SECTOR · DIRECTORIES
A directory lives or dies by the scale of its pages. That scale has to be managed with judgement, not just volume.
A directory or aggregator can generate hundreds of thousands of pages, but only a fraction deserves to be indexed and compete for ranking. We work so that scale plays in your favour instead of getting penalised for thin, repeated content.
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Brands that have trusted Laika
The people who call us manage thousands of listings and need scale to add up instead of dilute.
You have hundreds of thousands of pages and not all of them deserve indexing
Without an indexing criterion, Google spends its crawl budget on empty or duplicate listings, and the pages that actually matter take longer to rank.
Too many listings look too similar to each other
When content barely changes from one listing to the next, the whole site risks losing authority to thin content at scale.
You compete with Google Business Profiles and with the listed businesses themselves
A business's own listing or its Google profile usually wins the branded search. You need to decide where the directory offers something those listings don't.
Categories and subcategories multiply without control
Every crossover of category, location and filter generates a new URL, and without a plan, half of them have no search volume to justify their existence.
User-generated content is uneven across listings
Reviews, photos and third-party data vary widely from one listing to another, and that unevenness affects which pages actually compete for ranking.
The scope
Doing SEO for a directory is a matter of scale managed with judgement. We decide which category, location and filter combinations deserve indexing, and leave out what only adds volume without adding ranking.
We work on category and location architecture, the indexing criteria at scale and content differentiation between listings that look alike.
Which capabilities matter here
In directories not every capability carries the same weight. These are the ones that hold visibility together when the site has hundreds of thousands of pages.
High weight
Search enginesThe base: which category and location combinations deserve indexing and which only consume crawl budget.
Medium weight
AI searchComparisons and recommendations that aggregate several listings at once, ground where a directory can offer something a single listing can't.
High weight
ConsultingDefining the indexing criteria at scale and reviewing it when page volume grows faster than search volume.
Social search matters less here than the indexing criteria, so we don't force it: if it starts moving relevant traffic, we'll tell you with data.
The areas of work
Four areas of work built to tame scale: first what gets indexed, then how it's differentiated, then the category and finally the listing versus the direct business.
Indexing criteria at scale
Make Google spend its crawl budget on the pages that can actually rank, not the ones that never will.
See the detail
- Search volume and minimum content threshold to decide which combination gets indexed
- Noindex and canonical management on empty, duplicate or inactive listings
- Periodic review of which indexed pages no longer bring traffic or ranking
- Crawl prioritisation towards the categories and locations with the most real demand
Content differentiation between listings
Stop similar listings from competing with each other for being nearly identical, and give each one its own reason to rank.
See the detail
- Listing templates with variable blocks by category, instead of a single repeated mould
- Using user-generated content (reviews, photos, data) as a real differentiator
- Grouping near-identical listings under a single page when they can't be told apart
- Enriching listings with the most potential traffic ahead of long-tail ones
Category and location architecture
Make the category, subcategory and location hierarchy reflect how people actually search, not how the database is organised.
See the detail
- Reviewing the category taxonomy against real search volume per term
- Which category-and-location crossovers deserve their own page and which get merged
- Internal linking between category, subcategory and listing to spread strength at scale
- Category pages with their own content to set them apart from a plain listing feed
Listing versus the direct business
Make the directory compete where it offers something the business's own listing doesn't, instead of fighting for branded search.
See the detail
- Identifying the searches where the directory wins against the business or its Google listing
- The directory listing's added value: comparison, filter or data the business doesn't offer
- Which branded searches aren't worth fighting for and how to avoid them in the content strategy
- The directory's own trust signals (verification, aggregated reviews) as a differentiator
Who does it?
The project is run by a senior profile with experience in large-scale sites and programmatic content architecture. MJ leads the strategy and the specialist team works indexing, templates and categories.
Why Laika?
We know the tension of a site where scale can be either your biggest advantage or your biggest penalty.
Indexing everything just in case doesn't work here. You have to decide which pages deserve to compete and leave the rest out with judgement.
You always talk to whoever decides
There's no management layer between you and the judgement. MJ leads the strategy and the specialist team executes.
If we're not the right fit, we say so
Even if that means there's no project for us, we'd rather say so before signing.
We decide what doesn't get indexed, not only what does
On a large-scale site, taking out of the index what doesn't add value usually moves more results than adding new pages.
We know when a directory can't win the branded search
Against the direct business or its Google listing some battles aren't worth it. We'd rather say so and focus the effort where there is margin.
Frequently asked questions
How do you decide which listings get indexed and which don't?
We cross real search volume, available content and listing activity. Whatever doesn't hit a minimum gets left out of the index or grouped with similar listings.
Don't we lose traffic if we stop indexing pages?
The opposite, usually. Freeing up crawl budget and removing thin content that dilutes authority usually helps the pages that do have volume rank better.
How do we stop listings from all looking the same?
With templates that vary by category and with user-generated content (reviews, photos, data) as a real differentiator between one listing and another.
How do we compete with the business's own Google listing?
We don't compete on the branded search, where the direct business usually wins. We look for the comparison or category searches where the directory offers something a single listing doesn't.
Tell us how many listings you manage
With your page volume, your taxonomy and your main categories we can tell you what deserves indexing and what doesn't.
Scale only pays off when it's managed with judgement.
Tell us how many pages you have and we'll tell you which ones deserve to compete for ranking.
We look at your project before proposing anything. Reply within two working days at most.
Let's talk about your project