Directory submission is a tactic where marketers add their websites and brand information to online business directories. A brand's appearance in directories can boost brand and location discoverability. In effect, brands gain high-quality backlinks that can:
Improve their local listing's ranking in search engine results pages (SERPs)
Increase web and other brand channel traffic
Increase brand credibility, perception, and trust
How can I manage directory submission?
Once upon a simpler time, in a less fragmented digital landscape, brands could still thrive when they manually entered their business information one directory at a time. There weren't so many directories, and there weren't so many data sets.
Today, there are hundreds of web directories, sites, and platforms. Even small brick-and-mortar locations need help managing manual directory submissions.
For brands with many local listings, a scalable platform is a must, especially as more and more niche and hyper-local directories appear. Still, many brands struggle to keep directory submissions accurate, complete, and consistent across the web. Managing directory submissions manually can waste human resources. Meanwhile, the potential for human error is high and poses risks for brands that want to stay competitive.
However, visibility in local SEO ranking will suffer without effectively managed directory submissions. When those strategies underperform, brands miss out on online reputation builders. Ranking for the Local Pack stays out of reach, and brands lose the foot traffic needed to meet business goals.
How do accurate, complete directory submissions help my brand surface in traditional and AI-driven search experiences?
To have a solid digital presence, brands must centralize and automate directory submissions. Search engine crawlers and AI-driven search experiences are more likely to trust brands with the same information across all the relevant directories. Complete, consistent NAP data (location name, address, and phone number) is one part of a strong signal. Brands must also include enhanced content in directory submissions.
Restaurants can show up-to-date hours, menus, seasonal specials, recent reviews, and inspiring photos.
Healthcare providers can show current headshots, bios, and a full list of services, specialties, and FAQs.
Shops can show current promotions, new products, pop-up events, corporate or local imagery, and seasonal hours.
As we enter the Age of AI, marketing strategies must adapt. Brand content must appear with context, not just proximity, prominence, or relevance. Brands that can structure and centralize data in a knowledge graph and efficiently manage it will have a distinct advantage.
Why? Structured data is trusted data.
How can brands centralize directory submission management?
To centralize directory submission management, brands turn to Yext. Our Knowledge Graph hosts all your brand and location facts in one place. Then Yext pushes your information, including updates, directly to publishers in real time. With Knowledge Graph, every single digital listing is fueled by a single source of truth.
Yext's Publisher Network is the best global listings service with unmatched speed, accuracy, and reach. That reach extends into direct integrations with 200+ publishers, including global maps, apps, search engines, voice assistants, directories, and social networks.
Our reach from one centralized platform puts you in definitive control of your brand. Eliminate directory submission errors, extend your digital presence across more publishers that matter, and keep your brand surfacing everywhere customers search with Yext.