Thread: paid or free

I am making a new directory and I can't decide to make the regular links that people add free or paid?

If it is paid then I will get a lot of money to advertise it more and to pay for a custom skin. But if it is paid how do I get people interested in submitting their sites when they are no other sites on there.

If it is free then I will get a ton of sites and make not some much money.

What is everyone's thought on this?

There are so many link directories now it's unreal, and getting people to submit yours is getting harder, I would start of free and then make it paid after you have got higher ranking and more submissions.

Just had a look at your prices ($5 regular and $3 Reciprical), IMO you will not get people paying this for a link in your directory

You can't start a new directory or site and expect to make money right away and if your after that; then I suggest you stop.

Give me a good reason, and I will buy a link on your directory for whatever you ask.

Thanks everyone for your feedback, I am going to start off free and maybe get my directory to paid in a year or so.

I have been making websites for a while but this is my first time making a directory, so I am kind of noob at this.

I'm using free Directory always.. so far it works for me.. I don't spend to much time on directory submissions.. 10 a day is fine to me..

Start free, maintain high quality then make it paid when you have decent traffic and PR

why would i pay for a new directory with a smal page rank . and probably the category has page rank 0

I tend not to bother with paid directories. There are plenty of good directories with reasonable PR that are free. Although I think directories as a whole are losing credibility now anyway.

Standard listing should be free BUT featured listings should never be free

Exactly. Why do you have to make it be one or the other? My recommendation would be to start off entirely free... in a few months, once you have some PR and authority, you can start selling featured space on the directory. Unless you're Yahoo! or some other large directory, not everyone will pay to be listed in your directory. In fact, with so many free directories out there, only a very small percentage of people will ever pay to be listed. However, if you can get a few people to pay for featured spots, you can get a little cash flow coming in.

^agree.. Better to start it for free as your good way to attract more link builders to visit your directory.. But once you've established its good PR, then that's the time you can start to have some fee...

Originally Posted by KentuckySlone

Standard listing should be free BUT featured listings should never be free

That's it! very well said. Just like what we see in over a thousand "Free" directories.

i have use only free sites. its a fare for submission.

You should offer both like the majority out there. Offer free submission, but tell the visitor that they will be at the bottom and if they want a decent placment within your directory they will need to pay.

You better read this

SEOmoz | What Makes a Good Web Directory, and Why Google Penalized Dozens of Bad Ones

You can always start it up as a free service, promote the hell out of it then switch it to a paid service but don't make it ridiculously high and don't make people who got it for free pay for it now, makes it look bad.

you can make it paid......but nobody will pay you, when your directory is unpopular and have PR 0.

FIrstly your directory is new than do some work on it and get PR for your directory than submit your directory in many directory resources like directorycritic.com and also other directories where a huge list of directories are available put in paid list with PR so people take interest in your directory.

well first of all you need to established first your directory to a higher pr its a tough one but i know you can manage it.

i should prefer free sites.

i prefer free sites too..

Well i think you should go for free directories.

You must start a free one when your launching your new directory and make it a do follow one because in the future you will gain a lot of visitors and if that happens already, you can now do a paid feature on your directory site.

You Should Create your directory both ways FREE as well as Paid Directory Submission options.
Free Submission Tacks some times to approval and Paid Featured submission can get Approval with in few days or Hours.

i never really understood the basics of paid directories unless you are the boss of dmoz or yahoo.

I mean, directory submissions are a great way to gain in the serps but why would you pay for something that is around the corner free. Organic traffic from these directories? I highly doubt that.

I am in the directory biz for a long time doing seo and having my own service but i never never really understood this...