Directory listings for SEO? Be careful.

Google-compliant SEO is not easy. The rules keep changing and so does how people search online.

Directory listings for SEO are no longer recommended, except for a few local and niche directories. 

Companies used to want to get listed (business name, address, phone number, email) on thousands of directories, for the link back to their own website. This was smart strategy. For a while.

The best directories are tightly focused, well designed, serving a specialty or local community, and include educational material on the industry (a great place for naturally occurring keywords) that explains things, or has a forum, rather than just lists of businesses.

Spammers have hit directories pretty hard. Directory listings have been abused by black hat practitioners, along with article submission sites, press release links with SEO savvy anchor text, guest blogging, and other old skool tactics.

Yesterday's safe directory can become unsafe tomorrow. What may have been a safe link neighborhood at one time can suddenly turn bad. Then you need to get unlisted. You may even have to pay a lot of money to get unlisted by a directory, in order to avoid penalties from Google.

Some still good directories and business listings recommended by Yahoo include:

Yelp
Mapquest
Topix
LocalPages
Manta
Merchants Circle
Yellowmoxie
Mojopages
Avantar
localdatabase
superpages
Americantowns.com
Co-pilot
Tupalo
Yellowbot
Yellowise
8coupons
Metro PCS Whereto
Citysearch
Whitepages
YellowPageCity.com
Elocal
CitySquares
Factual
USCity.net
ShowMeLocal


The main Yahoo Directory has been closed down.

http://www.webpronews.com/the-yahoo-directory-is-officially-dead-2014-12


Yahoo Local Small Business Directory is still considered good. But check out these categories for "Peoria IL Professional Services":

https://local.yahoo.com/IL/Peoria/Professional+Services/

Animal & Pet Services
Auctioneers (10)
Business Organizations
Design Services
Employment Services
News & Media
Office Supplies & Services
Paranormal Services
Photocopying (10)
Photography
Printing Services
Private Investigation (11)
Publishing Services
Sex
Shipping Services
Storage
Telecommunications
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