Setting Up A Directory: My Adventures

[kristian]

Originally Posted by stuveltje

hya kristian and welcome back|cool| for 2 years already i am focussing on linksites, i have had several myself and sold them all on this moment i am making some new ones, and again i learned some things....one dont make them to big if you just start to make an linksite........i made that mistake myself again...its not only the submits you need in those categories but its also alot of work, when you start a linksite be sure you have the niches to get submits too, to get submits trade with other linksites submits pages and make you linksite known all around the world, keep your eye on the sponsors you use, i am very picky if an sponsor dont convert with in the 500 or 1000 clicks i will change it, it also ofcourse depends on the traffic you get, put a linkback for your own linksite on every free site you make, do cat linktrades.etc. i know i can put more here but on this moment its 12.39 after midnight here and i am getting to much a chinese old dutch lady, tomoorw i will try to give more input here of my own view

Hey stuveltje

There is so much good information in that one paragraph. Great ideas and information. This is so helpful for me and anyone else reading this who wants to start a link list. I think what I might start doing is like a Sunday Summary so we don't forget any of the info that's come up in the week. I can list all the juicy stuff that we should all either remember or write down.

On another note, your link lists are excellent. Must admit, I haven't seen those before, so I'm guessing they're your new ones. You have exactly the kind of surfer-oriented sites that I like. Clean design, intuitive interface, easy on the eye color schemes. Really like them a lot. Reason I mention it is because all I've been doing lately is looking at link lists.

Thanks for the ideas and your participation in this thread is going to be great.

[MrYum]

Originally Posted by kristian

You're a bad man LOL

Yea, there's a news flash

Stu is a machine! Whether it's building link sites or reviewing for a dozen link lists at the same damn time! The lady is amazing

Speaking of reviews...better get to em...

[bluemoney]

Hi Kristian
I wish you the very best in your endeavor and would also like to thank you for this most enjoyable and informative thread.
As a new LL owner myself this makes for a great guide with the input of some seasoned veterans of the biz and pretty damn good folks as well. So again, thanks for that and good luck

[amareck]

1) Awesome thread and should be a good contribution to the adult community as a whole $$

2) Are you enjoying the can o worms yet? Or perhaps its not a can o worms, but more like pandora's box

A couple of things I'd think about when setting up:

a) Ensure that you can target advertising properly - random banner rotations are ridiculous...kinda like rotating galleries with the descriptions really - hit n miss relevancy to the surfer. If you do want to run banner rotations, ensure that you can set it up with categorization or multiple installs to ensure that only targetted banners appear for each category

b) In addition to item a) above, ensure that you can quickly swap out sponsors performing poorly on your traffic

c) If possible, get yourself an LL platform that is extensible - plugins are good, but the ability to customize and manually plug in your own stuff is golden, especially when it comes to databases - being able to add custom fields for more page output & mass publishing is a very sweet thing

d) Templates & template support from a platform is good, especially a templating system that permits conditional statements and such

e) Make sure you can blend your CSS into it. This is usually a given but again, best to make sure.

Most link list software will cover these items in some form or other, but its best to be sure. They are also relevant considerations when configuring your link list. For example, if you hardcode category banners into your templates, you're gonna have fun editing them...whereas if they are ssi inserts or php/mysql generated, you'll have a much easier time of it.

GL with your endeavour

[kristian]

Hey bluemoney

Thanks a lot dude. I hope it helps you and I'm really excited with the way it's going myself. Lot of nice people here offering some great advice. Good luck with your LL!

Originally Posted by bluemoney

Hi Kristian
I wish you the very best in your endeavor and would also like to thank you for this most enjoyable and informative thread.
As a new LL owner myself this makes for a great guide with the input of some seasoned veterans of the biz and pretty damn good folks as well. So again, thanks for that and good luck

[kristian]

Originally Posted by amareck

1) Awesome thread and should be a good contribution to the adult community as a whole $$

2) Are you enjoying the can o worms yet? Or perhaps its not a can o worms, but more like pandora's box

A couple of things I'd think about when setting up:

a) Ensure that you can target advertising properly - random banner rotations are ridiculous...kinda like rotating galleries with the descriptions really - hit n miss relevancy to the surfer. If you do want to run banner rotations, ensure that you can set it up with categorization or multiple installs to ensure that only targetted banners appear for each category

b) In addition to item a) above, ensure that you can quickly swap out sponsors performing poorly on your traffic

c) If possible, get yourself an LL platform that is extensible - plugins are good, but the ability to customize and manually plug in your own stuff is golden, especially when it comes to databases - being able to add custom fields for more page output & mass publishing is a very sweet thing

d) Templates & template support from a platform is good, especially a templating system that permits conditional statements and such

e) Make sure you can blend your CSS into it. This is usually a given but again, best to make sure.

Most link list software will cover these items in some form or other, but its best to be sure. They are also relevant considerations when configuring your link list. For example, if you hardcode category banners into your templates, you're gonna have fun editing them...whereas if they are ssi inserts or php/mysql generated, you'll have a much easier time of it.

GL with your endeavour

I think the worms are on steroids!! lol

Those are some excellent tips. The choice of script has been one that's kept me up nights, I have to admit. Not only is it about features but I know the owners of one script (Dragon List) and have friends who are happy using other scripts. Makes the decision all the more harder. What I have pretty much decided though is to go with gossamer links. I will post more details about why later, but a lot has to do with other sites using it, plugins and gut feeling (much of the stuff you have mentioned).

Thanks for all your help so far - here and via email. I'll be contacting you today and, with your permission, posting all the juicy details.

[kristian]

A lot of juicy stuff happening today.

hosting ...

The new dedicated server is ready. I went for a package with my current host, ATCIHosting.

Type : Dedicated Server
BW : 10 Mbps
3.0GHz P4
512MB RAM
2x80GB SATA (SW Raid1)
Price : $349.95 / Month

The owner, Chris, is a great guy. Support is excellent. I think the server should be fine to get us started.

domain transfer ...

This will cause a slight delay, unfortunately. I decided to transfer the domain away from godaddy. After completing the process, their email tells me the transfer will complete on Monday. This is a shame because I had wanted to get the script installed and begin some hands-on work. Hopefully though, this will be seen as a good move in the long run.

design ...

The actual design cannot begin of course until the domain transfers to my new registrar. However, I'm going to use this time to decide on layout, possible color schemes, slogan, and whatever else comes to mind.

You remember the designer I had under consideration? Unfortunately, we will be unable to work together. No drama, just a natural conflict of interests. I made a promise to everyone reading this thread that I would disclose everything. The designer made a promise to the html design guild that he would not disclose prices to the public. There is our problem. Had I been able to publish his quoted price, I would have hired him this morning.

All is not lost. We have Amareck to the rescue!

Like most / all webmasters I am proficient in designing websites. What I lack are high-end graphic skills (like those clever cartoonists). The decision to use a designer would have been to implement designs beyond my abilities. Amareck, while not a professional graphic designer, is expert in CCS, with a specialty of implementing it in link lists. He was instrumental in transfering two popular link lists from html to css : feversfavourites.com and megapornlinks.com. If all goes well, Amareck will be the guy who gives MoveLinkList a complete css layout. The actual design will then be left to me (oh fuck!).

branding & logo

I may or may not hire someone to create a logo this weekend. It all depends on how my creative juices are flowing.

This is generally how I design a site.

I get the logo and open it up in photoshop. Using the color-picker I choose a color scheme for the site based on the colors in the logo. I always do it this way. Have tried it without a logo beforehand, but it never worked. To get me started I need that logo and the colors in it.

What I'll be doing today / this weekend is brainstorming a slogan and ideas for the logo. I'll then take this to a professional designer (possibly Bruno Dickman, if they are available).

There is no huge rush for this though. Script cannot be installed until Monday at the earliest anyway.

link list script ...

Am 99% sure I will be using gossamer links. Unless I change my mind, I will buy this and install it the moment domain has transfered.

Have a good weekend, All!

[MrYum]

Sweet...the nuts n bolts start soon!

Very enlightening having this play out in a public forum. And it's gonna be great watching your new baby grow up right here at GG&J

[kristian]

Originally Posted by MrYum

Sweet...the nuts n bolts start soon!

Very enlightening having this play out in a public forum. And it's gonna be great watching your new baby grow up right here at GG&J

You're obsessed with my nuts!

[Useless]

Honestly, as magnificent as it all sounds so far, you seem to have strayed away from the golden rule of webmastery. K.I.S.S. Or, as I like to say, K.I.S.C. - keep it simple cocksucker. The basis of a link list is such a simple thing. This isn't rocket surgery or brain science. Just make sure that when all is said and done, you haven't built a list where you yourself don't have the ability to toss shit around and edit on your own. A link list should't require a manual.

As you have your team of engineers and designers constructing your list, worry less about pretty - and more about the proper layout of the major aspects, such as paysite links, category link trades, and free site links. Study the big old link lists that have been around before anyone even knew what the F keys were for on their keyboards. Look for chaos and look for strategy - they're both there.

[kristian]

Originally Posted by Useless Warrior

Honestly, as magnificent as it all sounds so far, you seem to have strayed away from the golden rule of webmastery. K.I.S.S. Or, as I like to say, K.I.S.C. - keep it simple cocksucker. The basis of a link list is such a simple thing. This isn't rocket surgery or brain science. Just make sure that when all is said and done, you haven't built a list where you yourself don't have the ability to toss shit around and edit on your own. A link list should't require a manual.

As you have your team of engineers and designers constructing your list, worry less about pretty - and more about the proper layout of the major aspects, such as paysite links, category link trades, and free site links. Study the big old link lists that have been around before anyone even knew what the F keys were for on their keyboards. Look for chaos and look for strategy - they're both there.

I think it is pretty simple, UW.

I wanted one designer to design the site. He wont allow me to publish his prices. I've chosen another designer, instead, to give me the layout in css (based on my explicit instructions).

[Simon]

Originally Posted by Useless Warrior

Look for chaos and look for strategy - they're both there.

Not that we should hijack this thread into anything unrelated, UW, but someday we should do a thread about the value of chaos, and about intentionally creating what may appear to be (areas of) chaos.

Okay, back to this thread's focus.

It might be valuable to collect some opinions on things like where other LL owners choose to position their paysite links, free site links, link trades, where they put text addressing the surfer, how soon to show the first photo or large graphic elements. Personally I'd find it interesting if anyone wanted to share why they position their elements they way they do.

[kristian]

Originally Posted by Simon

It might be valuable to collect some opinions on things like where other LL owners choose to position their paysite links, free site links, link trades, where they put text addressing the surfer, how soon to show the first photo or large graphic elements. Personally I'd find it interesting if anyone wanted to share why they position their elements they way they do.

Those are the key considerations for sure. I second the motion for link list owners to share their thoughts.

I have my own ideas but will be sharing these at an appropriate time in the development of movielinklist. What I will say now, however, is there will be no advertising at the start. Bandwidth is cheap, but boomarkers, trades and content are priceless. One of my missions at the start will be giving my submitters traffic that has not been subjected to my own promotions and surfers will get clean pages to encourage bookmarking.

One of the promotion techniques I'll be using on the site, after the initial phase, is promotion that does not look like promotion. It is this technique that works well 24 hours a day, 7 days a week for me in other areas. I wont be inventing the wheel (other LLs use it) but it will form part of the process of phasing in advertising. It would be getting ahead of myself to say more now.

[PR_Tom]

This is a great thread and things like this are why I always recommend that affiliates looking for ideas stop in here and join in.

I'm sure there are dozens taking notes. I know I am

[kristian]

Originally Posted by PR_Tom

This is a great thread and things like this are why I always recommend that affiliates looking for ideas stop in here and join in.

I'm sure there are dozens taking notes. I know I am

It's great to have you in here, Tom

[Useless]

Originally Posted by kristian

What I will say now, however, is there will be no advertising at the start. Bandwidth is cheap, but boomarkers, trades and content are priceless.

Excellent. That's something MML has said to me in the past and I believe is something that he and GG do when they work a new project. First gain the love of the surfers, then work on marketing to them.

[massive-x]

I like this thread very much! I strted a topic on newbie part of this forum about developing my hub/site http://www.femdompornlinks.com to real, big, clean and HQ link list dedicated to only one specific niche! I just wanna try to get away from newbie mistakes and a few realy nice people show me some paths and light my way to the top Thanx guys
I'm sure that this thread will help me as it helping you!
I can't give you some advices about developing LL but I can give my contribution to it with submiting my free sites to your LL! I'll be glad to help anyone around here cose all you guys and girls ROCK!!!
Chears

[kristian]

Originally Posted by massive-x

I like this thread very much! I strted a topic on newbie part of this forum about developing my hub/site http://www.femdompornlinks.com to real, big, clean and HQ link list dedicated to only one specific niche! I just wanna try to get away from newbie mistakes and a few realy nice people show me some paths and light my way to the top Thanx guys
I'm sure that this thread will help me as it helping you!
I can't give you some advices about developing LL but I can give my contribution to it with submiting my free sites to your LL! I'll be glad to help anyone around here cose all you guys and girls ROCK!!!
Chears

Hey massive-x

You'll find greenguyandjim to be a great resource. I know I learn a lot here every day.

That LL of yours is looking good and that domain is sweet.

Thanks for the offer of the free sites. I can use all the good submitters I can get!!

Anyway - glad to have you in the thread!

[kristian]

SUNDAY SUMMARY

The project started on Wednesday (4/5/2006). A lot has happened in three full days. Not as much as I would have liked - due to the delay caused by transfering registrars - but enough to give me the idea in the shower for a Sunday Summary.

niche

I scanned the market comprised of webmasters using a link list as their business model. I sought out a popular niche that was sufficiently unsaturated to permit entry and feasible success : Movies. To gain search engine superiority, it would have been better (as Greenguy suggested) to choose a movie niche. However, I am happy to work long-term towards success, and the relative newness of movie free sites has me concerned about getting adequate content from submitters. So, the general movie niche!

domain

I wanted a domain that possessed inherent seo and branding benefits. The ideal domain would have been FreePornMovies(dot)com. However, the best combinations of keyword domains where unavailable. I could have gone with charactername(keyphrase), but decided such a name would lessen the overal prestige of the site (I want surfers to see this as the definitive site for porn movie links). I chose MovieLinkList(dot)com : A descriptive domain that should be memorable and easy to brand and one that I have owned for 2 years come August. It does lack, however, some seo benefits that may cause problems down the line (here I refer to anchor text in the all-important back links) but I am hoping enough trades will allow me to use keyword anchor text, as opposed to actual domain name. So, MovieLinkList(dot)com!

hosting

I went with my current host with whom I've developed trust.

ATCIHosting have top-notch support, a great reputation, and offer affordable deals for almost any budget.

I chose a new dedicated server to house Movie Link List. Here are the details :

Type : Dedicated Server
BW : 10 Mbps
3.0GHz P4
512MB RAM
2x80GB SATA (SW Raid1)
Price : $349.95 / Month

script

The choice for a script is more important than domain name. In terms of seo, domain names are losing relevancy, but not having the right engine behind a site can cause all kind of problems. I needed to choose the best engine to power my site for the long haul. I chose Gossamer Links v.3.0.1. I has all the features I need (surfer-side, webmaster-side, admin-side), a solid reputation, a long history (so I can almost gurantee it will be here in the future to provide addons and upgrades, keeping my LL abreast of directory technology), and I have a good gut feeling about it. So, Gossamer Links!

PLANS FOR THE COMING WEEK

A LOT will be going on!

This weekend I'm in photoshop designing the layout of Movie Link List. I will post these up when complete. My finished designs will be passed on to Amareck who is being hired to code the site - from the ground up - in CSS, based explicity on the designs. Amareck is the man behind the css development at fevers favorites and mega porn links. I want a CSS layout for tons of reasons but need a professional to code it for me.

When the domain has tranfered registrars, I will purchase Gossamer Links and install it. Amareck will them, should his schedule permit, code the site in css.

I've already contacted Dickman's Design about a logo. If they are available soon, and allow me to disclose our dealings (costs, logo development stages) here, then I will hire them.

Other stuff going on :

- deciding on categories (see my thread over here, which I hope will help me decide on a small category list, as per stu's advice)

- completing design of Movie Link List (to include everything with making the site complete in terms of graphics, layout, text)

- finding linking partners and submitters

- finding free hosted movie free sites & movie galleries

All the above should take us to where Movie Link List is up and operational.

Have a good Sunday!

[stuveltje]

nice pick the movie linksite way, i have one myself too, what i have done till now is only put some categories up where people can submit their moviesites, i skipt the niches like, bbw, midget, latina and some others, i have put those together in the fetish or misc niche, they will stay there untill i have enough submits for those niches to make an seperate categorie for it, what i did found out that moviesponsor sell worser for me on that linksite then normall sponsors, so yeah again i am still trying alot of stuff on those linksites
Good luck with your new linksite))))

[kristian]

Originally Posted by stuveltje

nice pick the movie linksite way, i have one myself too, what i have done till now is only put some categories up where people can submit their moviesites, i skipt the niches like, bbw, midget, latina and some others, i have put those together in the fetish or misc niche, they will stay there untill i have enough submits for those niches to make an seperate categorie for it, what i did found out that moviesponsor sell worser for me on that linksite then normall sponsors, so yeah again i am still trying alot of stuff on those linksites
Good luck with your new linksite))))

We will have to arrange some link trades, Stu

A low number of initial categories is certainly influencing the way I'm designing it ... for the best I hope though. Maybe we can work out the best way to convert traffic together. Will let you know if I learn any tricks.

[stuveltje]

Originally Posted by kristian

We will have to arrange some link trades, Stu

A low number of initial categories is certainly influencing the way I'm designing it ... for the best I hope though. Maybe we can work out the best way to convert traffic together. Will let you know if I learn any tricks.

Always will trade with you when ever you want, btw i am changing my list again ( like i damn always do with the lls i have, trying to do some seo on it and all and other stuff) oh and my linklist for movies is moviepornlist.com so you can check it out, back to reviewing here

[kristian]

Originally Posted by stuveltje

Always will trade with you when ever you want, btw i am changing my list again ( like i damn always do with the lls i have, trying to do some seo on it and all and other stuff) oh and my linklist for movies is moviepornlist.com so you can check it out, back to reviewing here

Thanks stu!

I will get back to you with a list of possible linking choices (index, category, submit) and leave it up to you to decide how you'd like to trade. Sweet domain (moviepornlist) and sweet site! I look at it though and it reminds me just how much work i've got ahead of me lol

back to designing ...

[kristian]

On the night before getting the script, believe it or not I'm having second thoughts on the choice of domain! lol The general consensus seems to have been for MovieLinkList(dot)com. Please help me decided between these two :

MovieLinkList(dot)com

and

PornMovieDirectory(dot)com

[MrYum]

See there...just when you think ALL your ducks are in a row, one of the lil suckers breaks ranks and runs for it!

Agreed, tough call on the domain choice...those are both excellent domains.

Given those two choices, I'd have to go with pornmoviedirectory. It just sounds more 'porny'