Key Features In A Good Online Business Directory
By Russell M. Stewart

The internet is brimming with web directories. These web directories belong to different subject matters, such as articles, business, web hosting, ebooks - the list goes on. For the most part, these web directories do what they are supposed to do. They provide a single online location to find various listings providing links to different sites on the internet. Their primary objective is to direct the readers to the exact thing they are looking for.

A directory provides a comprehensive list of businesses, which generally includes both online and offline businesses with hosted websites. directories are mostly useful for other businesses, when they are looking for services and products not available through their own business. But, even direct consumers find directories to be useful, especially when they prefer to make direct online purchases from the most suitable seller.

There are several standards and guidelines pertaining to the presentation of directories. If they are to be informative and useful for anyone, they should be available in a convenient form. There are no imposed standards on how a web directory must be presented, but certain qualities are generally expected in them.

Organisation - A well-organised online directory is easy for anyone to use. It must be categorised accordingly, showing main and sub classifications. Simple and user-friendly navigation, with properly categorised links in each section, is also necessary.

Japanese sailor missing from whaler
A sailor from a Japanese whaling ship was missing after likely falling overboard in the Antarctic Ocean, a spokesman for the whaler's operators said. (UPI)
For the remarkable Japanese, it's time to dance
Japan is stumbling into what could be a year of seminal decision-making for a people, a culture, and an economy -- all still unique and critical for her Asian neighbors and the keystone of U.S. strategies and policies in the region. (World Tribune)
Spats cast pall over Japan imperial anniversary
<img src="http://www.gulf-times.com/mritems/images/2009/1/5/2_264811_1_248.jpg" align="left" vspace="5" width="130" border="0"/>Emperor Akihito marks two decades on the Japanese throne on Wednesday, but the anniversary is set to pass quietly given the poor health of the royal family that some officials blame on internal squabbling. The 20th anniversary of the death of his father, Emperor Hirohito, comes a few weeks after Akihito, 75, canceled his annual birthday news conference and other official duties due to high blood pressure and intestinal bleeding. (Reuters)
Recession puts more pressure on Japan's workers
<img src="http://images.businessweek.com/story/09/370/0905_headdown.jpg" align="left" vspace="5" width="130" border="0"/>In the last year or so, life appeared to be getting better for Japan's long-suffering workers. Sure, salarymen still toil long into the evening and are expected to guzzle with their bosses after hours. But employers, at the behest of government, have been taking steps to ease workloads, and recent cases suggest Japan's judiciary is more willing to side with employees who sue companies -- a trend that could lead to a better balance between job demands and a worker's private life. (BusinessWeek)
Govt to review biometric immigration control system
The Justice Ministry will review its state-of-the-art biometric immigration control system for foreigners entering Japan, Justice Minister Eisuke Mori said Monday. The move comes after a South Korean woman was found to have used a fake passport and special tape to alter her fingerprints and slip through immigration control at Aomori Airport in Aomori in April 2008. The woman, 51, had previously been deported for overstaying her visa. (Yomiuri)
Govt to hunt for minerals, rare resources
The government on Monday compiled a draft plan on the development of ocean energy and mineral resources that calls for starting research on resources, including rare metals, from fiscal 2009, and completing it within 10 years in a bid to secure such resources amid intensifying international competition, according to sources. (Yomiuri)
Toyota to halt Japan output for 11 days as sales drop
Toyota Motor Corp., Japan’s largest automaker, will suspend some domestic production for 11 days in February and March, as the global recession saps car demand. (Bloomberg)
Japanese whaler drowns in freezing water
<img src="http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/45348000/jpg/_45348503_006495230-1.jpg" align="left" vspace="5" width="130" border="0"/>The search for a Japanese whaler who fell overboard in freezing waters south of New Zealand has been called off, with the man now presumed dead, Hajime Shirasaki, a 30-year-old engine room oiler, was reported missing from the Kyoshin Maru No. 2 early yesterday morning, and is believed to have been washed overboard in seas with four metre swells. (HeraldSun)
Kyoto celebrates a 1,000-year love affair
<img src="http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2009/01/04/travel/04foot600.jpg" align="left" vspace="5" width="130" border="0"/>On a glaring, color-drenched day in Kyoto, I walk unsteadily out of the traditional restaurant where I have spent the morning being costumed, painted and bewigged. Two chic dressers who turned a tatami room into a staging area for a literary fantasy mind the train flowing behind my heavy robes. Hiking up my red silk trouser skirts as I mince forward, I squint without my glasses -- a modern touch that would betray the fact that I'm only pretending to be a noblewoman straight from "The Tale of Genji." (New York Times)
Japan backs away from fiscal target as recession bites
Japan's government edged away on Tuesday from its self-imposed goal of balancing the budget, acknowledging that the target was becoming harder to meet as the global financial turmoil pushes the economy deeper into recession. (guardian.co.uk)
Japanese PM rejects calls for resignation
<img src="http://d.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/ap/20090105/capt.10729ddddbde48d8ba5e27e5fbb93f8a.japan_politics_ksx108.jpg?x=213&y=271&xc=1&yc=1&wc=321&hc=408&q=100&sig=JfppDwtn9zxtIBbXRvcCOw--" align="left" vspace="5" height="130" border="0"/>Increasingly unpopular Japanese Prime Minister Taro Aso rejected calls Tuesday for his resignation, insisting he needs to steer the world's second-largest economy out of recession. Aso's support now stands at just 20 percent amid growing public frustration over his handling of the sluggish economy, but he said the nation must be patient. (AP)
Man held over leaving woman's body in cooler
The Hyogo prefectural police have arrested a man on suspicion of abandoning the body of a pregnant woman in a cooler box in late December. Fumiya Tanaka, 39, a former employee at a delivery company in Nishi Ward, Kobe, was placed on a wanted list on Dec. 26. The body of Kaori Gunji, 24, who was in the final month of pregnancy, was found in a cooler at the delivery company's storehouse. (Yomiuri)
Tuna fetches 8-yr high of 9.6 mil. yen at year's 1st auction in Tokyo
<img src="http://d.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/ap/20090105/capt.f0923acbb6cc4b919ab459f71cf81cd5.japan_pricy_tuna_tok802.jpg?x=213&y=312&xc=1&yc=1&wc=279&hc=409&q=100&sig=N.JG1FiXQrXNQuh_4xoP.Q--" align="left" vspace="5" height="130" border="0"/>A bluefin tuna weighing 128.4 kilograms fetched an eight- year high of 9.63 million yen on Monday at the first auction of the new year on the Tokyo Metropolitan Central Wholesale Market, commonly known as the Tsukiji market. The price for the tuna, caught off Oma, Aomori Prefecture, was the highest since 2001 when an all-time high price of 20.2 million yen was logged for a tuna which was caught in the same waters. (Kyodo)
Japan races to build zero emissions electric car
<img src="http://d.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/afp/20090105/capt.cps.ors09.050109092843.photo00.photo.default-512x410.jpg?x=130&y=104&q=85&sig=NKmz4VEIMwksu0XVhfF07A--" align="left" vspace="5" width="130" border="0"/>The dream of an electric car, which has been around since the time of Thomas Edison, has so far failed to break into the mainstream because of limited battery life that makes such vehicles impractical for most purposes. But after technological breakthroughs in the development of long-lasting lithium-ion batteries, soon it may not just be Hollywood stars who are zipping around in zero emission automobiles. (Daily Telegraph)
Business leaders deliver harsh New Year's speeches to employees
The presidents of many of the nation's leading companies delivered harsh New Year's speeches to employees on Monday, the first business day of the year, while others pledged that their firms would do whatever they can to support the embattled economy. (Kyodo)
Japan says 'cannot accept' Chinese gas development
<img src="http://d.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/afp/20090105/capt.cps.orr64.050109074419.photo00.photo.default-512x484.jpg?x=213&y=202&xc=1&yc=1&wc=408&hc=387&q=100&sig=6lyvksx6qKMEJIrrlwj4rA--" align="left" vspace="5" width="130" border="0"/>Japan said Monday it "cannot accept" China's development of a gas field near a disputed part of the East China Sea after Beijing insisted it was acting within its own waters. Asia's two largest economies struck a deal in June last year to end a lingering spat over Chinese undersea gas fields which, Japan said, may extend into its exclusive economic zone. (AFP)
Multinationalism remains far from acceptance in Japan
In a country notorious for its exclusive immigration policy, the question of whether to allow Japanese to hold dual citizenship became a surprisingly hot policy topic last year after members of the ruling party breached the issue. (Japan Times)
Japanese megabanks 'in red in last quarter'
<img src="http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/media/ALeqM5hAJyEWqrr9z5Dvt-d_3fQ90-m_mw?size=s" align="left" vspace="5" height="130" border="0"/>Japanese megabanks Mitsubishi UFJ and Mizuho Financial appear to have experienced a group net loss in the three months to December due to a plunging stock market, a major daily reported Saturday. It would be the first quarterly net loss for Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group since its establishment in 2005 through the merger of Mitsubishi Tokyo Financial Group and UFJ Holdings. (AFP)
Sport of the samurai still thrives in Japan
<img src="http://www.pe.com/imagesdaily/2009/01-04/japan_sport_of_samurai_400.jpg" width="130" align="left" vspace="5" border="0"/>It is about as far from the Olympic sport of archery as it can get. The bow is taller than the person shooting it, and, to the uninitiated, it appears lopsided and unbalanced. There are no sights, no high-tech stabilizers. And it is done on horseback, at upward of 40 mph. It's called yabusame, and it is the sport of the samurai. (pe.com)
Nintendo to take on broadcasters with Wii TV
In its relentless quest for world living-room domination, Nintendo is preparing to take on the might of the world's biggest broadcasters by launching its own television channel. (Times Online)
Japan lifts tsunami warning for Pacific coast, remote islands
The Japan Meteorological Agency lifted a tsunami warning Sunday afternoon for Pacific coastal areas triggered by a magnitude 7.6 earthquake that rocked eastern Indonesia. (Kyodo)
Japan shoppers grab lucky New Year bags amid gloom
<img src="http://d.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/nm/20090102/2009_01_02t035702_450x300_us_japan_shopping.jpg?x=213&y=142&xc=1&yc=1&wc=410&hc=273&q=100&sig=j0snXLbQ2HpmKVBQQ0yQ4A--" align="left" vspace="5" width="130" border="0"/>Forget the recession, at least for now in Japan, where it's time for some mystery New Year's shopping designed to cast off the economic gloom. Thousands of shoppers queued for hours in front of department stores across Japan on Friday to buy limited-edition, traditional New Year's "goodie" bags in what has become one of the biggest events of the holiday season. (Reuters)
Athletics: Toyo holds on to win Tokyo-Hakone ekiden
Toyo University briefly surrendered its lead from the first leg but finished strongly to win its first overall title at the Tokyo- Hakone collegiate ekiden road relay on Saturday. (Kyodo)
Man arrested for allegedly trying to kill homeless man in Tokyo
Police arrested a 36-year-old part-time worker on Saturday for allegedly attacking a homeless man in Kunitachi city in June, while investigating the murder of another homeless man who was found dead in Tokyo's Setagaya Ward on Friday. (AP)
Japan's jobless fill tent village in Tokyo park
A tent village set up in a Tokyo park for the country's growing number of jobless filled up so fast that it was moved Saturday to a government building to accommodate the overflow. (AP)

A summarised,clean layout is also a sign of a good online directory.

Content Updates - Of course, organisation is not all - the content which is easy to find because the directory is well-organised must be up to date and worth finding. There are new businesses and their websites popping up on the net every day, so the directory must be constantly updated.

PageRank - Google and other search engines provide web pages with ranks. These ranks are based on how popular a page is. While it's different from the search engine's organic results, having a high PageRank boosts the site's ability drive traffic through its links.

Keyword Selection - Choosing the right keywords is crucial. After all, you want to direct people to specific businesses that they are looking for, and for this, if the keywords selected are not just right, the directory will fail in its purpose. Just a list of links is not what the user wants, the user wants relevant links.

By using these key characteristics to determine if an online directory is worth your time and effort, you can choose the highest quality directory, regardless of whether you want to post your own links or just find out about a specific company.

Article Source: http://www.articlemap.com

searching for an online directory then this website is for you. An internet yellow pages this online directory serves as a useful resource library for all types of businesses a covers all sectors including society, shopping, events, blogs and news.

We strive to provide only quality articles, so if there is a specific topic related to business that you would like us to cover, please contact us at any time.

And again, thank you to those contributing daily to our business directory website.