Does DMOZ Still have a Place in SEO?
DMOZ is the human edited behemoth of a directory that Google traditionally used as a starting point for it’s own index… Amelia asks whether DMOZ is still relevant today.
WebProNews recently published a series of articles questioning the usefulness and longevity of DMOZ. DMOZ, in case you are unaware of it, is traditionally the place to get links from. In the ‘good old days’ all you needed was a link from DMOZ* and your site would list in the top of Google for your keywords. Now, however, search is a totally different ball game and a listing in DMOZ, though still desirable is by no means necessary to get your site to list. Why? Well, I guess, for many of the reasons and concerns addressed by the aforementioned WebProNews article.
DMOZ, is being heavily slated for being corrupt. Many have suggested that the editors have used the directory to benefit themselves or their friends. When I was first starting out in SEO I was told by my then boss** that the editors of DMOZ (and I paraphrase here - to make it much more, ahem, polite) “only include their own sites and that of their friends. You can’t get into DMOZ unless you are an editor” Personally I think he was speaking a little out of turn here, but his point was the same as that of the many commenters at WebProNews: that DMOZ is corrupt. That by putting humans in charge of such a powerful tool you are bound to end up with some corruption, but this is perhaps a wider social issue, that people will always end up putting themselves and their folks first.
Does DMOZ have a Place in Search?
However, the question remains whether DMOZ still has a place in search. I have an admission here: I’ve never used DMOZ for it’s true purpose - to find services, products and websites. I use Google. I don’t know anyone who uses DMOZ for what it’s meant for. This doesn’t mean that nobody uses it for what it was designed for, it just means that I’ve not met anyone who does. If you’ve ever used DMOZ for it’s real purpose, please leave a comment below! I’d like to meet you!
Answer the Question!
OK, I’m starting to skirt the issue here, because I actually don’t know if DMOZ still has a place in search. If it does it’s somewhat diminished from what it once was, but isn’t that to be expected? Especially when you consider how much SEO has evolved over the last ten years, and then consider the rise of the search engine over the directory. It’s perfectly understandable that DMOZ will lose visitors because those visitors are now heading direct to Google, Bing or Yahoo.
Matt Cutts on DMOZ
So, at least my previous boss has less to worry about now: he could never get into DMOZ…
Seriously though, DMOZ is clearly never going to be as important as it was even five years ago, however I do still think it has a value, and if you can find an uncorrupted editor to include your link then so much the better.
*OK stretching the truth again, but you get my meaning…
**Never a Creare employee, but he did give me the foundations of SEO understandings, for which I am eternally grateful…
