Interview with Jeff@Aviva Directory
Hey,
Interview is by Directory-Owners.Com
Well this interview is with Jeff who is the owner of Aviva Directory
I would just like to thank him for taking part!
Q. Are you able to give us a short insight into your
background?
I'm in my late 30s and live in Ottawa, Canada. I've been
playing around on the internet for about 5 years now, but
Aviva Directory is my first serious internet endeavour.
Q. How did the idea of Aviva Directory come to you?
I was submitting my websites to a lot of directories. I
would often look at the directories that were supposed to be
good and think I could do a better job.
Q. With Aviva Directory when could you tell that you was
on to a "winner"
Well, that's an interesting question because it really shows
how my perspective has changed since I started Aviva
Directory. Back then, I thought that building a directory
would be a one-time effort. I originally planned to build
up a good database, get some good backlinks and let things
take off from there.
Now that I've been at it a while, I realize that a directory
is something you need to work on every day, continually
building it up. So, I don't really like to think of it as a
"winner" as then I'll get lazy. I plan to keep working on
Aviva directory every day for years to come.
Q. What promotion methods do you use?
Everything I can think of. I think promotion through other
directories has worked well, as well as in the webmaster
forums.
Q. It seems Aviva Directory has a massive financial
backing. Do you think without the presence of the
finances that Aviva Directory could not have got to where
it is today? If so do you believe that having money when
starting a site is recommended?
I've had experience with offline business and one of the
wonderful things about the internet is that it takes so much
less money to start a business than it does offline. In
most offline businesses, it is hard to get started without
tens if not hundreds of thousands of dollars of capital
whereas online a few thousand dollars will normally suffice.
I do think that one of the best ways to launch a new
website, be it a directory or any other kind of website, is
to spend $2,000 to $3,000 in quality directory submissions.
That builds a solid base upon which you can move forward.
You can build a successful website without having much
money. It just takes longer and is more difficult.
Q. With so many directories, what do you see for the
future of the directory industry?
There is always room for more directories. The more
directories there are, the easier it is to build your
backlinks. In fact, I think that there is a shortage of
*quality* directories.
Q. Who do you think is your direct rival in the directory
sector?
As I said, I think that there is a shortage of quality
directories, so there really isn't much rivalry in the
industry. The fact that directory owners can get together
and talk and help each other in a forum like yours shows how
friendly the industry really is.
Two people I admire in the directory industry are Chris
Hoffman (Alive Directory) and John Scott (Directory v7n).
Q. In your view what are the benefits and disadvantages
of running a directory?
Benefits: I've learned a lot about the internet and what
sort of websites can make money and which ones don't. Many
websites that submitted a year or more ago to Aviva
Directory no longer exist. Similarly, certain types of
websites seem to be able to afford a lot of directory
submissions.
Disadvantages: I think that Google has it in for
directories and treats them more harshly than other types of
websites.
Q. With many website owners now placing high level's of
attention to SEO, do you think that directories will have
to evolve to keep up with the changes on the internet?
Yes. I think that directories are going to need to develop
to the point that they're useful to the general web surfer,
and not just webmasters.
Q. What do you think are the main key points to a
successful directory?
Editorial integrity. This means:
1. It hurts to refund a $74.95 featured listing, but if the
website doesn't deserve to be listed, it shouldn't be. If
too many bad quality websites get listed, not only will you
hurt your directory's reputation, but the search engines can
detect this too and will de-index your directory.
2. Regularly checking websites. One of the most common
things is for people to submit a quality website. Then, if
you go back a month later, you find that they've replaced it
with spam. You need a system in place to ensure that all
your listings are reviewed on a regular basis.
3. Not just adding paid submissions. The reality is that
there are a lot of quality websites that don't do directory
submissions. There are a lot of reasons for that - they may
be a small non-profit and don't have the funds; they may be
a large corporation or government organization; or they may
not rely on search engines for traffic. You need to scour
the web actively looking for quality websites to add to your
directory.
Q. How do you relax at the end of the day? Are you able
to run a very successful directory and still have a personal
life?
The day never ends! I get up at 7 a.m. and normally work
until at least midnight or 1 a.m.
My personal life revolves around my family. I'm married
with a 3-year-old son. I spend as much time with them as I
can. My directory is named after my wife, Aviva, which
means Spring. The graphic in the top right hand corner
represents Spring.
View:-
http://www.directory-owners.com/showthread.php?p=3441#post3441
Hey,
Interview is by Directory-Owners.Com
Well this interview is with Jeff who is the owner of Aviva Directory
I would just like to thank him for taking part!
Q. Are you able to give us a short insight into your
background?
I'm in my late 30s and live in Ottawa, Canada. I've been
playing around on the internet for about 5 years now, but
Aviva Directory is my first serious internet endeavour.
Q. How did the idea of Aviva Directory come to you?
I was submitting my websites to a lot of directories. I
would often look at the directories that were supposed to be
good and think I could do a better job.
Q. With Aviva Directory when could you tell that you was
on to a "winner"
Well, that's an interesting question because it really shows
how my perspective has changed since I started Aviva
Directory. Back then, I thought that building a directory
would be a one-time effort. I originally planned to build
up a good database, get some good backlinks and let things
take off from there.
Now that I've been at it a while, I realize that a directory
is something you need to work on every day, continually
building it up. So, I don't really like to think of it as a
"winner" as then I'll get lazy. I plan to keep working on
Aviva directory every day for years to come.
Q. What promotion methods do you use?
Everything I can think of. I think promotion through other
directories has worked well, as well as in the webmaster
forums.
Q. It seems Aviva Directory has a massive financial
backing. Do you think without the presence of the
finances that Aviva Directory could not have got to where
it is today? If so do you believe that having money when
starting a site is recommended?
I've had experience with offline business and one of the
wonderful things about the internet is that it takes so much
less money to start a business than it does offline. In
most offline businesses, it is hard to get started without
tens if not hundreds of thousands of dollars of capital
whereas online a few thousand dollars will normally suffice.
I do think that one of the best ways to launch a new
website, be it a directory or any other kind of website, is
to spend $2,000 to $3,000 in quality directory submissions.
That builds a solid base upon which you can move forward.
You can build a successful website without having much
money. It just takes longer and is more difficult.
Q. With so many directories, what do you see for the
future of the directory industry?
There is always room for more directories. The more
directories there are, the easier it is to build your
backlinks. In fact, I think that there is a shortage of
*quality* directories.
Q. Who do you think is your direct rival in the directory
sector?
As I said, I think that there is a shortage of quality
directories, so there really isn't much rivalry in the
industry. The fact that directory owners can get together
and talk and help each other in a forum like yours shows how
friendly the industry really is.
Two people I admire in the directory industry are Chris
Hoffman (Alive Directory) and John Scott (Directory v7n).
Q. In your view what are the benefits and disadvantages
of running a directory?
Benefits: I've learned a lot about the internet and what
sort of websites can make money and which ones don't. Many
websites that submitted a year or more ago to Aviva
Directory no longer exist. Similarly, certain types of
websites seem to be able to afford a lot of directory
submissions.
Disadvantages: I think that Google has it in for
directories and treats them more harshly than other types of
websites.
Q. With many website owners now placing high level's of
attention to SEO, do you think that directories will have
to evolve to keep up with the changes on the internet?
Yes. I think that directories are going to need to develop
to the point that they're useful to the general web surfer,
and not just webmasters.
Q. What do you think are the main key points to a
successful directory?
Editorial integrity. This means:
1. It hurts to refund a $74.95 featured listing, but if the
website doesn't deserve to be listed, it shouldn't be. If
too many bad quality websites get listed, not only will you
hurt your directory's reputation, but the search engines can
detect this too and will de-index your directory.
2. Regularly checking websites. One of the most common
things is for people to submit a quality website. Then, if
you go back a month later, you find that they've replaced it
with spam. You need a system in place to ensure that all
your listings are reviewed on a regular basis.
3. Not just adding paid submissions. The reality is that
there are a lot of quality websites that don't do directory
submissions. There are a lot of reasons for that - they may
be a small non-profit and don't have the funds; they may be
a large corporation or government organization; or they may
not rely on search engines for traffic. You need to scour
the web actively looking for quality websites to add to your
directory.
Q. How do you relax at the end of the day? Are you able
to run a very successful directory and still have a personal
life?
The day never ends! I get up at 7 a.m. and normally work
until at least midnight or 1 a.m.
My personal life revolves around my family. I'm married
with a 3-year-old son. I spend as much time with them as I
can. My directory is named after my wife, Aviva, which
means Spring. The graphic in the top right hand corner
represents Spring.
View:-
http://www.directory-owners.com/showthread.php?p=3441#post3441
