Search Engine vs. Web Directories: The Difference

One good thing I appreciate about being an earning blogger is the fact I continue to learn no matter how struggling the challenge can be. Not all writers/publishers has the ability to write quality posts at any given time. There are those (like me) who require constant motivation in order to come up with a good blog entry. Like what I always say to my friends, blogging can be fun but to be able to meet a good search engine positioning for your blog, you also have to invest effort and even a certain amount to some extent.

Let's face it, we, bloggers would as much as possible prefer whatever there is that's for free - from free hosting to a free sign-up on SEO friendly web directory, social networking sites and hundreds of other online accounts. Being a 6-year old blogger, I admit my comprehension on SEO is still way insufficient. I even at some point associate web directories as search engines but thanks to the availability of these free SEO articles that I can browse at all times for the enlightenment.

Just to make a quick comparison to those who are still confused with its difference, a Search Engine is a software program designed to search for information from the World Wide Web based on keywords. The search results are usually presented in lists of web pages that often overwhelm users. The more specific they keywords you use (ex.: butt kicker at musicians friend) the narrower search results you get.

Structured directories on the other hand are its alternate. It holds a list of websites by category and subcategory. So, if you want to narrow down your search, a web directory is the place to be.

The Yahoo directory is the most widely-used directory by both merchants and non-merchants on the web while Open Directory Project also known as DMOZ is the largest directory on the web according to Wikipedia and its open content is mirrored at many sites including the Google Directory.

As the list of web directories is growing, its categories are also increasing in numbers. Some are free while the others are not. Again for free, we have nothing to worry about but if you prefer to pay to get listed, a thorough study should always be considered.