This Blog Directory is Alive!
Hot on the heels of a certain bidding directory comes another ReviewMe, this time for a blog directory where you pay a flat rate and get listed for life.
It’s Good to Be Alive!
The Alive blog directory is pretty much what you would expect it to be. It’s a long listing of all sorts of different kinds of blogs, spanning several different categories. There are no fancy graphics to pull your attention away from the links. Instead, you get a remarkably simple and clean interface where the links take center stage. That’s the plus side.
On the down side, my initial impression of the Alive Blog Directory is that it looks almost like a parked domain page. You know the kind: when you accidentally put some typo in the address bar and arrive at a page that is filled with paid links, encouraging you to click on one of the advertisements so that the webmaster can make a quick buck. Those sites are just thrown together and remain relatively static, even if they claim that it’s still “under construction.”
This is where my first suggestion comes in. Granted, a web directory is typically not the prettiest thing in the world, nor is it the most complex offering on the ‘net, but you’ve got to do a little something to make the site look like more than just a link farm. Just a basic homepage with a little information about the Alive blog directory could go a long way in showing a little credibility.
I kind of like the Yoga-esque logo, though. That’s pretty attractive.
Categories Galore
If you’ve got a blog, there’s a good chance that the Alive directory has a category that’ll suit you. From pets and animals to politics and government, every blog should have its place.
For those of you looking to market your website (that isn’t a blog), Alive also has a standard web directory with just as many categories, like science, shopping, and society. In fact, I found the layout on the web directory to be more pleasing than the blog directory, simply because of the inclusion of a “today’s listing spotlight” and what almost appears like a navigation panel (but is really just a list of other directories).
How Much Does It Cost?
Ah, there’s the rub. There’s no bidding involved and you have the option between purchasing a lifetime link — assuming the Alive directory stays live — or a link on an annual basis. There is also a difference in pricing between being a “featured link”, which gets placed at the top of the listings, and a regular listing, which is shown underneath the featured links, organized by PageRank. The pricing is as follows.
For a Featured Listing, you can pay $74.95 a year or $59.95 a year. The former gets you five additional links, presumably on your listing page. If you want to take the plunge and go permanent, the same offerings can be had for $224.95 and $179.95, respectively.
Regular listings are $49.95, $34.95, and $29.95 annually for regular (plus 3 additional links), regular, and regular with reciprocal, respectively. For the reciprocal link, as you can probably guess, you have to give the Alive blog directory a linkback on your own site. Permanent pricing is $149.95 and $104.95; there is no reciprocal option for the permanent link.
Pricing for the main web directory is slightly higher. A permanent featured link with 5 additional links on the web directory, for example, is $299.95 (compared to $224.95 for the blog directory).
I Think I Found a Glitch?
Um, why are there no links in this directory? On the main blog directory homepage, I can see that there are supposed to be 13 links within Arts and Culture. Clicking through, I find a series of sub-categories, but all of them have a big juicy 0 (zero) next to them. Where are these 13 links hiding? The same phenomenon occurs with most of the other categories. One of the first “live” links that I found was within the general directories sub-category. Someone needs to go clean up the coding or something, because this clearly cannot be right.
Is it worth paying this much simply for a linkback? What has been your experience with web directories and blog directories? I’ve personally submitted my blog to a couple of free directories and the return has been minimal at best. With the Alive Blog Directory, I don’t foresee the results to be that much different.
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I’ve never seen much merit in paying for linkbacks.
Each to their own I guess. It does depend on how much money you’re talking about as well though:)
it is a normal web directory, not blog directory!
I agree, nothing special…
I agree too!
That’s true just naming it a blog directory doesn’t make a it a blog directory in my opinion it’s just a link farm
Paying just for the link is a bit pointless but if it has some traffic or PR attached to it, it can be worth a small expenditure.
Anyway, didn’t Google kill all directories? I mean they used to have a little bit of value way back in 1990 when there wasn’t a decent search engine around and you had to find everything that you wanted via manually created lists of useful sites…but c’mon…it’s 2007. Nobody visits a directory anymore, they just find what they want faster and more easily through Google. I can’t see a directory sending you any traffic at all.
The only value that directories have these days is for the small piece of PR that you may get. But given the number of outgoing links, I doubt that you’re getting much at all.
$300 for a couple of links??? Seriously, you could buy an entire PR4 blog with established traffic and search engine rankings for that price.
Heck, for $300 I’ll give you 50 links on the front page of a PR5 site with traffic.
Good luck with $300 for a PR4 blog with good SERP ranking. If you are selling any, give me a call. I am happy take them off your hand.
Directories can still send traffic / Google juice, but usually only the top ones.
I too don’t think that investing in paid listing from a directory will bring you anything. Alive is too cluttered and tries to bring people everything.
Some free ones can help you get indexed higher for keywords, but you will still need proper quality links from actual sites with content to rank anywhere.
Now I do hope that G don’t start to discredit blogs !
Becky
Everyone thinks that submitting to these directories will give some incredible traffic (At least that’s what they want you to think from all the ads around).
The real gain from directories are backlinks, for me it doesn’t matter what’s the present PR of the directory.
I just paid 5$ For a submition to 500+ Directories (Manual Submition). They’re all practically PR 0 – PR1.
I know that in a couple of years most of them would’ve died out but the ones remaining would have their PR increased. And that’s where I would have made my bargain.
Anyway $5 is nothing for 500+ directory submition.
I agree with you…
and it’s got no PR…at least on my screen.
All new directories have no PR, but when the next PR update comes they’re get their ratings.
I’m curious to see if Alive turns a profit from the Review Me.
I know you only have to pay once, but I don’t like the idea of having to pay to get listed.
After looking around it I think that the “missing links” from the home page are not exactly missing — those numbers seem to refer to the number of subcategories within each category. A bit misleading to be sure.
Yeah, that certainly is unconventional.
Oh! That’s what they meant. Yes, definitely misleading.
Yeah…the other problem is when you have little or no people listed, not many people will be interested in paying for a listing.
The ideal blog would be a blog with a high PR and no one else listed, you get the whole share of the PR
but those kinds of directories don’t exist now do they.
I can see that they are getting a good amount of traffic to their site, but it doesn’t look very active. And yes, I also can’t seem to verify that the number next to each category is correct.
Not worth my time
Probably not worth it. If I pay $249.95, I rather pay more but get on (or at least get considered to) the Yahoo directory.
it is stupid if you pay hundreds for get list at sub domain where have zero pagerank and low traffic.
why not submit to Yahoo directory!?
Did you submit to Yahoo directory? If so what kind of traffic are you getting?
V
$74.95 a year!! That’s too much
I don’t see the point in paying that much when you can buy better ranked links for less, and you can submit to thousands of directories for free.
Me thoughts exactly. Seems like a waste of cash!
Totally agree!!
I’d rather get in Dmoz or the Yahoo directory. Paying for links from directories ain’t my thing.
Yeah, I too will prefer to pay DMoz or get into the Yahoo Directory.
It seems like pay is the only way lately… I’ve had good sites waiting literally years to get in!
OH no not Dmoz again, those guys take ages to accept a link, if i submit my site now i’ll probably get it approved when I’m dead, and I’m still very young lol.
you’ve said link are lifetime and then you’ve said pay annually?
Well in some business the term “life time” means 1-year or 3-years. But you are right, he hasn’t specified that.
Which ones? Life time should always refer to the life of the business.
Michael gave the price for both the annual option and the lifetime option in his review…
There are two options, you can pay annually or lifetime.
Lifetime payments automagically throw up warning flags for me. Anyone that is trying to talk me into paying them for something that will last forever is either not a good business manager, or trying to rip me off.
Paying once for a forever service just doesn’t work logistically.
It does
They’re just giving you a link 
They’re not wasting any resources on you, and in a couple of weeks you’re link would be so deep in the directory that you’d rather pay to be removed.
13 is the number of sub categories, it is not the link number
Yes, that site is run with phpLD, and with that script it will display the number of subcategories next to the main categories, then the number of links next to each subcategory.
Who the heck would spend so much money to be listed in an empty link directory? I’ve got about 8 sites sitting around with phpLD installed on them, 700 categories and no links.
I couldn’t even browse the site because it loaded so slow that the request kept timing out. There’s nothing unique here… go to DigitalPoint and you’ll find a thousand directory owners giving free links.
I don’t think I would pay for that…
with all the free directorys around why should i pay to get listed on this one? As someone pointed out, what does google think about this kind of links? Is there really some real benefit to get listed?
This directory is owned by a guy named Chris. He spends crazy amounts of money to make sure that his directories get pr and traffic. Go to didgatpoint forums, and check out half the signatures. Chances are alive directory has bought half of them. He also sponsors all sorts of wordpress, and phpld themes to make sure that his sites PR’s are sustainable. So from what I have heard his direectory is one of the few that can actually send some traffic your way.
That’s all well and good, but show me the money.
I for one (and I think a lot of other people) aren’t going to pay until we see some results.
Hi Mubin, I agree with your comment. Chris really promotes his sites really well & you can gets tons of traffic.
Used it, no benefit. In the interests of not killing the chance of John being asked to review any more directory websites I’m going to put my fingers in my ears, close my eyes and pretend this review doesn’t exist.
The is mike from yesterdays review
I just wnated to point out to you guys not familiar with the directory world so things. The number in brackets next to each category is the number of categories and links, its no glitch.
Also alive directory is one of the most established and quality directories on the net today. Just check yahoo, it has almost 2 million backlinks.
Why pay over $70 to get listed there? Simple. Its got a good PR for you PR lovers, its got an authority status in google, and is promoted so heavily you will easily see the difference in your google rankings.
Why do you think so many huge companies are listed there? Kids TV companies, travel companies….the list goes on. A free directory does not review sites properly, so your link is amongst viagra, pills etc. This doesnt happen with a directory like alive. You get a much more quality powerful backlink than on a spammy PR0 free directory.
just my 2c
Sure, it’s got PR. But can’t I get that cheaper elsewhere? If you’re planning on “buying your PR” and are prepared to spend $50-100 for a single link, you’re probably better off just buying a domain that already has PR. A single link isn’t enough to get PR – especially from a directory with a large number of outgoing links.
Truth.
how long will you be able to maintain that dropped domains pr? Will you even sustain it at the next update or will you have to start buying links to make sure the PR stays?
At the end of the day. you CAN do everything yourself, but people get paid for a reason.
There’s just better ways to spend that money when doing promotion…
I have always wondered how effective link directories are in driving traffic to your site – some say they do, some don’t. Anywhere that I can see some good stats on this?
I don’t get much from DMOZ or Yahoo, so I can’t imagine much from others. It is meant to be more for SEO purposes I guess.
I’ve got 100’s of backlinks from DMOZ clones, but it doesn’t really do any good.
I don’t get many people from directories.
You want be getting any traffic from any directories
Seems like there is no glitch with the coding, in the main category we see the number 14..but thats the number of the sub categories (and thats what the scripts counts as submissions).
Anyway Mubin is right, Chris is heavily promoting his web directory. I just wonder if the submission on the Blog Directory is free or paid (well it is new, and it is empty…and it has no PR).
Pay to get listed makes no sense.
the next…
At least in this case.
so it seems that it lists the sub folders as links in the number shown.
Now that is false advertising, showing people there are more links than there really are.
Too much cash!
It looks like simple directory
http://www.technobuzz.net/
24 bucks would probably be better spent on text-link-ads. :shrug:
Oh hi5 on this one!
Anyone fine it humorous that the title of this post is “This Blog Directory is ALIVE!”, when in fact it’s completely empty and more or less dead right now?
I don’t think it is worth the money to put your blog/site on there.
Dear John,
This is a personal invitation only for you
to join my free (now that is) directory at http://www.linkylove.net/addyourlink/
John Chow only please!
Oh gosh we’re all jelous lol, I want in!!!!
@Danny
Seems not jealous enough or to scared to join
I don’t know if it’s worth it. I’m sure there are better, cheaper ways.
I wouldn’t list in anything other than Yahoo. They’ll publish to all their regional sites, and I respect their directory since thats their humble beginnings!
Just paying for links will get you penalized by Google. Who would ever buy links!
People that want to get penalized by google
how’s google gone find out you bought your link?
If the post your link is in, is labeled like PayPerPost maybe?
I think there are cheaper alternatives..
I agree with you…
I think google is about to kill all directories pretty soon because they are paying to get better rankings.
Google doesn’t give a *** as long as it’s making millions it won’t bother.
If you forget the Blog-Directory part it’s attached to Alive; one of the largest, strongest and arguably BEST private run Directories in the world. The Blog Directory part is new so that is why it is empty. The fact he already paid John to review it should show you what kind of promoter you are dealing with.
Alive has been known to spend LOTS of money promoting the directory. I am sure the same will be done on this section. I expect a lot of promotion for it.
With so many of these blog directory floating around, when will Google ban these? (if at all?)
As soon as they become link farms. And it’s easy to check out when you have a banned directory when it’s no more in Google
You can’t get too much traffic out of these site, it’s best just to use article directories instead.
i dont think you will any traffic from those dir just waste money and time maybe 2 % traffic
Little too steep imho
[QUOTE]On the main blog directory homepage, I can see that there are supposed to be 13 links within Arts and Culture. Clicking through, I find a series of sub-categories, but all of them have a big juicy 0 (zero) next to them. Where are these 13 links hiding?[/QUOTE]
Do you know anything about directories? Or is it you are just venting about prices? The “13″ implies that there is 13 sub-categories to that category not how many links. By charging these prices you are sure to get quality sites submitted by people who care about there sites. Obtaining these types of submissions are what directories are aiming for now. Since too many garbage MFA, Viagra, Gambling, Weight lose etc sites are being made and submitted to free directories making the directory worthless as it fills up with garbage and then is nothing but a link farm for low paid people from India to submit sites. These types of sites would never pay for a decent submission to a worth while directory.
You review directories and dont know the numbers beside the top level categories are the amount of sub categories? Moron.
Not impressed. pay directories aren’t worth it.
paid directories is actually weighted more than free directory which filled with links that may be considered as junk or spam
Not many are aware of what is going on in the internet . Google is fast deindexing the paid directories.