Can You Really Make $200K+ With A Website Directory? My Thoughts + Answering Questions

[@FreyChu]

I guess I'm not the only website directory nerd after all! Subscribe for all website directory related tips : shipyourdirectory.kit.com Since I'm building these directories full-time right now, I have a ton of thoughts around finding niches, automating boring tasks, SEO things, etc. for website directory builds. More content incoming!

[@DirectoryStartups]

You are definitely not! 😄. That's why we just launched our directory community for fellow nerds to geek out together on directories and monetization.

[@aaronsakhai]

Hey Frey, I have a directory I've been building over the last year on the side. Would you be open to a consultation call?

[@FreyChu]

@@aaronsakhai Yeah I do one off consultations quite often, but please just send me a DM on twitter if possible!

[@aaronsakhai]

@@FreyChu Sent you a LinkedIn invite. Not using Twitter at the moment.

[@FrankRamosYT]

That was a great breakdown. When people hand wave and don't provide many details on a podcast it creates a need for more information like this awesome video.

[@FreyChu]

Very kind of you Frank, thanks for watching!

[@opixelpres]

Yes, please do a walkthrough of how you would go about creating a local directory. There are so few details online on how to do it. Especially the HOW of finding a good niche. Thanks for the video, really informative.

[@hashim.pakara]

Yes sure

[@FreyChu]

Sounds good, filming that one today actually. Lots of niches look "good" for directories but are actually really competitive, so I agree choosing your niche is deceptively challenging.

[@PinkKoala-k4s]

@@FreyChu This would be nice to see. Find the niche and how to start building it with wordpress.

[@CamilleRenwick]

Have to same comment as @opixelpres. I really would appreciate a walkthrough the process. Thanks

[@JimMendenhall]

Thanks for such an honest video. I get so tired of over-hyped videos on marketing.

[@FreyChu]

Thanks! That's really nice compliment. The truth is building a website directory is 90% super boring work and not at all fast & sexy haha

[@getdmw]

yep. a walkthrough, especially the SEO + niche research part of the process. Great vid, thanks.

[@FreyChu]

Noted on SEO and niche selection, appreciate this!

[@DirectoryStartups]

This is my first video of yours that I've seen. As a fellow directory nerd, you just got yourself a new subscriber!

[@FreyChu]

Heck yeah! Welcome and thanks for the support

[@thays182]

Great video, hail the youtube algo for bringing me to you. Looking forward to getting a video of your roadmap on creating a directory and the steps/process you go through, and the checkpoints/milesstones you expect to hit.

[@FreyChu]

Haha thanks. Definitely want to make more content around this, the world of directories is vast so there's lot of processes to cover!

[@kohkoh17]

Great answers to the questions and tools shared Frey. Am just getting started with directories too so it's really helpful. Have a merry Xmas and happy new year too!

[@lucface]

wow this is your break out video man! brilliant. time to crank out a grip of videos and ride that wave dude.

[@philippededeken4881]

I already spend my day in Data so I'm just gonna jump in the boat as well, why not? Thank you for your inspiration.

[@SidAlwar]

Thanks for doing this, Frey. Would appreciate if you could do a walkthrough of one your directories or a video on niche selection process. Appreciate your work!

[@FreyChu]

Yeah I'm considering just showing one of my directories for educational purposes. Niche selection videos coming up soon!

[@niravshah7057]

nice vid @frey - good to see you here doing this!

[@olaidemuheeb6711]

Quite interested in learning the process

[@FreyChu]

Sounds good! I’ll be creating more content on this process

[@KhalidAl-Amin]

lovin this channel. just found you after watching John's directory video.

[@KONCEPTKAMP]

Thank a lot for the video! Great info. Another video going into more detail on the processes of building one would be amazing! Keeping doing what you are doing

[@FreyChu]

Will do! There's so much that changes with the process depending on your niche and what the keyword research shows. Sounds like a fun topic to film so will add this to the shortlist.

[@KONCEPTKAMP]

@ Amazing! I’m looking forward to it!

[@jebinho10]

8:18 Thanks for your perspective. I had known that you wouldn't choose a saturated niche, but I don't really know how many niches are left. Like I said in the other comment, people in this space have been doing it for awhile, so they've had plenty of time to try the whole range of topics; from the most popular to the most boring. You doing those "boring" niches might be proving my point. Anyway, glad it has served you well.

[@FreyChu]

Hey, thanks for being open to another persons viewpoint. Yeah i get what you mean. I guess I come from a place where I've researched hundreds of different niches over the last two years where high traffic directories are pretty old and out of date, waiting for a new and improved version to overtake it in the organic rankings. The niche that I built my profitable directory in was dominated by one competitor that was getting 100k+ monthly visitors for like 6 years. I saw it, figured I could do it better, and overtook them within 6-8 months. Definitely not going to be your typical story, but i was a total SEO noobie at the time. I'm also kinda delusionally optimistic at times, so theres that too lol. But cheers buddy!

[@elearah]

Thanks for the video. I'm in the process of building a directory, and getting some structure is always very welcome.

[@yufliu]

Great video! Seems like there's a bunch of us nerds out there that want to learn form you 👏

[@triwebdigital8436]

Hey @FreyChu, as you mentioned to use the copy pasting the data from Google Maps Listings to the directory, is that allowed to copy that data like reviews and images and store them on the site as that against to google terms. there is no clear answer for this anywhere.

[@khollandtalks]

Great video Frey! (subbed). I've done SEO online marketing publishing etc...for years and am looking at building a few curated directories. This was very helpful!

[@FreyChu]

Woo! Thank you for watching. You definitely already have half the pie, in terms of skills needed to execute a directory.

[@khollandtalks]

@@FreyChu Yes...the key is not going down the rabbit hole too far where I get nothing done! Lots of ideas in my head right now... :)

[@rick.knowlton]

So pretty much look for industries or niche businesses that have a lackluster or overall middling web presence overall? Like "bounce castle rentals near me" or "mold abatement hershey pa" and build off of that? For instance, with mold abatement, you would focus on second city sort of locales (e.g. instead of Pittsburgh you would focus on Johnstown, PA or Altoona, PA). You essentially offer arbitrage in getting the customer closer to where they need to be. In that, do you try to focus on local/homegrown businesses over national chains/franchises? Or do you leverage those chains and their pull to bring more traffic to your directory?

[@FreyChu]

@@rick.knowlton yeah there’s a lot to unpack here, but absolutely you can build a local directory and sell leads for those niches. I personally go for high traffic keywords. That way I can build it for high traffic and it’s really passive once you rank #1 for your target keyword. I can already tell without searching it up that ‘mold abatement’ and ‘bounce castle rentals’ wouldn’t have enough search volume for me, with the style of directory site I like building You can totally target chains, or branded keywords, to increase traffic to your directory. Again it’s so dependent on your niche and how you’re trying to monetize your directory

[@imhellag]

Hey man I notice you got MV Journey or Grow revenue from your directory. Are you showing ads on directory pages? Last time I installed Journey it could only show ads on blogs - which was a problem because sessions and views come from directory pages lol.

[@justal8559]

Hey Frey, would greatly appreciate you sharing how and what you use to build out your directories. Awesome Vid!

[@FreyChu]

I'm happy you asked because my techstack is laughable to most poeple. I use wordpress (CMS), elementor pro (theme), bluehost/namecheap (domains/hosting) for my static directories. For programmatic SEO focused directories, I use wordpress, elementor pro and the Geodirectory plugin.

[@originofname5]

Great video! Thanks for explaining it and giving perspective.

[@bvo3766]

Please do a walkthrough, thanks Frey.

[@ramonskitube]

Frey, what are you saying at 5:34? "This is where I use... " What is it you use. ?

[@FreyChu]

@@ramonskitube ahrefs - the seo keyword software

[@BamaPatriot61]

Glad i came across your channel. I’ve been thinking about creating directories. One area of interest has been creating a dynamic directory site, but it seems like this method can be extremely expensive based on api calls. Curious if you have any experience or suggestions regarding this kind of directory since they can rank highly within a very short time. I’ve seen some examples rank highly within 72 hours. I just don’t want to build a site like this and find that i have a $35,000 tab at the end of the month. Appreciate your suggestions and great job on your video!

[@FreyChu]

I don't have experience with dynamic directory sites, but my gut tells me it's probably not worth it for 99% of niches. I guess it also depends on your plan to monetize, how often you want to update your data, and what type of data you're inserting. For example, if you're working on a crypto-related directory it could be worth it...but goodluck ranking for one of the most competitive niches in the world. Also hate to break it to you but it doesn't matter how good or in demand your content is, a fresh domain will not be able to rank organically in Google in 72 hours. Like, it's just not a thing. Even if you purchase an expired domain, it's just really unlikely. Again, depends on your niche and age of your website, but just trying to curb expectations.

[@EcomDetective]

Great information ..immediately followed you ❤

[@malcreatesstuff]

Excellent video. Now I have a ton of ideas to contend with 😅

[@waydown1956]

Thank you Frey, most appreciated for your honest comments and your insights about methods and success in making directories. I have subscribed and look forward to any future videos that you put out A question that I have for you is - what have you found to be the most successful monetization methods on your directory does? Thanks again!

[@FreyChu]

I like to diversify my monetization as much as possible. But simply put, I like building high traffic directories and monetizing through display ads. But I'm also growing B2B websites that monetize through sponsored listings and lead generation!

[@dinorossi6611]

Thank you for the info. I have been wanting to build a BD for a while. Do you plan on making an A to Z tutorial video on how to build one ? Also, what WP theme do you use? How do you monetize them and so on. Thank you .

[@FreyChu]

I do, but I like to cover each step in depth because there's a lot of mistakes that new directory builders can make along the way. Maybe a full A-Z tutorial down the line tho. I use elementor pro for the theme. Display ads through mediavine in my go-to monetization once the site gets 10k/monthly visitors

[@dinorossi6611]

@@FreyChu Thank you for the reply. I see. So the tutorial could happen in the distant future. I dislike elementor. Completely abandoned them. I need to use an alternative. How soon do you hit 10K visitors per month?

[@FreyChu]

@@dinorossi6611 yeah elementor has it's own issues, I dont blame you. All depends. first website took about 6 months!

[@dinorossi6611]

@@FreyChu I see. I need to find an alternative to Elementor for a clean directory.

[@PrakshGo]

Thanks for sharing your experience. Question - what do you use to import the existing member google reviews?

[@FreyChu]

This is kinda embarassing but my favorite way is simply copy and pasting the top 3 google reviews on Google maps manually (for that specific business). It gets super tedious if you have 1000+ listings, but if it keeps people scrolling my website longer, which is great for SEO, I'm game for it. However, you can either DIY it using wordpress directory plugins (i use geodirectory). This goes more into programmatic SEO. Other plugins for this probably exist too!

[@thedigitalceo]

Great video but I was wondering why wouldn’t the Google maps listing of local vendors be more relevant than a site directory. That’s typically what people look at when searching

[@FreyChu]

The local pack (the 3 GMBs we often see at the top of SERPs) may be more convenient for searchers in terms of geographical relevance, but it doesn't meet everyones needs. This is why the first rank site still gets plenty of clicks. Now, imagine a nationwide directory where you rank 1 organically for hundreds of different cities (and keywords for that matter). That can lead to a good amount of traffic! In local SEO, there's also a general concept that the local pack is responsible for 50% of clicks and organic is responsible fro the other 50% of clicks. I think it's niche dependent tho. But short answer, yeah local will be part of your competition.

[@VaibhavShewale]

i was also thinking after watching his video but im still thinking what kind of sub niches should i target to

[@FreyChu]

@@VaibhavShewale I go over a few niches in my last video, hopefully it can help give you and idea of how I go about finding these sub niches 🙂

[@VaibhavShewale]

@@FreyChu interesting, sure would check it out soon!

[@mastermemer8351]

Your new viewer. Please make a video on the complete process.

[@brandon-e1u]

Please make a video with the step to step process!

[@marcusedvalson]

Thanks, that was a great video. I am curious, you talked about learning SEO. What is the best place to do that for a beginner? Most the SEO content out there is way over my head and it is hard to find relevant instruction today. Also, would like to hear about how you approach SEO for directories. I've built one, and am working on another, and would like to learn what is working.

[@FreyChu]

yeah good question. Its honestly hard to recommend anyone who goes into actual concrete tactics (as simple as they are)...plus there's lots of doom and gloom around Google and SEO nowadays. I suppose youtube and twitter are the best for beginners. Can't recommend a specific person tho. For directory SEO, it really depends on your niche and what type of directory you're building. But the SEO concept of a "pillar page" i believe is still extremely effective for directory seo today

[@Enigma-fk7mh]

Hi Frey can you monetize directory websites with google adsense?

[@carterjames199]

Very interested this video gave me a good idea for a directory…. I think just trying to figure out how I can validate it now. Make more content !

[@asiddiqi123]

How'd you compile data for directory

[@FreyChu]

Making a video on picking + validating a niche today

[@carterjames199]

@@FreyChu amazing I need that

[@certtechwebsolutions]

Hi. Just found your channel and loving the content. I am looking to start a business directory in city close by me which doesn't really have a good business directory to begin with (I searched this via Google). I want to create a business directory listing that lists all of the different businesses that city. Is it a good idea to go this broad, or should I niche down to a specific industry? Also, to monetize the directory, I am assuming the common way would be through AdSense and featured business listings? Thank you!

[@FreyChu]

Definitely niche down. In fact, the most successful directories in my opinion are the ones where the entire website is hyper focused on 1 single keyword (that typically gets tens of thousands of searches). you just need to rank for one keyword with enough volume to hit the $1k/mo mark in my opinion. And yep, although I would just build the directory to 5-10k/month visitors then monetize through Ezoic or Mediavine Grow. You'll earn more.

[@certtechwebsolutions]

@@FreyChu Thank you for your insight!

[@MaxRuso]

Passively is a good one. Greg is very talented play sometimes a bit stage scenarios but the overall yesterday is totally okay I guess

[@ARCGRAPHIX2011]

What themes are you using for your directories and which hosting platform?

[@lucface]

I was thinking to make directories as lead magnets for our videography and photography company to run social ads to landing page to leadmagnet to mailing list drip campaign type of thing but have the directory be the magnet. is there something there do you think? maybe even a tailored list of directories in the location of where the prospect is? idk just some thoughts in my head.

[@FreyChu]

Directories can make amazing lead magnets forsure! If you make a massive videography directory, you just have to be find including competition in your listings. But since you own the directory, you can just push your listing to the top of every page

[@murphdoesitagain]

do i need wordpress? or can I use caard?

[@FreyChu]

I always go with wordpress. There's a general consensus that wordpress websites naturally rank better on google You also get so many more plugins and options for control over desing, functionality, so i'd highly recommend sticking to wordpress!

[@murphdoesitagain]

@@FreyChumakes sense i knew this I was just suck at wordpress. Do you have a go-to theme?

[@robo3383]

Frey, thanks for walking through the directory questions with some realistic answers. I'd love to see more information on your processes and recommendations. Like some of the disbelievers, I questioned the "50 minutes and make $$$ just buy my pdf" yet I have seen where people who put the work in do make them work. I'm old enough to remember when Craig Newmark started putting up Craigslist on the WWW.

[@FreyChu]

Sure thing! Even 1-2 months for me is conservative. I've spent 3 months building a directory and it always seems to have better results than the ones I whip up quickly. Of course, it depends on how big your directory project is (mine are all nation-wide directories), but I agree that 50 minutes is an unrealistic standard

[@robo3383]

@@FreyChu Thanks for the reply, I subscribed so looking forward to more videos.

[@pravanjanpatnaik6639]

Please share some research idea on making a b2b vertical saas business niche Its the most boring category and people skip this area when talking about directory

[@FreyChu]

B2B directories are the most interesting to me, only 1/5 directories i own is a b2b play but if it works the revenue potential has a much higher ceiling. My next video I validate 3 different directory niches. Third one is b2b/lead gen play, should be a fun analysis to share

[@DirectoryStartups]

The people actively talking about directories, which are still only a few people (maybe four or five on KZbin) typically don’t think about the huge venture-backed startups in the directory field. And a lot of people making directories right now are following a formula that is being sold to them. We just launched and 5 of the first directory submissions are related to AI.

[@DirectoryStartups]

@@FreyChu I looked into building a B2B SaaS directory and then I realized there are MAJOR MAJOR MAJOR players in the B2B SaaS directory category who have millions of dollars to spend gaining market share. You'd be going up G2 and Capterra.

[@DavidMurrin77]

What do YOU use for your directories? Wordpress and manual? Something like ideal directories? I’ve made a custom directory that lists every quiz night that runs weekly in Australia though I made it from scratch

[@FreyChu]

Wordpress and manual is my favorite way to build a directory by far. So much more control from an SEO perspective. Nice, does it get traffic?

[@watchmelearnstuff]

Heya, thanks for this helpful add-on to the Isenberg ep. I'm in the beginning stages of a directory project so this was super timely and valuable level-setting for me. FYI I signed up for your mailing list but the confirmation email came from "Everyday Bot", went to junk, and there was no identifying information. If I hadn't gone looking for it right then, I would have missed it for sure. Probably want to at least put your name on it. :) (Unless I just signed up for somebody else's newsletter!)

[@FreyChu]

Haha yeah that's me. I leaped to my desk when i woke up to make it real quick. Idk why it said everyday bot, but I fixed it! Thanks for letting me know. Congrats on starting the directory journey. It's boring, but fun boring once you get into the thick of it!

[@matteobarberis1149]

Great info but if your directory can’t be found there’s no point in building one… do you have any tips in how to let people find your directory or rank it higher on google searches?

[@FreyChu]

Strongly agree. Yeah, but let me say it def starts with research so you know you're not entering a niche that takes elite level SEO skills to rank for (actually my recent video is on this). I do have tips, but I want to make a full SEO directory video of all the things i do. But it's really been just on-page SEO and backlinks in my experience that helps me to rank higher

[@symbotz]

Great video!

[@SimonStJohn]

Hey Frey, what platform do you use to create your directories?

[@FreyChu]

wordpress and elementor pro haha. For programmatic SEO, the geodirectory plugin OR I work with a wordpress dev to automate the creation of static pages on my wordpress site (the method depends on the type of directory I'm building).

[@AlfredodelArenal]

Good video amigo, thanks, it just happened that I started building my 1st directory yesterday, and the all-mighty Google/YT suggested me your video. New subscriber, cheers from Mexico City.

[@EamonnCottrell]

Fantastic epilogue to Greg’s episode. I too would be interested in as granular a walkthrough of your process as you were willing to record. My channel centers around spreadsheets and coding so the data cleaning and up front work to stand up a directory is compelling as a project/video idea for me too. Thanks again. Sub earned.

[@FreyChu]

Definitely needed! The work for directories are easy, but extremely nuanced with plenty of areas that can go wrong leading to another traffic-less website. Will need to plan this type of video but definitely want to do an in-depth directory build video

[@waydown1956]

Thanks Frey!

[@SKYWOLF8858]

Can you use outscraper tool to scrap emails from user in facebook group?

[@FreyChu]

Not sure! Haven't personally tried or needed to scrape emails at scale for the niches that I'm building directories for. Almost certain there are scraping tools for that though, or you can hire a dev to accomplish this for you

[@Chris-dp3jm]

what do you mean by a non-programmatic directory (thought by nature they all pretty much are)?

[@FreyChu]

Yeah when i say non-programmatic I mean going into wordpress >pages>create page> then building out and adding the directory listing information manually. When i say programmatically, I mean organizing a CSV or Google sheets with cleaned data and then using a plugin or hiring a wordpress dev to publish pages based on that data. For example, this is how I (and others who dabble in pSEO) can publish 2000 pages in a single day. One is terribly slow, but ranks better in my experience. Second is fast, but doesn't rank as well. Lots of nuance here too depending on niche.

[@CassindyChao]

Frey is the TOTAL BEST! And a total heartbreaker too - Ladies check out this total cutie!

[@aka1Khalid]

Need a step by step guide to build a directory

[@nanettejames963]

How to monetize it?

[@MaxKuchde]

16:25 Nah, that's some shiny object syndrome stuff - if you can build something that fast, it'll probably not stick or he can get outcompeted super fast

[@orlundokhubbard]

Yooo Frey!! It’s Orlundo! You’re making videos now?

[@FreyChu]

Yoooo! Just wanted to make something i thought was valuable haha. Hope you're well man.

[@Something9008]

Whats the optimal location range for the directory? (State or nationwide?)

[@FreyChu]

I like going nation wide for maximum traffic potential. All my directories are nation wide

[@jamesyawn8381]

Would like to see your process please.

[@shivanshdubey1189]

what is directory

[@GRUBB-MUDD]

U talking about just a website? I want start selling digital products, can u help me get started. I can handle the content

[@GRUBB-MUDD]

I want a website

[@FreyChu]

yeah this is for just directory websites. Digital products are super dependent on the niche, doesn't apply or make sense for every niche

[@SharkSwayze]

Directory of a directory works?

[@FreyChu]

@@SharkSwayze have seen people do this, don’t recommend. Not easy to monetize. Not a lot of search volume. Doesn’t seem worth it to me just from what I know from prior keyword research involving “directory”

[@StopWork-ai]

Please show what a website director is. I need to see examples because I don’t understand what you’re talking about.

[@FreyChu]

Just posted a new video that shows examples of several successful directories hiding in plain sight. Hope this helps

[@RayanEditor22]

Hey Frey, can i edit your youtube videos?

[@Ryan-ys2bq]

Just do a sample version for free and send it to him and pitch an offer

[@AntonioMaranhaoUSA]

I had one years ago. But I was not making enough. Decided to quit 😢

[@hashim.pakara]

I think you need to cook something with Greg 😅

[@FreyChu]

it's sippin time baby

[@BrandGemalt]

Great video!! But I have a question: Which tools are you actually using to build your directories?

[@FreyChu]

elementor pro + wordpress Geodirectory for programmtic SEO directories

[@DirectoryStartups]

@@FreyChu Geodirectory seems way too expensive, especially starting out. There are less expensive options out there.

[@FreyChu]

@@DirectoryStartups Yup, not necessary when starting out. There's a few options to choose from forsure. I only recommend Geodirectory for people exploring programmatic seo directories for the first time. Their support team is insanely helpful

[@einthwil]

Im willing to buy a paid course to do this on WordPress

[@philippededeken4881]

Hi Frey, where were you born and where do you live now?

[@PedroPeter-u2c]

My advice to everyone is this : if you want to grow big this year especially in your finances. Be willing to make investments. Saving is great but investing puts you on a pedestal where you wouldnt have to worry about savings as you do now. With Magnolia Angel, my portolio is doing really great and im proud of the decisions i made last year.

[@MelindaTracey]

Magnolia's analyses go beyond surface-level trends. She delves into technical, fundamental, and sentiment analysis, providing a holistic view of the market

[@PeterJoshua-zm2fo]

I’m new at this, how can I reach her?

[@AladinMercer-p2x]

She is all about simple technique that are highly profitable, I really admire her winning mentality.

[@FredrickBlazen]

Wow. I'm a bit perplexed seeing Magnolia Angel being mentioned here also. Didn't know she has been good to so many people too, this is wonderful.

[@PedroPeter-u2c]

gram with her username

[@mrcth6593]

1000%

[@Hobnockers]

Sorry, bloody rookie. What’s a directory? How is it different to a regular WordPress blog?

[@FreyChu]

All good, we're all learners here. A directory in it's most basic form is a webpage that lists basic information about a location - name, address, phone number, store hours. There are many types of directories, not just for physical locations. Look up yellowpages, the OG directory site.

[@vince2nd]

That guy is so full of shit. Unsubscribe, block, do not recommend.

[@geraldlofton]

There are many ways to build digital assets and have them pay u…is there a way for each asset to pay me 1k per month…(example 100X1000.00=100k mo 1000X1k=1M mo)