In the deep of the thought on how to make a living off the specialized information you have towards a particular industry or even a subject you find yourself constantly reading as a habit; the idea of an online business directory website is a soothing one.
An Online Directory Website is simply an online submission service where your website is added to an appropriate catalog of related online searchable directories. Then of course adding the “business” to it only infuses the need to balance the Demand and Supply in this system for “cash-out” sake.
Getting started with a directory website
Firstly, you need to ask yourself; what do I connect people to?
To answer this, the first thing to do is to make sure you are comfortable in your skin. What market would you thrive in the most? For example, you enjoy anything reading up on and talking about food, naturally, starting up an Online Directory Website about food will have you in your comfort zone; hence you get better productivity.
But more importantly, you have to understand what your immediate community scavenges the internet on the average, daily. In doing that, you can choose your Directory Niche more carefully and “build around the need for what you have to give.”
The need to strike a balance at a point where your supply is so enticing that it creates its demand, you will need to carry out a feasibility study. This feasibility study can be done with the aid of programs like the Google Analytic Tool and other online tools for visibility analysis.
Getting a domain and hosting
With the emergence of Content Management Services (CMS) like word press, getting a domain has been made a bit straighter toward.
The next step will be to get started (most preferably word press because of its flexibility) and ensure good hosting for your directory website. Good hosting plays an important role in efficiency when it comes to;
- Handling a lot of traffic on the website
- Handling hundreds of listings efficiently. Examples of reliable hosts include Bluehost, hostinger, Site Ground and many more.
Branding
It’ll be of immense help to know that presentation & organization matters a lot when it comes to getting humans to connect psychologically with the services you have to offer. For branding we have;
- Online appearance & directory interface
The first line of action here will be to carefully select soothing directory theme (usually available on word press) that connects your users to what you offer as a Directory Website and also to give an orderly and easily navigable interface. An example of top Directory Word Press Themes include; directory engine, listable, Vantage, listify.
- Online branding adds an extra touch of legitimacy to your website
Improving your interaction with the online community which you supply is very key, and this helps for positive publicity and also builds a level of trust in the mind of the end users.
Content traffic & listings
CONTENT IS KEY! You’ll find yourself on the winning end if you have lots of interesting contents on your website continuously. It is advisable to have one or fresher write-ups about directory theme and listed businesses. Doing these also have a ripple effect of helping your Google ranking rise, hence more traffic on your website.
You must also understand that there is no use for an online directory website without business listings, for the sake of contents at the initial stages. It keeps your website relevant, hence increased traffic which is what we want.
To wrap it up: the key to any successful online business directory website is consistency and uniqueness. ALWAYS BRING TO THE TABLE WHAT IT LACKS.
