Every business – whether they operate in a limited geographic location or totally online – has a HUGE opportunity to quickly and easily improve their visibility and get more business.
Taking this ONE action can:
- Make sure your business contact information is easy to locate online
- Increase the number of search phrases that can be used to find you
- Move all of your search listings up in search engine rank
- Potentially get your business featured at Google, Yahoo, Bing and on many other major sites
- Encourage clients and customers to review and recommend your business
- Automatically garner new incoming links on the booming number of metro and other geo-targeted sites
What can do all this for you?
Maximizing your listings in Local Search Directories!
I have been writing about Local Search for a year and consider it so important it is the subject of half of only four pages that appear on every page of this site. Lately I have been spending most of my time researching and compiling over one hundred Local Search directories, prioritising their importance, and creating a process for even better results. Today though, I want to recommend a shortcut that I firmly believe every business can act on immediately to their great benefit.
The only drawback before now to listing in Local Search directories was the days of monotonous entries required and the horrendous usability issues found on the Web sites of many Local Search engines. (They really need to hire a usability expert!) Fortunately for us all there is now a fast, efficient, inexpensive way to get over seventy-six listings and counting in one fell swoop. Many thanks to a really sharp SEO expert I know who shared this information.
Simply create one listing for your company at Universal Business Listing and they distribute it to all the major Search Engines, Online Yellow Pages, Local Directories, City Guides, 411 Directory Assistance, iPhone apps and GPS services. You can update your information in that one listing any time and feed the changes to all the sites they cover.
While many advise against using automated submission services for regular search engine listings, I have thoroughly researched and have found no drawbacks to using Universal Business Listing (UBL). It saves me over thirty-five hours in getting a business listed well in local search directories for only $30 which includes listing fees in some of the other directories that are covered. I have no idea why they have priced this service so low and suspect it will eventually go up because it saves so many hours and has other benefits listing manually does not have.
The most important of those is being listed almost immediately in infoUSA instead of waiting the usual 30-60 days. The infoUSA database powers 85% of online directories (including Google Local Search, Yahoo! Yellow Pages, Microsoft Live Local Search (now Bing), AOL brands including Compuserve, Netscape and Mapquest, and 90% of in-car navigation systems.
You won’t recognize many of the sites UBL feeds but they are extremely important to your business because they are databases used to populate almost all of the new niche sites targeting specific locations, subjects, and metros that are popping up all over. This is a huge growth area on the Internet and your business will automatically be included in those new sites and provide an ever-growing number of incoming links.
I will be adding a list of all the directories and databases to which UBL will send your listing, a how-to for their specific process plus a best practices Local Search Listing process for upgrading only those listings where it is possible and beneficial and claiming others that UBL does not reach.
I can not recommend highly enough that you go to Universal Business Listing and do this NOW.
This is too fast and easy a way to grow your business presence to put off. While you could do this manually trading $30 for 40+ hours of work is worth it in my book. If you are offshore and $30 USD is prohibitively expensive contact me. There arebusinesses here that would gladly pay the fees if you will do the work.
The great thing about UBL is you can quickly get your listings up by submitting them and then use their free editing ability to take your time and really optimize your listings for your best keyword phrases. See Local Search Ranking Factors for tips on what is important.
Here are the seventy-six directories I have identified as being fed from the Universal Business Listing process so far. This list will continue to grow and I will add more sites as I find them. I hand selected the most important and placed them at the top with the rest in alphabetical order. If you feel others should be listed at the top please share your thoughts in the comments below.
UNIVERSAL BUSINESS LISTINGS:
- Google Maps
- Yahoo! Local
- Bing Local
- SuperPages
- Yelp
- Merchant Circle
- Acxiom
- ALK-Pilot
- AllPages
- AnyWho
- AOL Local
- Areaconnect
- Areaconnect Canada
- AskCity
- AssistGuide
- BeanPool
- BigBook
- Blackberry/RIM
- Canoe Inc. (aka Quebecor) – Canadian
- Citysearch
- Collarity – any idea where on this site?
- Comcast Local
- Deep Data
- DensoAutoNav
- DexKnows
- DigiWalker
- Disney – anyone have a link for this?
- Earthlink Local
- eLocalListing
- getFave
- Electronic Directories
- Go2
- HelloMetro
- iaf.net
- iBegin
- Idearc (aka infoUSA)
- infoNXX
- InfoSpace
- InfoUSA (aka Idearc)
- JVC GPS
- Insider Pages
- kgb_USA SEE infonXX
- Kudzu
- LiveDeal
- Local.com
- LocalMatters
- Loqal
- Lowrance (aka Navico)
- LSSI-Volt
- Menu Networks
- Mobio Networks
- OneCallNow – anyone know how they use listings?
- Onstar
- OpenList Local
- Quebecor (aka canoe inc.)
- Search Bug
- Search Initiatives
- Spock – anyone know how this People Search uses
- SwitchBoard.com
- TeleAtlas
- TeleMap
- TellMe
- TomTom
- Topix
- US City.net
- V-Enable
- viaMichelin
- Vindigo
- WhitePages – anyone know how they use business listings?
- YP.com
- YellowBook
- Yellow Bot
- YellowPages
- Yellow Page City
- Zenrin (Phones & GPS devices)
- Zingy – Any idea where data is on this site?
Disclaimer: We are an affiliate of UBL and the links in this post are affiliate links. That is NOT why we are recommending them. We are actively using their service for ourselves and our clients. If you are in a position to recommend them in your own blog please do so. If you feel what we share here is valuable to you we thank you for using our affiliate link.
{ 128 comments… read them below or add one }
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Every online business wants to increase their visibility by this or that way. But doing a business online is not as easy as it sounds. You constantly need to increase your visibility on the web. If stop, you drawn. So, there are many way by which you can increase your online visibility and this one listing is an effective part of them. I can see there are many high profile sites here and having your business in these sites is really a good thing. This will help your business to come in to many eyes because these sites have wide network of customers and your business definitely need customers. UBL really offers a great service. Now I am working on this part for my business and it seems very useful to me. Thanks for sharing.
Great list of High profile directories.
I don’t know if I would use a business like UBL. Reading about someone not getting more than 25% of the listings to stick is quite low. I rather outsource it. Get it done for less.
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Twitter: connectamol
August 7, 2011 at 9:13 pm
Twitter: @connectamol
Great High PR Profile Links I have found it here !! Thanks For Sharing This !!
Amol Mhetre would love you to read ..Establishing Leads for Companies will Make Money Online
Hello,
I suggest adding PinBud.com to this list of directories. It offers free basic business listings for local service providers like home contractors or professionals. Also, it comes with free sales leads from prospective customers.
You see, PinBud users find and select local businesses that provide a particular service in their area, and then send them all one single request for a quote. If you are for example a plumber or a dentist you probably want to be on that recipients list. Pinbud is completely free except for top listings in search results. But you don’t really need that unless the list is crowded with many of your competitors.
Cheers!
Twitter: matthewacoleman
June 10, 2011 at 2:21 am
Twitter: @matthewacoleman
wow!.what high profile site are on the list…something to think about.
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Twitter: stutterwear
June 8, 2011 at 10:44 am
Twitter: @stutterwear
thanks for this suggestion…I will look into it more..might sign up
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Are there any requirements to sign up for this service? I work at a pharmacy is that kind of place not allowed because we fill prescriptions?
Rick would love you to read ..Contact us
Twitter: GrowMap
May 14, 2011 at 2:54 pm
Twitter: @GrowMap
Hi Rick,
While online pharmacies in other countries are most likely prohibited, legitimate brick and mortar pharmacies are listed in these types of local directories so UBL would most likely accept listings for you. I can confirm this during business hours if you wish.
growmap would love you to read ..The Best Social Media Sites For Business
I have got to agree that doing this manual style is the most boring job in the world. It may produce a bit of link power but I would only do this task if I had several spare hours and a large bottle of something!
Thanks for all the advice here. We’re on a couple of these already and see traffic coming through
Twitter: Massage2ullc
April 28, 2011 at 5:21 pm
Twitter: @Massage2ullc
Thanks for the tip. I signed up for it already. Keeping my fingers crossed
Twitter: localwebtweets
March 29, 2011 at 4:30 pm
Twitter: @localwebtweets
I’m not having good luck with this service. By their own analysis, most of my sites show less than 25% submissions many months after setting up the campaigns. I hope by posting comments that UBL will wake up and respond…they have yet to supply a direct answer or try to solve the problem.
Twitter: GrowMap
May 14, 2011 at 2:49 pm
Twitter: @GrowMap
Hi Greg,
I tracked the listings when I first started using UBL and the listings did appear – some of them immediately but most over a month or two. If you are still not seeing results I can contact them on your behalf and get you an answer.
My apologies for not seeing this comment sooner. I am not very scalable.
growmap would love you to read ..Must Have- Small Business Web Online Profiles
This is a resource we use as well and can vouch for their effectiveness. Although users will need to remember to claim the listings on the sites that will let you. It’s time consuming but worth the benefit in the end.
Twitter: GrowMap
March 7, 2011 at 2:47 am
Twitter: @GrowMap
Hi Justin,
Thank you for taking the time to comment. Businesses need to know that UBL DOES work and is worth using. They are rolling out new features that I will be covering here as soon as they go live. I have much additional information about Local Search Directories and am planning to do some case studies showing all the unique traffic using UBL has generated for individual businesses.
growmap would love you to read ..Local Search Directory Listings
UBL is a solid start for small business with limited resources and time. They now offer 2 more substantial packages above the $30 price. We have used them and would recommend them.
Twitter: GrowMap
March 7, 2011 at 2:48 am
Twitter: @GrowMap
Thank you for your testimonial on their behalf. It is important for small businesses to know who they can trust and that others also recommend using UBL and claiming their Local Search Directory Listings.
growmap would love you to read ..CrowdSourcing- Failures and Successes
Don’t forget that some of these directories share information and some are tied together. A few of them are aggregates that once you get on those your business will spread to others without any effort on your behalf. For instance, AskCity gets their info from CityGridMedia/CitySearch.com and from InfoUSA.com/ExpressUpdateUSA.com, Dexknows and white pages get their info from localeze.com, and so on. It can be hard knowing exactly where to submit sometimes.
Brandon would love you to read ..Are search engine optimization experts treated unfairly in the USA
Twitter: GrowMap
March 7, 2011 at 2:52 am
Twitter: @GrowMap
Hi Brandon,
You are absolutely correct. I actually have a spreadsheet where I noted which directories feed which others as I figured them out. There is no way to compile a complete list because so many niche sites exist. I do plan to do a post showing all the unique sites that send traffic to some businesses I have added using UBL.
growmap would love you to read ..Local Search Directory Listings
Awesome! Thank you very much for the tips. This should be given a try. I’ll be keeping my eye on this article everyday to know more and learn more about. Keep it up! you’ve done a great job.
Do you think this listing in web 2.0 directories is beneficial?
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Twitter: GrowMap
March 7, 2011 at 2:54 am
Twitter: @GrowMap
Hi Paris,
Absolutely. Local business should definitely ensure they are in these types of directories and even those that operate entirely online can benefit from the incoming links from high PageRank, trusted sites.
growmap would love you to read ..SEO- SERPS- Is There a Google Search Engine Fairy
Twitter: allaboutmexican
June 8, 2011 at 11:40 am
Twitter: @allaboutmexican
is it free?how successful is it for smaller sites?do you recommend it for smaller sites?
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Its my first time to read your blog. thanks for sharing awesome.
Twitter: jamesmspacey
November 4, 2010 at 9:18 am
Twitter: @jamesmspacey
I’ve been listing sites on directories for years and they always benefit the search engine rankings. Just a word of caution, though. I’ve found going heavy on listing a brand new site on directories could get you sandboxed.
I agree, however, I would add that though UBL is a great business model and service for enhancing local listings, I find getting support and reports (which clients demand from us who manage their SEM campaigns) is all but impossible.
This is a great post for local business owners. My wife dominates local search and her business has exploded as a result of being at the top of Google. Anyone serious about acquiring new business needs to take this serious.
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Twitter: singaporeflower
November 2, 2010 at 11:05 am
Twitter: @singaporeflower
Thank you for your article. I have tried local listing, both paid and non paid, if you can find a good local directory portal, it does bring traffic to your website.
BelleTan, a florist at 24HrsCityFlorist.com.
Guy above, automated development of listings is definitely not ideal. Much of the potential associated with online business listings is in the details. Something you want an intelligent person to deal with, as some mistakes made during some automatic submission process might seem trivial on the surface. Could very have a major impact on the performance of a given online listing.
As for UBL, the more I consider it … the less I like the idea. On top of not claiming, nor really optimizing a business owners listings. I visited their site the other day and reviewed many of the resources they “submit” your business information to. Not only are these resources of no discernible value to a business owner as a potential source of any business.
They are also of no value as a citation … as their data doesnt seem to be accessible or indexed by search engines. So they not only seem to be of no value as a potential source of business online or of a citation. But also seem likely to result in an increase in solicitation from the people information has been submitted to.
Many of them are proprietary internet marketing services. So I downgraded my opinion of UBL’s services from minimally useful, to probably useless and a source of added headache’s in developing an online presence for a business owner.
Think the best way to do that, is by either taking the time to learn to do it effectively yourself or hiring someone with the necessary skills and have it done manually. Which will certainly cost more … but its true you usually get what you pay for and the assumed easy way, is definitely not always the right way to go.
Twitter: GrowMap
November 14, 2010 at 8:10 pm
Twitter: @GrowMap
Hi MrSmith,
I agree that enhancing the most important local search directory listings IS important; however, there are many directories and each one of them is different. It takes dozens of hours to manually submit to each one.
Why do that when you can quickly submit your basic information for $30 and then go back and claim and enhance the most important ones? That takes a fraction of the time and gets your listings into databases that charge more for inclusion than you’re paying to UBL.
I recently published a list of the top ten Local Search Directories – those and any others that have reviews are the ones to claim and upgrade.
Gail Gardner would love you to read ..Top 10 Local Search Directories By Importance
I find that many of these business websites will ad you more than 1 link. its great
Which btw, if someone submits their business info to the major dataproviders, like infoUSA … odds are your information will find its way into many of the databases UBL covers anyway.
MrSmith
Thank you so much for your reply and well explanation regarding my question. I really appreciate it.By the way, I’m not from India but from Indonesia..
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kabirada, depends search for your business to see if its already included. Sounds like you’re from India or other … dont know if google necessarily covers that location per se. As for automated software … pretty much what UBL is.
Still think the only way to do something as important as local business listings is via manual submission … esp since someone is going to have to follow up on them regardless. Can just see all sorts of problems cropping up with automatic submission services … even if they claim premium features.
Not to mention, more isnt always necessarily better. Many of the databases and providers UBL is supposed to submit to have little or no recognizable value from a local SMB owners stand point. They have no real potential as sources of customer traffic in and of themselves. Would seem like more aggravation to have to claim and try to manage them.
And while they may or may not have some value in terms of SE citations. Judging from what Ive seen, that’s really dependent upon your specific industry etc. Since the search engines tend to seem to scrape data from preferred sources for various industries.
Only attractive feature I see in UBL, is the fast track submission to dataproviders that ordinarily take longer to get into. Think there’s maybe 50 regular sites with high potential when it comes to establishing listings for your business and of course a social networking site or two … ie: facebook. poss twitter or myspace. Then of course industry specific sites and some local sites which could act as quality citations. The other 250 sites/sources from UBL Im not so sure about as regards any value.
Twitter: GrowMap
November 14, 2010 at 8:16 pm
Twitter: @GrowMap
Hi MrSmith,
I have to disagree that the databases UBL submits listings to are unimportant. Many new sites that target either a specific topic or a geographic location use those databases when building their new sites. By having your listing in the database you are automatically included in more and more new sites related to your specific audience.
I see this regularly when I look at the analytics for small local businesses. When I wrote this post I found 76+ domains sending traffic. If I were to revisit that over time there are probably 100+ or even more.
If you ever manually submitted a business to even 20 much less 76 individual sites you would not think manual submissions are a better idea – unless you’re charging someone else by the hour. The work is mind-numbingly boring and takes hours and hours to do.
Why not get the basic listings in there and then claim and enhance only those that are the most important? That is far more productive.
Gail Gardner would love you to read ..Top 10 Local Search Directories By Importance
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