The best thing I did for my company right before we launched was submit our web app to as many directories as possible. This really put us on the map! Within a few days we went from 15 beta users to 400. This got my entire team fired up to deploy the product as soon as possible.
My main objective was to be better ranked on Google. Not only were we better ranked within 2 weeks but a bunch of bloggers reached out to us asking for interviews.
I compiled a list of the best and easiest web directories you can submit your web app to. It should take 6-8 hours to submit your site to the entire list but it is totally worth it. I promise.
Top 4* Directories:
* Based on the total amount of traffic it brought me. Your experiences might differ.
The Rest:
- Killer Startups
- Listio
- Mashable
- Springwise – not a directory but if you “wow” them they will write about you
- CrunchBase
- StartupMeme
- 101 Best Websites
- LaunchFeed
- WebDev 2.0
- On The App
- DIY Startup New
- * Stumble Upon
- * Startups Sub-Reddit
- * Hacker News
- * Delicious
- * ProductHunt
- AppUseful
- Startup Booster
- Submit Startup
- Netted
- Minisprout
- Startuplift
- KickoffBoost
- Side Projectors
- The Startup Pitch
- Erli Bird
- Angel List
- Startup List
- Fire Spotting
- Web Menu
* Only submit if you have an active presence on these sites already. Best case scenario someone that has a ton of followers will submit your site for you.
Please note: I didn’t pay to submit my website to any of these sites. Feel free to skip the directory that asks you to pay.
Did this list work for you? Let me know in the comments.
Update 1 5/13/2011: Removed 2 non-working directories (thank you Christopher!). Added top 5 directories people should focus on.
Update 1 5/23/2015: Updated this listing based on request – thank you Ankit! Removed 3 non-working sites and added 8 more!
Great list. Took me 2 hours. I opened all the links in tabs at once and copy/pasted my pitch to all of them.
Great Idea Frank. You really streamlined things. My only suggestion is to make sure you personalize the submission by inserting the blog or editor name. Studies have shown that response rates increase when you personalize the email.
One more, maybe (I can’t figure out how to submit to it) http://www.appappeal.com/
Thanks Cooper. I can’t seem to find out where to submit to app appeal either.
Rishi,
Thank you for including us in your list.
Best,
Pranaya
Founder, StartUpLift
Hey Guys. Checkout this link: http://loudstartup.com – more awesome places to submit to.
http://www.appappeal.com/company/suggest/
Nice add. Thanks.
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Thanks for nice sharing
My pleasure.
Rishi,
Nice list.
Went through all of them. Two sites are not operating anymore: All Things Web2 an Cloudomatic
Also, you may want to add http://www.getapp.com/ to your list. We only deal with apps out of Beta and targeted at businesses. We are are very focused but deliver results!
Thanks
Thank you Christopher! I updated the list and added your directory as well.
How does your site work? People list their app and you get affiliate commissions?
Thanks for adding us. GetApp.com is a vertical marketplace for web-based business applications only. There is a small listing fee which is one way for us to qualify relevant applications. We do a product review for a lifetime listing, so vendors get an immediate return on their investment: http://www.getapp.com/blog/topics/review/
Once you are included in our directories, there is an option to run PPC campaigns which gives you additional visibility. Being listed starts here: http://www.getapp.com/users/register
Thanks again!
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Here is another good one: http://www.openforbeta.com/
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Great list, it helps me a lot in getting exposure for http://www.sidepon.com. Our team got more featured on more than half of the list.
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Great List, thanks for sharing ,will spend the rest of the day submitting our web app 🙂
David – I’m glad you found it useful!
I checked out your website: http://www.looplr.com. Anyone that reads this comment please checkout David’s awesome website – it is really cool!
If you want to maximize the number of conversions you get from the initial traffic boost I strongly recommend the following:
#1 Focus on one call-to-action. Currently you have five (Sign in with Twitter/Facebook/etc and Download on the App Store). What is the most important thing you want the customer to do? Login with Facebook or Download your app? I would pick one and take the rest out.
See my blog post on Instagram:
https://www.gettingmoreawesome.com/2012/06/05/instagram-growth-hack/
#2 Your service looks awesome but I don’t see an irresistible offer in the headline. Currently it is “Get in the Loop! Shoot, Share, and Watch Video…” Since you are a new web app “Get in the Loop and watching videos from the loop community doesn’t really make much sense to me – since I don’t know anyone that is currently on looplr. Something new that your service does that not many people do is “Shoot Video and Share It With Your Friends, Download the app now!” – I would focus on that.
Good luck with the app – I’m sure it will be extremely successful with a little more clarity and focus.
Hi Rishi,
Thanks for your feedback, constructive advice is always welcome, yes i agree with you. we should lazer focus on the core benefit to the user and how he will perceive the value of the product as it relates to him, thanks for giving me a nudge 🙂
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This list is long enough to make sure that app users will be directed to the right site. Thank you so much for sharing!
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Hi Rishi,
Thanks for this awesome list! We spent a lot of money on Google Adwords but we have learned the hard way the value of this kind of SEO.
Keep up the good work!
Rishi – Thank you for putting this list together. Great info! Some of the sites do charge small fees but I can understand considering the large number of submissions they get.
Thank you we got Vision Helpdesk http://www.thevisionworld.com Listed 🙂
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Good article..Please visit this site also..http://madonweb.com/ .Its really good for web applications
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Thanks for the list!
We’re off to get http://myrecordlist.com on the directories (our service allows people to list their vinyl record collections with a whole load of other helpful features)