A thread regarding the worth of a directory link on Webmaster World has grabbed the attention of many SEO specialists. Many experts have poured in their views regarding the same.

One of the reply stated that, “I hear a lot of people talking about how links from "bad neighborhoods" (including directories that reside in such neighborhoods) will hurt your rankings, and, as I understand, the Holy Spirit at Google has insinuated as much. But has anyone ever experienced a drop in rankings that was due to half a dozen or a dozen bad directory links? One hundred bad directory links? I know in the sector I track, if the SEs penalized people for their bad links, there wouldn't be any sites left to display for some search phrases.”

Another reply quotes that, “The value comes in the quality of the directory. Not the "total" number of links. Ten high quality directory links are going to outperform 100 low quality directory links (in most instances). Look for niche directories that are hand reviewed. Focus on directories that are related to your site and provide more than just a link on a page with hundreds of others.”

Another reply draws the attention towards direct directory links, “I value directory links but only decent directory links. I've yet to see the '300 free directory links' do anything for any of my sites however i regularly see '5 quality directory links' help. I find them an excellent way to get a site moving from a zero links standpoint.”

This thread is a must read for all those who wish to improve their understanding of directory links.

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