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An old website idea but it's still a good profit stream if done right.



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An old website idea but it's still a good profit stream if done right.

I would assume that all of you already know what a directory is. Hell, there are even directories offline in file and paper form so we know it's been a system in place for a looooong time lol.

So my idea was to set up a sort of niche specific directory. The niche would be the town, so I guess it would be more of a geo targeted directory? Whatever, it's going to make money so let's not focus on if it's the niche I'm targeting or the location lol.

Now there is a limited amount of these that can be made and also be unique at the same time, but there are sooooo many towns/cities out there that it might be difficult to run into another one that is doing what you are. Most offline businesses or businesses who only have a website in order to have people contact them through may not understand that having their information on YOUR website or directory is awesome, but you can sway them pretty quick.

I would put up the best directory in the world using easy systems like wordpress and a theme, them add loads of content in order to target businesses in my town. Depending on the business, location, and a few other variables you can charge specific amounts. The town I live in is pretty ritzy and I could probably charge $350 a month per super premium listing but much less per basic listing, but only if I have the traffic to send them in order for them to make money. If you aren't getting the traffic, you won't get the sales.


Have any of you tried doing this in the past or are currently doing this now?

I wonder how much of a profitable idea this could be if boot strapped and done right at the same time. I would assume that you could get around $750 to $3,000 a month for each ritzy town in the area, but then again you can literally target anywhere in the world lol An old website idea but it



Thanks,

Razzy

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Cristian
WOW! Ok really excited about this idea! So the niche is the town you leave in! Fantastic, actually Google still puts a lot of weight from local business listing pages so having a good old directory template might to the trick.

You can even expand, like creating one directory for another town. The trick would be to keep in local, like having 1 town name per 1 website. Having just 1 website with multiple towns will just be similar to plain old directories.

I really think you can turn a profit around on this if done right as you said, tons of local businesses would want to get their information and website link in your directory and Google will actually see all of this as beneficial for everybody.
PS: You need to keep it user friendly and orientated towards people looking for info, not just a link farm.



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Lynne
Oh cool Razzy! I have actually purchased a domain and I have put up a shell of a website with a coming soon notice on it for a directory for my area.

I have to admit I am a bit stumped now for the way forward. I know I can make a massive success with this website but I am a little stuck.

I want to have a mixture of 3 things for this website. A free classifieds section where anyone can list specific things and services for sale, and maybe even events too... but have the option to also promote their ads right?

Then I wanted to have another section for business listings which would be paid listings but a very good price per month.

I also wanted to include a spam free community discussion so people in the area can connect and chat.

I don't know how to code or how to set this up. What would you suggest?



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Corzhens
If that directory is about business establishments of a place then I guess that’s a pretty good idea for a website. However, it is not easy to create the database for that because you have to source out the list of establishments that should include details particularly phone numbers aside from the addresses. Another difficult chore is in maintaining the list that should be up to date all the time. Last year I was searching for a repair company for our air conditioner and the first 3 in the search list were okay. But the fourth in the list had a wrong phone number and another in the list on page 1 is not existing anymore.



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