Google’s users (and your potential customers) are constantly searching for local businesses. Google knows this and gives a higher ranking to businesses that can indicate to Google they are both relevant and local. Google’s algorithm changes have really emphasised this, so search results that were once very similar Australia wide, are now quite varied in different locations (ie Melbourne vs Brisbane).
There are a number of local SEO (Search engine optimization) strategies to drive more targeted visitors to your website.
They are all important, but one of the biggest local search boosts comes from local Australian business directory listings.
Australian business directories are not just for driving search traffic, they can also provide referral traffic from people clicking through from your listing.
So time to start finding Australian directories and submitting your business right?
Wait! Before you start submitting your business there’s a couple of things to get in order.
How do I find the best Australia Business Directories?
You’ll come across directory lists or submission services offering 50, 100 or even 250 Australian business directory websites. The best they will do is waste your time or worse, damage your Google ranking. Here’s why.
- They are often scraped from old outdated lists
- They contain directories requiring payment, or a reciprocal link
- They haven’t actually been tested so many directories have broken forms or are abandoned
- The websites are just rubbish with no backlink value
I recently audited our directory list and reviewed as many others as I could find. After weeding out all the Australian business directories that failed the tests above, I took one more step to ensure the remaining websites had real traffic value.
What is Alexa Ranking?
Alexa is a website that ranks the top visited websites worldwide. They also provide an estimate of a websites popularity in a specific country (using a combination of average daily visitors and pageviews). After filtering the list of business directories according to Australian Alexa Ranking, and removing any not in the top 25,000 Australian websites, we have our list!
The Top 20 Australian Business Directories
Business Directory |
Alexa Traffic Ranking |
| www.yellowpages.com.au | 124 |
| www.truelocal.com.au | 175 |
| www.yelp.com.au | 320 |
| www.hotfrog.com.au | 802 |
| www.startlocal.com.au | 897 |
| www.womo.com.au | 1035 |
| www.aussieweb.com.au | 1549 |
| dlook.com.au | 1947 |
| www.localstore.com.au | 2724 |
| www.localbusinessguide.com.au | 3504 |
| www.yalwa.com.au | 4380 |
| www.localbd.com.au | 6262 |
| www.superpages.com.au | 8108 |
| www.businesslistings.net.au | 8325 |
| www.comeonaussie.com | 10062 |
| www.local.com.au | 11389 |
| www.yellowbook.com.au | 14466 |
| www.raveaboutit.com.au | 18720 |
| www.shopseek.com.au | 20479 |
| www.companylist.com.au | 24902 |
Prepare your business listing information.
Directory submissions involve entering the same information repeatedly so it’s best to be prepared to avoid wasting a lot of time. Gather the following information into one document:
- 2-3 Business listing titles
- Submission email address
- Business contact email address
- Business phone number
- Social media links
- 2-3 unique business descriptions (Typically 200 words max)
- Square logo image (300px is best viewed on most websites)
- 5 business related images
- Business ABN
Having this data on hand to copy information will make the process much faster.
Directory submission tools
Automatically submitting business listings is a nice idea but doesn’t work well in practice. Different directories are built on different platforms and have unique fields and customization. Some even have hidden fields to trick these submission tools. This means the listings either fail or have missing or incorrect information.
A semi-automatic approach is best. Try using an auto-complete tool like the JunkFill chrome extension to assist with form completion, and then manually review the fields.
Directory Submission Tips
Here are a few bonus tips for getting the most from your Australian directory submissions.
- Search each directory for the business name and URL to ensure no duplicate listings are created.
- Use consistent login details for easy follow-up.
- Make listings as complete as possible to maximize value.
- Vary titles and descriptions to create a unique listing.
- Use a dedicated email to separate confirmation & marketing emails from personal email.
- Expect a few phone calls from directories upselling premium listings.
- Check for confirmation emails immediately and after 5 days.
Lastly don’t forget to ask your clients to give a review of your product or service on the directories to boost your profile, referral traffic and backlink value! If you find more Australian business directories that pass the tests above let me know in the comments.
Let Us Point You In The Right Direction (After all, we live up to our name!)
Most businesses know that they probably need some sort of social media profile – maybe a Twitter page for their business. Few people, realize the difference between merely existing on Twitter and truly leveraging the power that social media offers.
Give Livelong Digital a call at 0458046739 or schedule a consultation online by clicking the banner below. Still not ready to talk? Head over to one of our social media profiles to keep up with the latest updates from Livelong Digital.
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