Top Directories For Your Accountancy To Be Listed On

How many business directories are you listed on? While they can help to increase the number of leads you have, one of the best advantages of directories is that they can improve your Google and Bing rankings. The higher you rank on search engines and the more inbound links you get, the more leads you will generate.

Endless List Of Business Directories

The real challenge is that there is an endless list of directories you could advertise your business on. Some have simple features and only require a few details, while others have more detailed features, allowing you to collect reviews, provide special offers to customers and upload media to bring your directory to life (images, videos, podcasts).

With so many to choose from it can be difficult to decide which are right for your business. The best advice is to list your business on as many as you can. Then you will have to decide whether or not you can afford to pay for a premium listing; even the top directories might provide you with a good SEO boost, but not direct traffic.

Only by careful monitoring can you assess whether or not a directory you have signed up for is generating you traffic. When you see results coming from a particular directory, consider paying for a more prominent position or advert. Apart from that, don’t buy anything.

Listing Your Business Online

So what directories should you be providing details to and what extra benefits can you get from them?

Google – If you aren’t listed on Google you are just making it hard for yourself. There are two options for listing on Google – brand pages and business pages. It is best to go for business pages as this places you on the Google map for extra exposure.

Bing – Another essential business directory is Bing, and more so in the US than anywhere else as this is where Bing has a greater market share. So if you are an international business or conduct most of your business with companies in the UK, Australia, etc. be prepared for fewer returns.

Yahoo! – While Yahoo! officially got rid of its business listing services; they are still claimable. To claim your free listing, follow these instructions. This is important because Yahoo is still responsible for 1 out of every eight searches in the US.

Yelp – With numerous features on Yelp and the fact it is one of the most trusted websites on the internet, there is no reason why Yelp shouldn’t be the first directory you sign up to. Point your customers here to help improve your rankings by adding reviews and other notes about your business.

Social Media Networks – Whether it is Facebook, LinkedIn or another social media platform (note not Twitter), their sites have dedicated features for listing local businesses. Many of these also offer companies a chance to interact with their audience and collect reviews. Remember, images are everything on social media, so make sure they are professionally created.

Angie’s List – This site has been going for twenty years and offers a way to collect reviews. While it is geared primarily towards the consumer market, there are opportunities for those primarily within the B2B market. There is also a significant focus on the American and Canadian markets.

Merchant Circle – Is easy to use and comes with lots of features including reviews and coupon codes to attract searchers. Starting is so simple, and you’ll be surprised at the results that can be achieved.

YP.Com – One of the biggest companies in the world, in 2014, the website’s app was the 34th most downloaded on Smartphones. There are plenty of additional paid features on the site including digital marketing and paid positioning. It is also one of the most used business directories in the world.

BizJounals.com – There are two options for this site, the free and the premium. The free offers you a listing with your name, address, phone number, description and link to your website. The premium offer, which can be bought for six or twelve months adds your logo and other business details.

Local.com – This business directory has links with forty other directories, so adding your business here can get your business’ exposure increased in no-time at all. You only need to supply limited information to get started, and it can be completed in less than a minute.

FreeIndex – This is one of the best online directories out there because the free listing is as good as most of the paid listings on other directories. With a free listing you can get your business name, address, email, telephone number, link to the website, five images, one video and an unlimited number of reviews. Also, instead of being ranked by those who have paid to be listed, ranking on the site is based on reviews.

Cylex – A unique business directory that offers customers a lot more information than you might find otherwise. The directory is human edited, and you can get more information about your business on the directory by agreeing to be interviewed by the owners for inclusion on your business’ page.

Business Magnet – This business directory offers great benefits to businesses, even in the free version. While there is a premium listing, the free one works great.

Get Your Business Listed

Here are just some of the business directories you can use to get your business listed. The advantages of using directories are that you can increase both the exposure of your brand and the ranking of your website on search engines, and in turn attract more leads and sales.

The only disadvantage is that it takes time to set these up and for a short period you might receive a lot of calls asking you about paid listings. However, the long-term benefits are worth far more than you can imagine, so it would be a good idea to put some time aside each week to list your business on as many directories as you can.