{"id":1672,"date":"2011-09-26T21:14:35","date_gmt":"2011-09-26T21:14:35","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/bme2.flywheelsites.com\/blog\/how-and-where-to-get-directory-listings-for-your-small-business\/"},"modified":"2020-06-05T20:19:13","modified_gmt":"2020-06-05T20:19:13","slug":"how-and-where-to-get-directory-listings-for-your-small-business","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.benchmarkemail.com\/in\/how-and-where-to-get-directory-listings-for-your-small-business\/","title":{"rendered":"How and Where to Get Directory Listings for Your Small Business"},"content":{"rendered":"

The other day I was having a conversation with a father and son family owned insurance business. The two openly admitted that two generations of experience didn\u2019t prepare them for today\u2019s business landscape. If you\u2019re in the 30+ age bracket, and unless you\u2019ve been forced to learn, been taught or possess a well-developed curiosity paired with a lot of free time, chances are you also don\u2019t really understand how digital marketing works.<\/p>\n

Marketing is all about getting people to know you and your business exist. A huge part of that is simply being on the business lists that people are using. Like the father here mentioned, no one really goes to the Yellow Pages anymore. Most people now Google local services, which makes it important for you to make sure you\u2019re doing your part to get a higher ranking.<\/p>\n

But there\u2019s another way people are accessing business resources and that\u2019s through lists. Tons of potential customers, including myself, rely on trusted directories to offer listings of relevant businesses. The question is, how do you get on there?<\/p>\n

Getting on the right lists requires thinking small to big. Start with any local directories you may have. I would run a regional search, such as Googling your city + \u201cbusiness directory\u201d to see which directories are popping up. If you\u2019re in a bigger city like New York or Los Angeles, you\u2019ll probably have pages upon pages of search results. Don\u2019t waste your time with all of them; instead, stick with about the first half to the first page \u2013 stopping when you get to a listing that has a less than 3 page rank. It should go without saying, but don\u2019t forget about Yelp<\/a>.<\/p>\n

On a bigger scale, there are some very powerful directories you need to be on if you expect to a) attract bigger fish and b) be a trusted and credible business source. Hoovers<\/a>, which I discussed at length earlier, is one of the top portals.<\/p>\n

And then there\u2019s foursquare<\/a>, an obvious one that boasts sky-rocketing users but is often overlooked as a business directory. Setting up your page used to be a process that ended up limiting participation to only the big dogs. Luckily it\u2019s been simplified since then so that anyone can do it now. But once you\u2019re listed, you have to make sure you\u2026<\/p>\n

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  1. Link your page to Twitter and Facebook<\/li>\n
  2. Add a profile image and a banner<\/li>\n
  3. Include a business description that summarizes what others can expect from you (in other words, offer value)<\/li>\n
  4. Opt-in by giving foursquare permission to feature you.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Some other top business lists include\u2026<\/p>\n