The Vortals Are Coming

By Bob McElwain
Posted Sunday, August 29, 2004

Actually, they are already upon us. Vertical directories may be the better name, but they are often called vortals (from vertical and portal). They are directories which focus in on a very specific target or niche. And already, there are directories and search engines to help surfers find the appropriate vortal.

Vortals and tools for finding them will increase in number and quality for the foreseeable future. And they will become increasingly comprehensive. Yahoo, the most significant directory available, makes no effort to "cover" the Web. A search for "home improvement" will bring up a lot of listings. However, Yahoo only wants a few appropriate to a given search term. On the other hand, a vortal focused on this topic seeks to bring up *all* related sites.

The continued popularity of directories stems largely from the frequency with which search engines return irrelevant listings. But the directories lack comprehensiveness. Thus the emerging popularity of Vortals. Surfers seeking complete information on a given topic will increasingly turn to vortals as viable options.

And in this evolving trend, there is opportunity. It may be exactly what you are looking for.

Niche Marketing Is A Must

Most now understand the merits of niche marketing. They understand success is unlikely unless the focus is tight and sharply drawn. (For some good information about this, click Topics in the navigation bar on my site, then on Niche Marketing.) But finding products that can be effectively marketed within a narrow niche is often more difficult. And producing your own may be impractical or unrealistic. Building a vortal is a viable alternative.

The Do-It-Yourself Vortal

Building a vortal is not unlike building reciprocal links to a website. It means finding sites that belong in your directory, and making a link to them. Then inviting them to link back to your site.

Those who choose not to link back may need to be treated differently than they would be on a website. That is, on your site, you might choose to delete a link that was not reciprocated. Given a directory in which you want to point to all possible resources related to your topic, you may need to retain the link for completeness.

Only minimal writing skills are needed. And there's no need for elaborate site design. People will want your information. Period.

The task is building links. The objective is to have every possible link of value. When achieved, you will find you have many times the number of links Yahoo can present for your topic.

What You Need

No special tools are required. You need only to find an appropriate set of keywords, then hit the search engines and find every possible site. Time consuming, yes. Difficult, no. If you would like some suggestions for finding keywords, send a blank email to mailto:keywordlot@sitetipsandtricks.com

You can bypass the search engines by using WebFerret. And in the process, save a good deal of time. For suggestions, send a blank email to mailto:buildlinks@sitetipsandtricks.com

Going First Class

Bob Massa, the guru in search engine positioning service, has opened up another exciting door. He is using HyperSeek to power the construction of a vast array of vortals. Nearly 2000 people have joined in. If this idea appeals, check it out at (http://www.searchkingportal4u.com/) Tools available allow you to build a very comprehensive website.

The Bad News

It's tough getting started with Bob's program. And the learning curve is very steep. Having a project of interest, I signed up and got far enough into the program to see clearly just how powerful it is. I also saw that it was not something that can be done properly in one's spare time. As other opportunities presented themselves, I had to let some things go, and Bob's Portal Partners was one of them. I regret it, really, for this approach works.

Getting started with anything new is often quite painful. You will find this true here. But if you begin with the tutorial and work on determinedly, things do begin to make sense. To be honest, many will falter, then quit. Success requires time and above all, persistence. However, it is all quite workable.

The Good News

The forums are very helpful. In fact the thing I miss most is the really neat people involved in Bob's program. They shine through brightly in the forums. They will help with everything from technical support to strategy and marketing. And there is lots of help specifically for beginners.

Options

Bob offers two levels at which you can participate. One offers a free website. The other offers more power, but costs $40/month. In considering the free option, do not get it mixed up with typical free hosting services such as geocities.com.

Suppose you've decided upon "home improvement." If this name is available within Search King, the URL would be homeimprovement.searchking.com in the free version. Bob has assured me that many using this structure are doing great with the search engines, something nearly impossible to do at geocities.com.

However, I recommend getting your own domain name, as in homeimprovement.com This will cost you $40/month to use Bob's program. But if you can afford the bucks, this is the way to go. Your own domain name adds credibility to your site. It also makes it portable, although it's unlikely you will ever want to abandon Bob's service.

Nothing To Lose And Lots To Gain

Building a vortal on your own or doing it through Bob's program is a great idea. It will have particular appeal for those who have identified a niche, but have not yet figured how to conquer it. Having worked at generating link swaps, I personally would choose Bob's program. The tools available are awesome, thus you can get further much faster.

You do not need any products or special expertise in your area of interest to get started. As your site evolves, ideas for expansion will emerge. You will find products and/or services you can provide, in addition to the directory itself. You may even find a product you can produce. Meanwhile, you will be working in an area of interest and learning more about it every day. Thus this is a grand road to expertise.

A common approach to starting a website is to do so in addition to a full time job. This works well in building a vertical directory. You can not progress as quickly in two hours a day as you can working full time, but you can build. Add ten links a day, and you will have 300 in a month, 3600 in a year. Once you get the hang of it all, this is a perfectly reasonable goal. And there is no limit to where you can go from such a beginning.

About the Author
Bob McElwain
Want to build a winning site? Improve one you already have? Fix one that's busted? Get ANSWERS. Subscribe to "STAT News" now! mailto:join-stat@lists.dundee.net

Web marketing and consulting since 1993
Site: (http://sitetipsandtricks.com)
Phone: 209-742-6783