With SEO, as in life, there are really no right or wrong answers. The issues are rarely (if ever) black and white, and different methods can lead to similar results every bit as often as similar methods can lead to different results. However, with SEO (again, as with life), there are arguably better and worse ways to do something. Today we address directory submissions, what they really mean to users, clients, and search engines, and what they can ultimately do for (or to) your search ranking results.
Google spam sheriff Matt Cutts has gone on the record saying that spamming sites, forums, or blogs with links to your page can potentially hurt your Google rankings. Pretty much everyone should have gotten that memo by now. So what are we to make of the free directory submission lists we see when we search for directories? Or the paid ones, for that matter? They seem to rank pretty highly in a search engine that apparently has vowed to disavow them.
Free directory submissions can seem promising, but you have to be careful. Getting your site listed on the wrong kind of directory can indeed hurt your rankings. Cutts describes a handful of trusted directories (such as dmoz or dir.yahoo) as those who exercise “editorial discretion”, meaning that they actually take the time to check out your site and the links to it, to ensure that you are who you say you are, and that your links are appropriate to your topic and substance.
But the sheer quantity of directory submissions sites cannot stand as a judge for the quality of them all. Investigate what they offer. Compare your site with sites that have experienced the kind of success you wish to emulate, and see how the directory helped them to get there. Like anything, if you are willing to take a risk, you have more options to choose from. But always know the penalties and the potentials, and weigh them accordingly.
Lastly, just because a submission service requires payment does not automatically mean it is any better or worse than a free submission service. Do your homework before ever using cost as criteria. You may find just what you are looking for in the least likely place. Or you may find exactly what you expected. But at least you have all the info you need to make your decision.