Directories - Who do they serve?
A colleague from the Guild, Jane Anderson who runs the excellent 101Honeymoons website, tweeted excitedly this morning: "We've made it to the Good Web Guide".
'Congratulations!' I was thinking (and was about to tweet in reply) as I checked their entry and then began to nose around the GoodWebGuide to see who else was on it and what the criteria are for being accepted.
It turns out of course, cash plays a big part.
It's all here. The criteria are...
- The site must be clear in its offering. (I would hope so. Pretty standard for any serious site).
- Telephone contact details as well as email contact details must be included. (A good basic requirement. Any website that is obscure about who runs it and from where, or avoids contact, is to be avoided).
- The site should fit in with one of their existing channels (eg Travel, Home & Garden, Money & Business, etc).
So.... pretty much any website 'with a pulse' then.
Then comes the real hurdle. Assuming your site meets those stratospherically high standards, you need to pay £150 + VAT per annum for your entry.
It seems the Good Web Guide might be not so much a 'Guide to Good Websites' as a 'Guide to Passable Websites that are willing to pay us for Advertising'.
It's not an unusual business model, but you can set the standards higher.
I've always liked the excellent Alastair Sawday (another ex-guildie) 'Special Places to Stay' directories (printed books), but never felt the same about them after I discovered the properties listed have to pay for their entry (That was a long time back, when I lost my innocence!). Nevertheless Alastair's directories still list what appear to be lovely properties, even if they feel very slightly tarnished by commerce.
These directories are more an 'Exacting Guide to those Special Places to Stay that are willing to pay us for advertising'.
Of course, directories, printed or online, have to earn a living. They can't all be as worthy as Dmoz - the (human volunteer edited) Open Directory Project, in order to gain beatification for their editorial independence, but there is a third way. Mine!
The reason I can be so sniffy about paid-for advertising directories is that my directory (Travel-Lists) IS independent and is designed to serve the site visitors not the companies listed.
The business model is simple.
You get listed if I think your website is good enough for my visitors. I use a range of criteria, starting with the GoodWebGuide's basics, but also taking into account things like trade accreditation, financial bonding, and gut feeling.
Where do my gut feelings and those of the GoodWebGuide's editor(s) part company? Well, there are always some finely balanced judgements. GoodWebGuide have to make theirs knowing that they stand to gain or lose £150. I don't have that burden.
Jane's 101Honeymoons (and its sister site, 101Holidays) is listed in my directory for free, as are the vast majority of sites. The only people who pay anything are those who can't wait for me to find them and pay a 'fast-track' review fee of £12.50.
I take that £12.50 regardless of whether I decide to list them or not. So there's no commercial pressure on me. I can decide freely if my visitors would benefit from knowing about this site, or not.
Furthermore, if you pay me £12.50 for a review and get in (most do. I reject only a handful each year. People tend not to spend the money if they suspect they may not get in) that's it - it is a once only payment.
At midnight on 14 Sept 2011 standards at 101Honeymoons will slip so badly that it will become a website that is no longer worthy of your attention... according to The GoodWebGuide. A situation that can be remedied if another 150 quid is handed over.
In my directory, you are listed as long as you do what you do - IE forever. If you stop doing it, I will kick you out. If you start doing other things, I may add you to other lists. You are in, as often and as long as you benefit my visitors. You are my play thing (muhahaha) and I write your description, not you. That is because it is not advertising and you are not paying for it.
At the bottom of Jane's 101Honeymoons site there are a number of clickable logos.
As recommended by: The Sunday Times | BBC World | Daily Mail | TheGoodWebGuide.co.uk
If I were Jane I would be wondering if the last is of any value to me or my visitors. (I hope the link is not a contractual requirement)
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