Submit to Yahoo Directory

Yahoo started out with directory. Directory is organized into categories. There are basically two ways to submit to Yahoo Directory:

1. Free submission to Yahoo Directory
2. Paid submission to Yahoo Directory - Yahoo Express

Read Guide Lines from Yahoo about their Directory Submission requirements.

Free submission to Yahoo Directory
Free submission has limitations. You cannot submit to the yellow pages called “Commercial Directory” which is where “Business and Economy” category resides.

International Yahoos (for example Yahoo UK & Ireland and Yahoo Australia & New Zealand) still allow free submissions to the categories under "Business and Economy". Thus, if you have a commercial site that is targeted at a non-US audience, submitting to the appropriate international Yahoo might be a cost-effective solution.

Second limitation is you can only submit to the white pages called “Non-Commercial” directory. So, what makes one site commercial and another non-commercial in the eyes of Yahoo? If you're selling a product or a service, you're commercial.

On the other hand, if your site provides a lot of high quality content for free and does not have any banner ads or affiliate programs, you're non-commercial. Between these two extremes lies a large grey area.

A Word About Yahoo Directory
Currently, Yahoo Search results primarily come from their Search Engine, which spiders the web looking for pages. When Yahoo first started, their searches returned results in Yahoo Directory first, then presented search engine results from other sources. Then they reversed the process, and started showing the search engine results first, followed by the directory results.

Later Yahoo developed their own search engine. So now, Yahoo search results are a blend of directory and search engine results, and it seems that having a listing in the Yahoo Directory can boost your rankings in these blended search results.

When you submit for free, and are accepted into the directory, you'll usually receive an E-mail stating that your site has been listed. Should Yahoo choose to reject your submission instead, it's extremely unlikely that they'll E-mail you about it. So, if you don't hear anything from Yahoo within three or four weeks of your submission, consider your site to be rejected.

Occasionally, Yahoo lists sites that have been submitted via the Free Submission option, but forgets to inform the owner about the decision. Type your domain name into the search box. If you're listed in the directory, you'll show up under "Web Site Matches" - if you're not, you'll be listed under "Web Page Matches" or not at all.

If rejected, wait for 3-4 weeks, make appropriate changes and submit it again. If the second try is not fruitful after you check it 3-4 weeks later, send Yahoo a polite email. Ask about the reason for rejection. In your email, don’t forget to include URL of your site.

If nothing else seems to help, visit the discussion forums. Several forums have discussion about Yahoo. There are no Yahoo editors there, but several people who have very much experience of submitting sites to Yahoo visit the forum frequently. Ask them nicely to review your site and they'll surely tell you how to modify it so that it will finally be admitted into the directory.

Paid submission to Yahoo directory - Yahoo Express
For commercial site, Yahoo offers "Yahoo Express", a paid submission service. In exchange for promising to review your English-language site within a week, Yahoo wants you to pay a $299 ($600 if you have adult content) non-refundable fee.

Remember, this is a review fee and it does not guarantee that your site will be accepted into the directory. The only thing it guarantees is that someone will look at your site within 7 days and decide whether or not it will be added to Yahoo. So, before submitting your site via "Yahoo Express", make sure that it complies with all of Yahoo's guidelines.

If your site is rejected by Yahoo Express, an email will be sent to you. Carefully, go through the pages, fix any problem that are pointed out in the email.

Examples of problems

Lack of content/Not enough unique content
Write new articles, start a message board, add a page where you collect information from other sources, and so on.

Lack of backward compatibility with older browsers/doesn’t display correctly
Validate your HTML code. It ensures that your site works on all browsers and platforms.

Already included/not substantially unique
Yahoo thinks there is nothing unique about your site. Include some unique information to a few pages.

Under Construction
You might have some broken links. Fix them.

No Address
Provide your physical address.

Submit your website to Yahoo Directory
Once you get there, select your category.

When you E-mail to Yahoo, you will receive an automatic reply. I recommend that you read it first, as it has some instructions that may save you the trouble of contacting them.

Email Yahoo here

If, for any reason, you want to write a letter to Yahoo, their address is:

Yahoo! Corporation
3420 Central Expressway
Santa Clara, CA 95051, USA