What makes a directory valuable?

[Zhivko]

Hello @David W Cox, thank you for taking the time to give some feedback. Your "the signup process is not hard" means a lot to me! We are in talks currently with a major US provider of data, so we can populate the directory. (They found me through this forum. I don't know if it is ok to mention their name here.)

I would love to put a phone number on the site but we are afraid we will get flooded with calls from none-dentists and spammers. We are thinking about adding a form for "requesting a call" where people can explain what they want to ask and we will call them if it's a real issue. I realize it's not the best solution... I'd love to know how others do it. Maybe @UKSBD wouldn't mind sharing some insights.

May I ask if you are doing citation building for clients of yours? Or you are a dentist yourself?

The links are NOT nofollow. Enjoy this free do-follow link. : ) @JoyHawkins All new profiles come out with complete NAP, image, website URL... I have taken care of this. : ) But we have some old ones with very limited information, often just a name. We are in a process of getting rid of them.

 

[JoshuaMackens]

Hello @David W Cox, thank you for taking the time to give some feedback. Your "the signup process is not hard" means a lot to me! We are in talks currently with a major US provider of data, so we can populate the directory. (They found me through this forum. I don't know if it is ok to mention their name here.)

I would love to put a phone number on the site but we are afraid we will get flooded with calls from none-dentists and spammers. We are thinking about adding a form for "requesting a call" where people can explain what they want to ask and we will call them if it's a real issue. I realize it's not the best solution... I'd love to know how others do it. Maybe @UKSBD wouldn't mind sharing some insights.

May I ask if you are doing citation building for clients of yours? Or you are a dentist yourself?

The links are NOT nofollow. Enjoy this free do-follow link. : ) @JoyHawkins All new profiles come out with complete NAP, image, website URL... I have taken care of this. : ) But we have some old ones with very limited information, often just a name. We are in a process of getting rid of them.

Sounds like you're putting in the work. Way to go @Zhivko! Keep us updated on your progress.

 

[UKSBD]

I would love to put a phone number on the site but we are afraid we will get flooded with calls from none-dentists and spammers. We are thinking about adding a form for "requesting a call" where people can explain what they want to ask and we will call them if it's a real issue. I realize it's not the best solution... I'd love to know how others do it. Maybe @UKSBD wouldn't mind sharing some insights.

I used to have an open form which added the listing to an approval database, I would then check all listings before approving.

At the moment I have it set up as invite only.

I did have a very simple registration form just asking for name, email, business name.
When people fill it in they are redirected to a page telling them listings are invite only and to email for an invite.

Requests for Listings dropped but the quality of them was much better and spam is virtually eliminated.

I currently don't even do that, when they go to the registration page there is a message directly on there that listings are invite only.

I'm down from 80+ listings a day (was 180+ in heydays) to 10+ but the ones who do register are far more thankful, recommend me and write reviews.

My directory is different in that it is a general business directory and to be honest doesn't need any new listings, but I much prefer running it this way as I can build up relationships with people who register.

 

[Zhivko]

Focusing on quality is definitely what we want to do, too. But what about the calls? Do you have a phone number on the site? Do you get flooded by irrelevant calls?Or, if you don't have a phone, how do you communicate with the business owners? Email only?

 

[UKSBD]

I have phone number on my site, most people email though.

Very few irrelevant calls, most of the time it's just people emailing to edit listings or wanting to know what they get with an upgrade.

Like I say though, my directory is different, just a general business directory split in to local areas or categories and with free listings

 

[Tim Colling]

What is your site going to offer that the other directories currently don't give?

Perhaps the most important question to ask about any proposed new website!

 

[Zhivko]

I have phone number on my site, most people email though.

Very few irrelevant calls, most of the time it's just people emailing to edit listings or wanting to know what they get with an upgrade.

Like I say though, my directory is different, just a general business directory split in to local areas or categories and with free listings

Hm... I would expect that phone numbers get just as much spam as emails. : ) We will think about it, maybe do some tests. Thank you for your feedback, it is much appreciated.