Free directories have for many years now been used by website and blog owners to drive traffic and to boost their SEO (search engine optimization) via link-trading. The question is “Is it worth the time and effort to submit your site to them?”.

Google, the king of search is well known for having its own system of ranking sites and search results based on the number of links to a particular site. This in itself has created the growing fad of directories whose primary function is to provide users a way to boost their site’s popularity with the search giant. In theory anyway. The thing is Google looks at much more than just the amount of links to a site. Their algorithm also takes into consideration the source of the link and that site’s ranking. Links from these directory sites are typically considered of low value. Especially generic, “anyone can submit regardless of topic” directories.

Another downfall with most free directories is that they often harvest e-mail addresses (which they often require upon signup) to be used in either their own spamming or to sell to other companies. This is by no means a practice that only directories take on. When a service is provided for free, revenues generally need to come from somewhere. If a free service looks shady to you, it likely is.

Free directories are still of some use though. They are especially useful in getting a new site indexed on search engines and to help get traffic from zero to… something. But I would still look to focus on directories that are more niche focused (focused on your site topics) and that do not require a reciprocal link.

At the end of the day, especially for bloggers, I think your time will be better spent by being an active participant on other blogs, forums, and any other interactive medium where you can share your knowledge and plug your site from time to time. This in combination with a little patience will get you better results over time then any free directory.