John:
Quote:
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the more sites that posts a URL and information the better the search ranking
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That's not quite true. If a site links to your website and is
related to it, it
might improve the linked-to site's position in organic listing results. But if the link is coming in from a generic directory site, such as it seems the site of this thread may be, then it could
hurt the linked-to site's rankings.
And I'll say again: 'opt-in' is much better than 'opt-out'.
How much spam have you received that had the 'opt-out' link at the bottom? Tons, I'll bet. Do you ever 'opt-out'? Probably not, because everyone knows that just validates the email address for brokering.
David:
If you want to establish a serious business presence, you need to go about it the proper and fair way. Check with a business attorney, first, then start contacting all of those businesses and asking for their permission to list them on your new site. If you think that's too much of a hassle, then your business will be built on a foundation of laziness. If the businesses often deny you permission to list them, then you will understand why 'opt-in' is so important, and you may need to consider a different business model.
Anything less is abusing those businesses' value for your own personal gain. From the description you posted, it seems like you will be making money from the site (advertising? AdSense?), and if the content of your site is ill-gotten (ripped from the phone book without verification), you aren't providing any value to the businesses listed, and you are only tricking people into making money for you at other people's expense and effort.
Put in your own effort by contacting the businesses before you include them. If what you offer has true value, they will be glad to be included.