Archive for September, 2007
Web Directory owners are often faced with the opportunity to approve any number of websites that submit to their directories. One of the most common mistakes webmasters make is to approve links without checking the quality of the resource they are in fact approving. Free Web Directories are prime examples of directories that usually shun their submission policy and either don’t manually approve links or just ignore the importance of checking each individual resource carefully. Those directories out there that do search for quantity over quality are certain to endure a tough time ahead with Google appearantly making it tougher for web directories to last in the long term.
iGuides Internet Guide is a relatively newly established premium web directory. On the face of things you may believe that the submission review fee is a little steep for one individual backlink. However, what you do have to remember is that not only does this review fee mean your site gets professionally evaluated for quality, but it also keeps out (more often than not) the useless spam sites that are increasingly clogging the world wide web. iGuides.org itself is an extremely attractive web directory boasting a professional and seemingly unique design concept. That combined with thoughtful navigation and a quality Articles Directory things are looking good for this business.
September 18th, 2007
Many of us home owners quite often venture into the world of DIY. For those of you unable to comprehend what exactly DIY stands for, it stands for - Do it Yourself. Putting up curtains, painting walls or perhaps laying some decking down are all prime examples of do it yourself tasks. Although these tasks can be fairly easily done they can often take a length of time to complete and more often that not do not meet industry quality standards. Many of us therefore choose to outsource our DIY projects or tasks to professional companies.
Ultimate Handyman is a website providing free, impartial advice on all aspects of DIY and home improvement. Established in 2004 this resource is a must for all of you budding DIY enthusiasts. With over 1000 pages to date of useful content, hints, tips and tricks Ultimate Handyman is an excellent display of a website built for its readers. The website itself is very nicely structured and relatively easy to navigate (even if the site owner claims otherwise) and also has a DIY Forum for those looking to interact with fellow enthusiasts. The Ultimate Handyman resource is an absolute must before taking on a DIY project!
September 17th, 2007
Web Directory owners often fall fowl to a handful of unconsidered decisions. These poorly thought about decisions more often than not completely break the chance a web directory has to succeeding in the long term. We discuss one of the most common here;
Reputation - Perhaps the biggest resource a web directory has is its reputation. Lose or discount this at your peril. The webmaster world is an extremely fickle industry and with so many businesses all competing in an already flooded market, your web directories reputation is your most powerful asset. There are a lot of factors that can lead to your reputation being ruined beyond repairable cause.
This includes; (but is not limited to)
- Deleting Listings (Disloyal to your customers if they have paid for the placement)
- Ignoring your approval policy (If you don’t have one then you don’t deserve to be a directory owner, all links should be reviewed!)
- Chasing profits rather than resource quality
- Forgetting to backup your files and therefore leaving your directory insecure and irreversibly destroyed if the unthinkable happens!
- Removing spammy links (No brainer!)
- Forget (either deliberately or by accident) to credit those directory designs or mods that you may be using freely under the GPL.
All of these and many more can cost you, a directory owner big time unless you are careful! Don’t be one of the many who do fall into this trap, think about your reputation!
The Ask Web Directory is a prime example of a directory that does look after it’s reputation.
September 9th, 2007
Romance for Everyone is a premium resource for all of those people looking for that little bit of romance in their lives. Feature packed, this resource contains some unique and highly sought after romantic content, tips, ideas and everyones favourite - dating tips! Romance for Everyone has something for everyone whether you are happily married, engaged or even still looking for your perfect match through dating this website has a lot of information for you to soak up. One should also mention that it isn’t for just the “happy relationships”, this resource also caters for those who are experiencing troublesome relationships or are perhaps looking for a new spark to rejuvenate a current relationship!
Romance for Everyone features a whole host of love poems, letters and tips for all of the heartthrobs out there. Not only this but also available are lengthy articles on How to romance your wife, Surviving a break, and what to do after a break. This website is packed to the high hills with useful content and nicely laid out and presented through an uncomplicated and attractive web design.
September 9th, 2007
TheHomeSource.com was established to help home owners find great deals on home furniture, decor, loans and much much more. The Home Source claims to be the number one resource on the Internet to find all your home related items at the very lowest prices. They work with the top retail distributors to provide you with a list of the very best offers combined with sound, professional advice on which to choose. Home source furniture is one of the already very popular pages of the website discussing some of the best retailers providing you with modern to classic furniture for your property.
Also present on The Home Source is feature packed articles on home loans and home services, so if your research is more related to those topics rather than furniture and decor this resource still has something to offer you. The website itself is extremely easy to navigate, aesthetically very pleasing and nicely laid out. Further work on the content on the site in the coming weeks should ensure this sites development is tip top and the resource ploughs to the very top of the market.
September 9th, 2007
Refinance Guide.com is new website formed to help consumers search and grab the very best loan deals available. Established very recently this website helps you shop for the best programs, learn exactly how the market operates and interest rates fluctuate and identify the best credit card offers. In addition to this, students can use this resource to get the best advice on student loan consolidation, vehicle owners can shop for the best value auto loans and home owners can use the market tools available to refinance home loans.
The main attraction for this website is the learning center. They have published a section geared towards helping site visitors understand each of the markets covered by Refinance Guide and go away with confidence that they know more about the finance topics covered. The finance learning centre provides resourceful content on a variety of refinance topics, all of which leave readers with an education and pro active vision to get straight on with getting the most out of their finances.
September 9th, 2007
Webmasters around the world have been bickering for months and more so now with the recent comments made by Matt Cutts, the infamous head of Google’s WebSpam Team about web directories. Just how worthy are these directories that a huge number of us submit to on a daily basis? Well.. the main focus according to Matt Cutts would be on whether the directory is of a decent quality. In a recent post on his own blog and on the Digital Point Forums Matt Cutts stated that from a point of view of a user, does the site in question air quality? - Whilst he didn’t go into too much detail on how to define quality he did mention the role of the webmaster running a web directory (or any site for that matter) how it is their responsibility as the site editor to ensure that the quality of the sites included (or the content) are of a high standard.
With these recent comments is it only a matter of time before a lot of directory owners start enforcing an even stricter inclusion policy to ensure that low or poor quality web sites are not included in their list of resources? - One web directory that won’t have this headache is the Site Sift directory which, since 2004 has been demonstrating exactly that - a strict inclusion policy. A lot of webmasters seemingly forget that its not just about making a quick buck and including every given web site that submits for inclusion, it’s about protecting and enforcing the policy that one presumes you took the time over legislating. Will this latest move by Google finally kill off the rogue webmasters out their defaming the quality of the web? Time will tell.
September 7th, 2007
The Home Information Packs Directory is a newly established resource dedicated to those property owners seeking house & home information and guides. Operating in what seems to be a relatively affluent yet slightly untouched marketplace this directory offers the ultimate links to the most common resources home owners are after. The directory itself is nicely organised and setup into categories from; Home Condition Reports, Information Packs, Training and Service Providers, to even Energy Assessment Guides.
Based out of the UK one presumes that a lot (if not all) of the information and resources available are geared to the UK market and home owners enrolled on British Residency, however a lot of the information seems to be quite Internationally relevant. HIPS, as the site is known for short looks to still be in its infancy but they are certainly focusing their efforts on the long term goals of developing useful, relevant content & resources rather than flooding the site with endless numbers of useless filler, which is of course what a lot of websites out there are all so happy to do. Standard and Enhanced Advertising Memberships are available for potential clients, each offering valuable and cost effective marketing opportunities from the perspective of reaching a targeted audience.
September 7th, 2007
Any individual or organisation that has their own website will surely have considered using the world famous Hostgator as their online service provider. Classed as one of the ‘big boys’ in the web hosting industry this company rivals the likes of Go Daddy, 1&1 and Yahoo Web Hosting. There is an air of reliability when it comes to using Hostgator. You as a customer are privileged to be using some of the very latest and most powerful electronic equipment at an affordable and market leading low price. This multiplied with the fact that you are receiving unbeatable customer service and peace of mind that you can contact somebody (a human) 24/7 through various methods to assist with your support query.
Choosing the right web hosting package is firmly down to a personal choice - so the industry would say. You can browse online communities and message boards for weeks and weeks trying to find a web host without faults, unfortunately however all of them at some stage disappoint their customers - as all business owners do! Hosting choice is down to a personal preference based on your experiences. Some say that unless you have a serious issue with your current host, or spot an attractive deal you just can’t pass up on from another host, then stick with your current provider. The market is simply so saturated at present that web hosts cannot compete on price, facilities, or indeed technology but they can on support and service, which is why your choice must reflect how happy or indifferent as the case may be your experiences have fared.
September 6th, 2007
Web Hosting right now is big business and has been for quite a number of years. Many argue that it isn’t price, it isn’t location, it isn’t perhaps even facilities but support and service that defines a great Web Host. Each of them have their faults, no doubt, but what really counts right now is the service and support you can offer your customers. Gone have the times where you can compete on price or boasting facilities, you now have to compete on support and service! - The fact is the web hosting industry is massive. This combined with the fact that the larger organisations can literally offer the very lowest prices, for small or medium web hosts they have very little chance of competing.
Hosting UK provided by the Free Zone organisation is one of those web hosts that take support and service extremely seriously and as a company priority (before even pricing). They provide professional web hosting at affordable pricing with friendly, easily contactable and helpful support. Free Zone offer a wide variety of products which include; Web Hosting, Domains, Broadband, eCommerce and Marketing & Web Design. Based in the UK they are one of the rising stars in this industry.
September 4th, 2007
