offer free marketing tools to help you build your business.

Advantages

• Geographically localized to your target audience
• Ability to advertise to boost your listing
• Host a business blog on the site

Create your MerchantCircle listing.

Yellow Pages

Yellow Pages is the online version of a modern day phone book. Besides listing your business in an organized directory, Yellow Pages also offers advertising, lead generation services, and online payment options.

Advantages

• Well-organized interface
• Detailed ad performance data
• Receives millions of searches per day

Create your Yellow Pages listing.

White Pages

White Pages is the online equivalent of the white pages in a phone book. It’s a great way to make your business contact information available to over 200 million people.

Advantages

• List your business among 30 million other businesses
• Premium text message service for mobile marketing
• Sponsored advertisement opportunities available

Create your White Pages listing.

Superpages.com

Superpages.com is another online directory that is easy to navigate. Superpages.com includes some unique features like cars for sale, lottery results and helpful tips for finding business services.

Advantages

• Local weather listings right on the home page
• Facebook sign-in option
• Popular search categories listed on the home page

Create your Superpages listing.

Yellowbook

Yellowbook.com is a subsidiary of Hibu Business, and allows you to create an easily searchable business listing on their network. Listings come with access to a full profile that includes business information, a link to your website, product descriptions and more.

Advantages

• Information distributed across yellowbook.com network and partner sites
• Display and video ads available
• Cool map feature included in every listing

Create your Yellowbook listing.

YellowBot

YellowBot is yet another online directory similar to the yellow pages in a phone book. YellowBot provides basic contact and location information about businesses, and allows online reviews from customers.

Advantages

• Easily sign in with Windowslive, Google, Facebook, Yahoo or Twitter
• Premium Listing opportunity for easy account management
• Ability to add searchable tags to your listing

Create your YellowBot listing.

Manta

Manta is an online directory that receives over 30 million unique visitors per month. According to Inc., it is one of the fastest growing business sites on the Internet.

Advantages

• A fantastic way to increase your website traffic with paid business optimization packages
• Get set up within minutes
• Highlight your products and brands on your business profile

Create your Manta listing.

Citysearch

Citysearch is an excellent network for restaurants, bars, spas, hotels, restaurants and more. It’s free to get a listing and easy to update your profile once you’re listed in their search results. Citysearch also offers city guides for the most popular cities in the United States.

Advantages

• Vast partner network including Expedia, Urbanspoon, MerchantCircle and more
• Profile includes a fun welcome message for viewers
• Customers access business listings through popular Citysearch mobile app

Create your Citysearch listing.

MapQuest

MapQuest is a web mapping service to help bring local customers right to your business doorstep. This listing is great for businesses that are trying to get customers to visit a physical location.

Advantages

• Detailed driving directions to your business are available
• Only $3/week
• One central dashboard to manage business listings across multiple sites (paid service)

Create your MapQuest listing.

Local.com

Local.com is a free business directory powered by Yext.com. Local.com offers searchers detailed information about everything going on in their city, including events, deals and information on popular businesses.

Advantages

• Additional advertising options available
• Add a coupon to attract customers
• Resources available to make sure your business is listed correctly across the web

Create your Local.com listing.

Foursquare

Not only is Foursquare a popular business directory, it’s a popular social networking site. Customers can check in and comment on your business — ultimately leading more potential customers to your business.

Advantages

• Connect your Twitter handle, so visitors can Tweet you
• Add a map so people can “check-in” to your business
• Popular mobile app available

Create your Foursquare listing.

DexKnows

DexKnows is a popular online directory that not only allows a business listing, but provides a way for you to track how your customers engage with your profile, thus allowing you to track your online reputation.

Advantages

• Identify places where you can advertise both online and in print
• Detailed lead information available through reporting tools
• Monitor your ratings and reviews

Create your DexKnows listing.

The Business Journals

The Business Journals is a local listing that has 4 levels of service options— free, bronze, silver, and gold. Each service option displays your listing in the directory, but the more you pay, the more opportunities you have to receive targeted traffic to your website.

Advantages

• 8 million monthly searchers
• Searchers have an average income of $97K+
• 84% of searchers shop online

Create your Business Journals listing.

Hi! I’m an Online Marketing Consultant Specializing in Local Search Optimization & Business Listing Creator. It is my focus to work with small and medium sized businesses to help them create and/or enhance their online presence while integrating the best of digital marketing practices in all my initiatives.

Angie’s List

Angie’s List is one of the most well respected online directories for services, and is touted for its ability to provide accurate and reliable reviews for readers. If you’re looking to establish an online reputation through positive reviews, Angie’s list is a must.

Advantages

• Online reputation management services
• Ability to read and respond to reviews
• Access to additional helpful business tools

Create your Angie’s List listing.

Hotfrog

Hotfrog is a free online directory whose aim is to help get your website listed in Google’s search results.

Advantages

• Registration takes less than 5 minutes
• Add as much detail to your profile as you would like for free
• Create coupons to incentivize your customers

Create your Hotfrog listing.

Kudzu

Kudzu is free and geared toward homeowners that are interested in making renovations. If you offer any type of home improvement services, make sure you list your business on Kudzu.

Advantages

• 93% of Kudzu users are homeowners
• 74% of those homeowners are interested in home renovation projects
• Enhanced profiles come with a dedicated account manager to help you boost your website in search results

Create your Kudzu listing.

Need some help getting your business listed? Get a free audit of over 50 online directories, social sites, and search sites. See where your business is listed, if it is listed correctly, and find other listings to maximize your visibility. 

This guide was created by Deluxe and republished by https://localseocitations.blogspot.com.

Get Listed in the Top Local Business Directories

Turn active local searchers into leads or customers by just being there when they are looking for you!

More calls, more e-mails, more walk-ins! Oh, and higher local search rankings!

Why Get Listed in Local Business Directories?

• More Direct Traffic / Leads / Walk-ins
  Local searchers do not scout local business directories ‘just for fun’. They do so for a very specific purpose. They have a need. They are ready to take action. All they need is a product or service to fulfill that need. Your business can be the one they choose, just by being listed there!
• Improve your Search Rankings
  Outrank your competitors in the local search results by having citations from multiple local directories. One of the factors affecting the position of a web page on the local search results page is the number of links/listings coming from other local sites. Local directories are the perfect place to start acquiring those 'local links'.
• More Exposure & Brand Recognition
  Brand recognition often equals to trust. Being seen across various local directories will increase the trust in your brand (and hence the brand recognition). In addition, we make sure we target the popular directories; the ones that receive a lot of publicity and that are actively promoted by big companies!
• Promote your Coupons, Deals & Offers
  In the future, you will be able to feature any promotion you are running on these directories. New coupon? Or maybe a new deal? You will be able to 'announce' that on your listings.

Not Convinced? Read On…

• Get Guaranteed Listings - We have been in this business for years now. We know what these directories want, and we use that knowledge whenever we make a new submission request. The result? Your website will get listed!
• Detailed Report - We deliver a detailed report upon completion of the submissions; this report includes the login information of each directory, so that you can update your information later on if you need to, or even promote new deals every now and then.
• Money-Back Guarantee - If we cannot get your site approved and listed, we will give you your money back.

Citation Sources Canadian Local Business

Local Search in Canada isn’t nearly as developed as in the US, but we’re getting there at a fast pace. Due to economies of scale, carrying out a good local seo campaign in Canada isn’t particulary challenging, but isn’t necessarily easy either. There’s a couple of good reasons for this, one being a complete and utter lack of Canadian specific local citation sources.

The Local Ranking Algorithm is generally centered around the regular on-page and off-page factors attributed to traditional or organic seo, in addition to an all important factor around local business citations. David Mihm provides a great explanation about why Citation is the New Link in Local SEO, and also provides a great resource in his BCS of Local Search Engine Optimization for our friends south of the border.

As local search becomes increasingly more social, user reviews and local business citations are becoming very important in securing top local ten-pack listings. Let’s look at some of the hand-picked citation sources I’ve researched that influence Canadian Local SEO on Google Maps.

Local Citation Sources for Canadian Hotels

TripAdvisor –  TripAdvisor provides unbiased hotel reviews, photos and travel advice for hotels and vacations. It’s not only a great resource for travellers, but also a significant source of all of the reviews cited by Google Maps results for local search times such as ‘Toronto Hotels‘.

Virtual Tourist– Similar to TripAdvisor, Virtual Tourist hotel reviews pop up frequently on Google Canada Map results. Sign up, and leave an honest review of businesses you’ve dealt with.

Igougo – Igougo has vacation and travel reviews, and features third in line after TripAdvisor and Virtual Tourist on Google Map reviews for Hotels.

General Citation Sources

WCities – WCities has a North American base covering businesses of all kinds from restaurants, to night life establishments, and more. You can review businesses by navigating to your respective city and clicking on the appropriate business profile.

Toronto Life -Toronto Life isn’t a UCG site, but does count as a citation source in Google Local. The best way to get featured is for your establishment to offer something sensational, whether that be a unique dining experience, or world-class service.

Where.Ca -Like Toronto Life, Where.ca is not a user generated content network, but does figure prominently as a citation source.

Frommers.com -The perennial paper-back favourite Frommer’s guide is equally popular online, and covers everything a traveller needs to know about their destination, including hotels, attractions, restaurants and more. Leaving a review for an establishment is a matter of navigating to the appropriate business and adding to the mass of exisiting reviews.

Zip Local – Zip Local was recently featured on a popular Canadian TV network, Cable Pulse 24, and is ideal for hyperlocal UCG content. Want to find reviews for a trendy bar in the posh Yorkville neighbourhood of Toronto? Not a problem. From a small business standpoint, this is an ideal way to get cited as the neighbourhood go-to business for what you offer.

Yelp – Yelp was the original hybrid between Yellow Pages listings and UCG from what I can recall. While Yelp does have listings in the organic search results, they are a definite contender to be considered as a local citation source  as well. Leaving reviews on Yelp is easy, and doesn’t even require a user login. That said, if you’re a small business owner, you can claim and modify your existing listings to include more information about your products or services.

Unsure about how to move forward with your local search marketing? Contact us via UpWork or Quora

The Guide to UK Citations for Local Search

Some of you probably know I’m a huge Anglophile.  I lived just off Farringdon Road in London EC1 for a semester, and have visited a number of times for both golf and sightseeing. So in some sense, I’m a little disappointed this post has taken me so long to get out, as I’d LOVE to be able to take on a few UK clients & fly over for some in-person meetings :).

If you are new to Local Search, you’ll probably want to read these articles on the importance of citations for ranking well in Local Search before this one to understand why these are such good places to list your business. And thanks to Martijn Beijk, Distilled, and Sokratis Papafloratos for their contributions to this article.

Where to list your business for UK Local Search

1) The Local Data CompanyLDC appears to be the infoUSA, or perhaps more appropriately, the Localeze of UK Local Search. Check out their impressive list of customers…and lo and behold Google UK actually allows them to use their logo explicitly.  You can submit or update your data here.

2) Market Location
Perhaps the secondary major data provider for Google Maps UK…it looks like this is the place to sign up.

3) Yahoo Local UKA no-brainer, obviously.  Somewhat surprisingly, they don’t appear to manage their own results…sign up below instead.

4) Infoserve
Infoserve provide results to Yahoo Local in the UK, as well as a few other portals, undoubtedly. Click here to sign up

5) Qype
According to multiple UK sources I’ve talked to, including the experts at Distilled, Qype may be the most popular Local portal in the UK at the moment.  It’s also very well-spidered by maps.google.co.uk. Sign up here

6) TrustedPlaces.comThe aforementioned Sokratis Papafloratos is the main man behind this well-indexed Local Search portal. Sign up here

7) Brownbook.net
Dave Ingram, who penned this excellent article on SMB reputation management a few weeks back is the founder of Brownbook, a well-indexed, wiki-style Local portal. Sign up here

8) Yell.com
Though Distilled and Martijn both speculate that Yell is not a quote-unquote “major” data provider, they still show up pretty frequently under the Web Pages tab.  Sign up for a free listing here

9) Yelp.co.uk
Just launched a few months ago (March?), most folks feel Yelp will be just as successful in the UK as it’s been in the US…at least as far as appearing in Google search results.  Sign up here

10) Thomsonlocal.com
According to Martijn, this is a major player in the UK. Sign up here

11) Touchlocal
An OpenList style portal for the UK.  Thanks to Joshua Sciarrino for this tip.  Sign up here

12) ScootScoot bills itself as the online business directory that does all the hard work for you.  Whatever that means.  Sign up here

13) Tipped.co.uk
Looks like this site started in London but is branching out to some of the UK’s larger cities such as Cardiff, Liverpool, Edinburgh, Manchester, etc.  Sign up here

Geo-specific sites to London include:

London Online | View London | Visit London | All in London | London Town | Timeout | SpoonFed

Hospitality industry sources include:

Square Meal | Fancy a Pint | HotelGuide

Any others I should highlight here, Brits?