Blogging Collaborations Process: Blog Directories

Image Credit Blogging Setup ~ Click Image for List of 20 Essential Blog Directories

My regular readers know that I am currently mentoring a group of five couponing bloggers to document what we do as blogging case studies and create a blogging collaborations process.

Before we discuss the benefits of Blog Directories and why listing in them can increase the traffic to your blog, let’s review what we’ve done so far: 

1. Selected five related blogs.
2. Chosen a way to collaborate.  (They’re using Skype and created a Yahoo! Group.)
3. Learned about keyword research and using anchor text.
4. Chosen three keyword phrases to focus on first.
5. Developed three landing pages for those three keyword phrases.
6. Benchmarked current blog and social media stats.

Details on each of those six steps are available in the links at the top of the page.

Additional benefits became apparent early in the process. As Kelli wrote in her recent blog post Does Collaborating Work:

The frugal blogger deal collaboration that I won from Gail at GrowMap as far exceeded my expectations!  In addition to the regular tasks she gives us to improve our blog, SEO, page rankings, we have really formed a bond.  The five of us go to each other with any questions!

I have learned more from these girls in less
than a month than I have in years of blogging.

We are really taking off and have even started kicking around the idea of publishing books!

The next step is to make sure each of their blogs are listed in the major blog directories and the profiles for each one are complete. Just as having your site listed in search directories, blog directories can be a source of additional traffic and provide additional incoming links. They are also a good way to find other bloggers in your niche to collaborate with or read.

BLOG DIRECTORIES:

Some of the sites below will not have smaller blogs listed. Add yourself if you can and complete any information that is missing. Some blogs will not qualify to be listed on all of these so just do the ones you can. Some directories require reciprocal links.

• Alexa
  • Create an account.
  • Scroll down and click Edit Your Listing.
• Compete
  • Add keywords relevant to your blog.
  • To add a site description to Compete you have to create an account at ZoomInfo and let them pull the information from there.
• Technorati
  • Create an account.
  • See How to Add Your Blog to Technorati.
• Blog Engage
  • Create an account.
  • List your blog.
  • Look through the Blog Engage Top Users and connect with any you know – or want to meet.
  • Consider using the BlogEngage RSS feed service if you can afford $1.99-$9.99 / mo.
  • Ileane has some older videos about Blog Engage and the Blog Engage Community.
• Blog Catalog
  • Create an account.
  • Submit your blog.
• Blogged
  • Create an account.
  • Submit your blog.
• Bloggapedia
  • Register
  • Submit blog
• Networked Blogs
  • Networked Blogs on Facebook
  • NOTE: You have to get 20 followers before your blog will show up in the primary search. Click the button to find blogs with less than 20 followers.
• AllTop
  • Create an account.
  • Log in to submit a site.
  • Not all blogs will qualify to be listed on AllTop as they are quite selective.

PAID BLOG DIRECTORIES:

• Blogarama – unclear whether they are charging fees for listings or not. TopRank has them listed as a fee directory.
• Bloggeries

There are literally hundreds of blog directories, some free and some paid, some with significant traffic and others almost unknown.

Each collaboration should review some of the blog directory lists and pick out any that they feel will benefit their group. There may be a blog directory specifically for your niche that would be worth using even if it has a lower PageRank and traffic because the visitors it sends would be more targeted.

BLOG DIRECTORY LISTS:

Since I last researched this subject, one of the largest and most important blog directories have gone away. Ignore listings for MyBlogLog (killed by Yahoo!).

• Top Rank Blog Directories List – when you feel ambitious you might do all of these or at least all those that don’t charge fees.
• Fresh eVenture: Keller Hawthorne’s review of the Most Important Blog Directories (includes some that are charge listing fees.)
• Mavis Nong of Attraction Marketing singled out two I haven’t used: thatMLMbeat and BlogTopList in her post 10 Ways to Promote Your Blog.
  
• Traffic Nymphmaniac: Top Blog Directories
• World Click: Top Blog Directories
• Info VileSilencer: Blog Directory List
• Veteran Blogger: Top Blog Directory Lists

NEXT: Once you ensure your blog is listed, connect with each other on those directories and write reviews of each others’ blogs.

BONUS: Search for, follow or friend, and review other blogs you admire. If they are sharp and frequent that site or get notified they are likely to reciprocate. Any blog you like enough to review may be one you want to add to your Twitterfeed and connect with on Twitter and elsewhere.

If you have questions about any of the above ask in the comments or send me a tweet to @GrowMap. If you have a group of five bloggers interested in free mentoring contact me using the information on the contact tab at the top of this blog.

I encourage other bloggers to share their recommendations for additional blog directories to be added to this post. If you have a video, how-to post, or a review please do leave links in the comments. I frequently move them up into the body of the posts here.

In a hurry to promote your blog? You may want to read my review of Kristi Hine’s (@Kikolani) Blog Promotion Guide.

Click the image to get Kristi's ebook

Tagged as: blog directories, blogging best practices, blogging collaborations, blogging tips