Are you looking to put your business into a Free Online Business Directory?
Whether you are looking to register your business online locally, nationally or are wanting to build free back-links for SEO, you need to know which NZ online directory sites to put resources into. We found out, to save you time!
In 2014, I searched for the best free online New Zealand directories to enter a client’s site on to. (See NZ directory review site for the list I followed - thanks, Sheldon)
It was a drawn-out process with many annoying clunky and quite frankly unworthy sites to pick from, but I persevered. Now I have decided to list the ones that have actually produced real traffic results after 1 year. And just how little might surprise you!
Here is our list of the top online directory sites in NZ by traffic volume, but keep in mind these are results are out of 10,000 unique users to the site over that time period and also that the site was a national clothing brand and not a local business. (This might be important as some of these directories are set up specifically for local business listings)
Also check out - How to Use Relevant, Targeted Directories for Link Building
RED HOT SEO TIP - If you want to know which NZ online business directory may be best for your site. Look for the ones that appear in the search results you want to rank for. Try starting from there. Don't forget to fill out all the fields!
List of The Top FREE Online NZ Directories (In highest traffic order):
Firstly you must.. must... MUST be on Google My Business free listings to be included in search and maps etc Google Business >>
Directory Unique user - % share - Comments on NZ online directory sites
- nzs.com 30 55.56% *(Update: No Longer Free)
NOTE: Since this was published NZS has now moved to a paid directory $175 per year - hotfrog.co.nz 7 12.96%
Hotfrog is the largest global online business directory for small businesses. Spend lots of time filling this one out fully - nzsearch.co.nz 7 12.96%
Solid & stable in recently revamped - localist.co.nz 4 7.41%
This is an up and comer - looks promising - A must for restaurants and bars - nzwebseek.co.nz 3 5.56%
Will suit some businesses more than others - finda.co.nz 2 3.70%
Surprisingly poor for a Yellow Pages (owned) free spin off. We think they are having trouble with the word FREE listing for their yellow pages which they still charge too much for! - zenbu.co.nz 0
- Yalwa 0
- Zipleaf 0
- Gopher 0
Don't forget to register your site with Bing Webmaster
- DMOZ (is now closed)
- business me (No longer FREE)
- yelp
- Search New Zealand
- Index NZ: The search engine for New Zealand
Specialty NZ Tourism Directories:
- TripAdvisor - World's Largest Travel Site. 435 million+ unbiased traveller reviews. Search 200+ sites to find the best hotel prices.
- Tourism - New Zealand Tourism Guide provides 1000's of New Zealand tourism, travel and holiday options including NZ accommodation, attractions, tours and transport.
- Book Me - Find Deals and Book Activities, Attractions, Restaurants and more awesome things
to do in NZ
New top 10 NZ directories we are testing based on domain authority
| 1 | Brownbook |
| 2 | |
| 3 | Factual |
| 4 | Google Local |
| 5 | HotFrog |
| 6 | WhitePages |
| 7 | Foursquare |
| 8 | Yellow |
| 9 | Cylex |
| 10 | TripAdvisor |
| Additional Directories | |
| 11 | Apple maps |
| 12 | Yelp |
| 13 | BusinessMe |
| 14 | Finda |
| 15 | Fyple |
| 16 | Gopher |
| 17 | Localist |
| 18 | NZ Directory |
| 19 | NZS |
| 20 | SearchAuckland |
"A Local Citation is where your company is mentioned on other websites and places found on the Internet. Local citations are used heavily in helping you to rank in local search results."
Top 100 business directories Australia & New Zealand for travel websites
| Domain | Authority | |
| 1 | facebook.com | 100 |
| 2 | linkedin.com | 100 |
| 3 | tripadvisor.com | 95 |
| 4 | foursquare.com | 93 |
| 5 | lonelyplanet.com | 89 |
| 6 | theknot.com | 88 |
| 7 | here.com | 87 |
| 8 | tripadvisor.com.au | 86 |
| 9 | yellowpages.com.au | 84 |
| 10 | asiaone.com | 83 |
| 11 | newzealand.com | 82 |
| 12 | whitepages.com.au | 79 |
| 13 | tripadvisor.co.nz | 75 |
| 14 | infobel.com | 71 |
| 15 | budgettravel.com | 69 |
| 16 | factual.com | 69 |
| 17 | isic.org | 69 |
| 18 | 2findlocal.com | 67 |
| 19 | aucklandnz.com | 67 |
| 20 | opencorporates.com | 66 |
| 21 | brownbook.net | 64 |
| 22 | airbnb.com.au | 63 |
| 23 | truelocal.com.au | 63 |
| 24 | whereis.com | 62 |
| 25 | ibegin.com | 62 |
| 26 | trip.com | 62 |
| 27 | wordofmouth.com.au | 61 |
| 28 | inspirock.com | 60 |
| 29 | startlocal.com.au | 59 |
| 30 | trover.com | 58 |
| 31 | yelp.com.au | 56 |
| 32 | worldweb.com | 56 |
| 33 | dlook.com.au | 53 |
| 34 | tourism.net.nz | 53 |
| 35 | hotfrog.com.au | 52 |
| 36 | localsearch.com.au | 52 |
| 37 | lacartes.com | 52 |
| 38 | hamiltonwaikato.com | 51 |
| 39 | christchurchnz.com | 51 |
| 40 | street-directory.com.au | 50 |
| 41 | arrivalguides.com | 47 |
| 42 | dcfever.com | 46 |
| 43 | cylex.com.au | 44 |
| 44 | aubiz.org | 43 |
| 45 | shijiebang.com | 43 |
| 46 | aussieweb.com.au | 43 |
| 47 | find-us-here.com | 43 |
| 48 | tuugo.biz | 42 |
| 49 | whodoyou.com | 42 |
| 50 | localbd.com.au | 42 |
| 51 | yalwa.com.au | 42 |
| 52 | triphobo.com | 42 |
| 53 | iglobal.co | 41 |
| 54 | w3lookup.net | 41 |
| 55 | dartstables.com | 41 |
| 56 | australianplanet.com | 41 |
| 57 | wowcity.com | 41 |
| 58 | lekkoo.com | 40 |
| 59 | localbusinessguide.com.au | 39 |
| 60 | fyple.biz | 38 |
| 61 | vipcars.com | 38 |
| 62 | aroundguides.com | 38 |
| 63 | alps2ocean.com | 38 |
| 64 | siteglimpse.com | 38 |
| 65 | ohorse.com | 37 |
| 66 | indexnz.com | 37 |
| 67 | superpages.com.au | 36 |
| 68 | australianguide.net | 36 |
| 69 | nationaldirectory.com.au | 36 |
| 70 | bloo.com.au | 36 |
| 71 | local.com.au | 36 |
| 72 | zenbu.co.nz | 35 |
| 73 | localist.co.nz | 35 |
| 74 | nzonline.org.nz | 34 |
| 75 | adbmag.com.au | 33 |
| 76 | bisnzz.com | 33 |
| 77 | localstore.com.au | 32 |
| 78 | everythingqueenstown.com | 31 |
| 79 | rruu.com | 31 |
| 80 | truenz.co.nz | 31 |
| 81 | imprintmytravel.com | 30 |
| 82 | riding-vacations.info | 30 |
| 83 | viewauckland.co.nz | 29 |
| 84 | muriwaibeachhorsetreks.co.nz | 28 |
| 85 | touristinspiration.com | 28 |
| 86 | pinkpages.com.au | 27 |
| 87 | localwildfoodchallenge.com | 27 |
| 88 | ride77.com | 24 |
| 89 | waimakriverridingcentre.com | 24 |
| 90 | ftaarea.com | 23 |
| 91 | southerntravelholdings.com | 23 |
| 92 | lategetaway.com | 21 |
| 93 | placesmap.net | 21 |
| 94 | songshuyule.com | 20 |
| 95 | portal-nz.org | 20 |
| 96 | solidbusinessnz.com | 20 |
| 97 | nzlbusiness.com | 20 |
| 98 | mylittlestylefile.com | 19 |
| 99 | nzbridleways.info | 19 |
| 100 | placereference.com | 18 |
| 101 | nzbusinesslist.com | 17 |
| 102 | glenorchy-nz.com | 17 |
| 103 | zoohara.com | 16 |
| 104 | nzbusinessdb.com | 15 |
Local SEO results: Business to Business
The example above is for NZ website targeting B2C (Business to Consumer) So what about Local SEO?
We have run the same Google analytics to 2 other Christchurch Local based websites to get the rub on what happens when you apply this to local business. But these results should be ( with a couple of exceptions be applicable to Wellington Auckland or Dunedin and other NZ cities.
Business Directories Example: 1
Local Business to Business (March to July 2015)
Local SEO is when websites are marketing to other businesses in their local area
Best B2B Directories
- 1. Business Me
- 2. NZS
- 3. Yellow
- 4. Yelp
- 5. Finda
Best B2B Social Media traffic
- 1. Linked In
- 2. Facebook
- 3. Google Plus (results will vary depending on business types and profiles)
- directory $175 per year & NOTE: Since this was published NZS has now moved to a paid Business Me is no longer free either. (At these volumes you would have to ask why bother!)
Free Online Directories - Example: 2
Local SEO - Business to Consumer
Referral traffic results (Mar to Jul 2015)
Businesses who are marketing to consumers in their local city or neighbourhood
- Best B2C Directories 1. Yellow Pages 2. Business Me 3. NZS 4. Index (Not listed above)
- Best B2C Social Media traffic 1. Facebook 2. Google Plus 3. Linked In (results will vary depending on business types and profiles)
- NOTE: Since this was published NZS & Business Me have now become paid directory sites
Latest top 20 best referral traffic sites
Latest Data (27 April 2016) suggest more changes with NZS dropping right out of contention as they move to a paid only model.
SUMMARY
- Yellow Pages (which weren't included in the 2014 results) is worth listing your website on.
- Yelp is picking up as well.
- We have put a bit of time into Foursquare profiles and haven't had a result yet which is also interesting.
We hope this data can be useful as a guide of where the best place is to start to try and build referral traffic to your websites. Always test your own data as there are many variables to account for and things change very rapidly. Good Luck! and please contact us if you have any questions or leave a comment below if you have something to add.
Further reading
Is Local Directory Traffic On The Rise Again?
Is it time to give local directories a higher priority as you plan your search marketing strategy? Read more>>
Please leave comments below 🙂
Need help with directories and SEO?
Velocity Websites can help increase your online visibility and traffic volumes. Contact us today.
Contact UsWhether you are looking to register your business online locally, nationally or are wanting to build free back-links for SEO, you need to know which NZ online directory sites to put resources into. We found out, to save you time!
In 2014, I searched for the best free online New Zealand directories to enter a client’s site on to. (See NZ directory review site for the list I followed – thanks, Sheldon)
It was a drawn-out process with many annoying clunky and quite frankly unworthy sites to pick from, but I persevered. Now I have decided to list the ones that have actually produced real traffic results after 1 year. And just how little might surprise you!
Here is our list of the top online directory sites in NZ by traffic volume, but keep in mind these are results are out of 10,000 unique users to the site over that time period and also that the site was a national clothing brand and not a local business. (This might be important as some of these directories are set up specifically for local business listings)
Also check out – How to Use Relevant, Targeted Directories for Link Building
RED HOT SEO TIP – If you want to know which NZ online business directory may be best for your site. Look for the ones that appear in the search results you want to rank for. Try starting from there. Don’t forget to fill out all the fields!
List of The Top FREE Online NZ Directories (In highest traffic order):
Firstly you must.. must… MUST be on Google My Business free listings to be included in search and maps etc Google Business >>
Directory Unique user – % share – Comments on NZ online directory sites
nzs.com 30 55.56% *(Update: No Longer Free)
NOTE: Since this was published NZS has now moved to a paid directory $175 per year
hotfrog.co.nz 7 12.96%
Hotfrog is the largest global online business directory for small businesses. Spend lots of time filling this one out fully
nzsearch.co.nz 7 12.96%
Solid & stable in recently revamped
localist.co.nz 4 7.41%
This is an up and comer – looks promising – A must for restaurants and bars
nzwebseek.co.nz 3 5.56%
Will suit some businesses more than others
finda.co.nz 2 3.70%
Surprisingly poor for a Yellow Pages (owned) free spin off. We think they are having trouble with the word FREE listing for their yellow pages which they still charge too much for!
zenbu.co.nz 0
Yalwa 0
Zipleaf 0
Gopher 0
Don’t forget to register your site with Bing Webmaster
DMOZ (is now closed)
business me (No longer FREE)
yelp
Search New Zealand
Index NZ: The search engine for New Zealand
Specialty NZ Tourism Directories:
TripAdvisor – World’s Largest Travel Site. 435 million+ unbiased traveller reviews. Search 200+ sites to find the best hotel prices.
Tourism – New Zealand Tourism Guide provides 1000’s of New Zealand tourism, travel and holiday options including NZ accommodation, attractions, tours and transport.
Book Me – Find Deals and Book Activities, Attractions, Restaurants and more awesome things
to do in NZ
New top 10 NZ directories we are testing based on domain authority
1
Brownbook
2
Facebook
3
Factual
4
Google Local
5
HotFrog
6
WhitePages
7
Foursquare
8
Yellow
9
Cylex
10
TripAdvisor
Additional Directories
11
Apple maps
12
Yelp
13
BusinessMe
14
Finda
15
Fyple
16
Gopher
17
Localist
18
NZ Directory
19
NZS
20
SearchAuckland
Brightlocal.com 10 Best New Zealand citation-sites
“A Local Citation is where your company is mentioned on other websites and places found on the Internet. Local citations are used heavily in helping you to rank in local search results.”
Top 100 business directories Australia & New Zealand for travel websites DomainAuthority1facebook.com1002linkedin.com1003tripadvisor.com954foursquare.com935lonelyplanet.com896theknot.com887here.com878tripadvisor.com.au869yellowpages.com.au8410asiaone.com8311newzealand.com8212whitepages.com.au7913tripadvisor.co.nz7514infobel.com7115budgettravel.com6916factual.com6917isic.org69182findlocal.com6719aucklandnz.com6720opencorporates.com6621brownbook.net6422airbnb.com.au6323truelocal.com.au6324whereis.com6225ibegin.com6226trip.com6227wordofmouth.com.au6128inspirock.com6029startlocal.com.au5930trover.com5831yelp.com.au5632worldweb.com5633dlook.com.au5334tourism.net.nz5335hotfrog.com.au5236localsearch.com.au5237lacartes.com5238hamiltonwaikato.com5139christchurchnz.com5140street-directory.com.au5041arrivalguides.com4742dcfever.com4643cylex.com.au4444aubiz.org4345shijiebang.com4346aussieweb.com.au4347find-us-here.com4348tuugo.biz4249whodoyou.com4250localbd.com.au4251yalwa.com.au4252triphobo.com4253iglobal.co4154w3lookup.net4155dartstables.com4156australianplanet.com4157wowcity.com4158lekkoo.com4059localbusinessguide.com.au3960fyple.biz3861vipcars.com3862aroundguides.com3863alps2ocean.com3864siteglimpse.com3865ohorse.com3766indexnz.com3767superpages.com.au3668australianguide.net3669nationaldirectory.com.au3670bloo.com.au3671local.com.au3672zenbu.co.nz3573localist.co.nz3574nzonline.org.nz3475adbmag.com.au3376bisnzz.com3377localstore.com.au3278everythingqueenstown.com3179rruu.com3180truenz.co.nz3181imprintmytravel.com3082riding-vacations.info3083viewauckland.co.nz2984muriwaibeachhorsetreks.co.nz2885touristinspiration.com2886pinkpages.com.au2787localwildfoodchallenge.com2788ride77.com2489waimakriverridingcentre.com2490ftaarea.com2391southerntravelholdings.com2392lategetaway.com2193placesmap.net2194songshuyule.com2095portal-nz.org2096solidbusinessnz.com2097nzlbusiness.com2098mylittlestylefile.com1999nzbridleways.info19100placereference.com18101nzbusinesslist.com17102glenorchy-nz.com17103zoohara.com16104nzbusinessdb.com15
Local SEO results:
Business to BusinessThe example above is for NZ website targeting B2C (Business to Consumer) So what about Local SEO?
We have run the same Google analytics to 2 other Christchurch Local based websites to get the rub on what happens when you apply this to local business. But these results should be ( with a couple of exceptions be applicable to Wellington Auckland or Dunedin and other NZ cities.
Business Directories Example: 1
Local Business to Business (March to July 2015)
Local SEO is when websites are marketing to other businesses in their local area
Best B2B Directories
1. Business Me
2. NZS
3. Yellow
4. Yelp
5. Finda
Best B2B Social Media traffic
1. Linked In
2. Facebook
3. Google Plus (results will vary depending on business types and profiles)
directory $175 per year & NOTE: Since this was published NZS has now moved to a paid Business Me is no longer free either. (At these volumes you would have to ask why bother!)
Free Online Directories – Example: 2
Local SEO – Business to Consumer
Referral traffic results (Mar to Jul 2015)
Businesses who are marketing to consumers in their local city or neighbourhood
Best B2C Directories 1. Yellow Pages 2. Business Me 3. NZS 4. Index (Not listed above)
Best B2C Social Media traffic 1. Facebook 2. Google Plus 3. Linked In (results will vary depending on business types and profiles)
NOTE: Since this was published NZS & Business Me have now become paid directory sites
Latest top 20 best referral traffic sites
Latest Data (27 April 2016) suggest more changes with NZS dropping right out of contention as they move to a paid only model.
SUMMARY
Yellow Pages (which weren’t included in the 2014 results) is worth listing your website on.
Yelp is picking up as well.
We have put a bit of time into Foursquare profiles and haven’t had a result yet which is also interesting.
We hope this data can be useful as a guide of where the best place is to start to try and build referral traffic to your websites. Always test your own data as there are many variables to account for and things change very rapidly. Good Luck! and please contact us if you have any questions or leave a comment below if you have something to add.
Further reading
Is Local Directory Traffic On The Rise Again?
Is it time to give local directories a higher priority as you plan your search marketing strategy? Read more>>
Please leave comments below 🙂
Need help with directories and SEO?Velocity Websites can help increase your online visibility and traffic volumes. Contact us today.Contact UsFREE WEBSITE AUDIT
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