How much do you spend on advertising in directories etc.

**oliverjohnsteele** · 08-01-09

Hi,
I am interested to know what companies are currently paying to advertise on web directories and similar concepts.
After speaking to a few people it seems so many retail based businesses are paying initial advertising fee's of over £500 + huge monthly maintenance charges just to be on a flat format directory.

Best regards
Oliver J L Steele
themall.tv
Tel: 07830 296 774

**Top banana** · 08-01-09

I would be amazed if any retail businesses are paying initial advertising fee's of over £500, to be in a directory. Which directories are they paying £500 to appear in?

Directories are dead as a way to find sites on the internet, so their traffic is very low.

The best directories, BOTW, Yahoo, Business.com, etc are really only good for SEO value not traffic, and they certainly dont cost £500. I think you are barking up the wrong tree.

**tan111** · 15-01-09

For 5-6 hours a day usually

**HotRobot** · 13-03-09

avoid like the plague...especially if you have been cold-called by any companies offering this service!

**oliverjohnsteele** · 13-03-09

Hi,
Who are you advising we should avoid like the plague.
It was quite a whila ago I posted this comment as I was interested to see what people thought about some of the directories that charge mad fee's and yet do not seem to produce very good results. As it was mentioned the main use is usually for SEO as it may well bump up listings in google, yahoo etc.
i am currently working with a company that has created the worlds first virtual online shopping mall which effectively is a new advertising option for the retail sme's as well as the big players. The response has been astounding, as online adspend is being increased by a lot of companies that need to drive traffic online while high street sales plummet.
I suppose overall I may well be a bit biased as I have been stung by dodgy directories before now charging for nothing but a company name and address on a website no one see's.

Thanks for the comments
regards
Oli

**HotRobot** · 13-03-09

Hi Oli;

Seems i got the wrong end of the stick, I thought you were asking for opinions as a prospective customer of a directory listing company. Companies who generally employ an office full of telesales staff pushing a 'premium listing' to small businesses with very little knowledge of internet marketing were the target of my ire.

I also didn't see that this was an old thread! Good luck with the virtual mall, an interesting concept and if it is going well then fair play!

**oliverjohnsteele** · 13-03-09

Hi.
That is probably more my fault. my initial post wasnt 100% clear but i am glad to hear that someone agrees that some of these directories simply call businesses just to sell them a "premium listing at extra cost" that really doesnt help anyone apart from the directory especially considering some of the people selling these listings havent got a clue what they are selling in terms of an advertising and marketing tool. This would certainly justify why the company I work with provide a comprehensive training program to ensure staff knowledge is correct and relevant to the market and not just some boiler room that hammers out a million calls a day.
I must say, regardless of whether this is an old post or not its nice to see other people and businesses taking an interest in this subject as in many cases advertising can really shape the way a company moves forward.
Best regards
Oli