What Are The Steps If NO editor....

[ihelpyou]

is listed in the category that you are submitting to, AND, if you submitted a couple months ago with NO word one way or the other?

[newriver]

If a site has been submitted to the Open Directory, and after three weeks you have not seen it listed...

1.) Try emailing the editor listed in the category.
2.) If no response from them, or no editor is listed, go one category higher
3.) If still no response try the second line category editor.

I.E. In ODP most of the editors listed in second line categories would be able to help for any category below them in the category tree.
Ex: I am an editor for several second line categories, one of which is Business/insurance. I would most likely be able to respond to emails from people having problems with a category like Business/insurance/Agents and Marketers/Multi-Line/united States/Texas

My profile:
http://dmoz.org/profiles/tradman.html

[ihelpyou]

Okay. When emailing an editor about a submission, what is the minimum amount of information that you need to keep involving that submission?

Url? .. obviously.

What else do you need if anything?

[newriver]

If I were emailing an editor about a submission, it would look like this:

Dear editor <name>,

i am the webmaster for http://www.url, and have submitted the site for review in <category link>. As i do not want to be seen as spamming the open directory, I wanted to send you a quick note to see if you have had a chance to review it, and to see if there was anything I could do to answer any questions you may have about the site. The submission date was about three weeks ago, and as i realize you are a volunteer, i didn't want to make anymore work for you by submitting it again if it was innappropriate for the category.

i appreciate the time you spend for our business' in <category link> building the directory, and i would sincerely appreciate it if you could send me the quickest reply as to whether or not we can be listed, it would mean a lot to our business.

thanks again, i sincerely appreciate your time,
<signature>
<url>

That would just be my style of letter, but it seems to work from what I hear ;)

[newriver]

If i were emailing an editor a few categories higher up:

Dear editor <name>,

I am the webmaster for http://www.url, as i realize you must get quite a few of these emails, i am asking for some help. We have submitted our site for review in <category link>, which may have an inactive editor, (or no editor listed). if you can find the time, we would sincerely appreciate it if you would let us know if our site would be appropriate for this category. We are holding off on submitting the site again from three weeks ago as we do not want to be seen as attempting to spam the ODP, we realise you must have enough work already as a volunteer.

If you can find the time to send us a quick email reply, we would sincerely appreciate it. Any recommendations would also be seen as helpful.

thanks again for your time,
signature

url
category link again


The bottom line is make it nice, and make it easy for them to click your url, and the category link to go look.

[ihelpyou]

Thanks for the real good info tradman! The example letter is great!

If they do not respond to a letter like that, then what do you do? Keep submitting once a month?

[newriver]

I'd try the letter with different editors before continuing to submit sites...the last thing you want to happen is be seen as spamming the directory. After trying the editor with every editor from the cat in ? on up, then try submitting again.

[ihelpyou]

I know these are the basics, so thanks for bearing with me and replying with good info.

This thread will help many others also!

This is a very vague question with NO right answer but, how long does it usually take the editor, on average, to reply back to a letter such as the one above?

This is tough to judge as you do not want to seem like you are spamming them thru email either, but yet, need to get some kind of answer.

Just seems to me they should have better ways in place to list legitimate, highly relevant web sites.

[MsSearch]

Originally posted by tradman
If a site has been submitted to the Open Directory, and after three weeks you have not seen it listed...

1.) Try emailing the editor listed in the category.
2.) If no response from them, or no editor is listed, go one category higher
3.) If still no response try the second line category editor.



What are second line categories?

[newriver]

A first line category would be Business, or Regional.

A second line category would be Business/Insurance or Regional/North_America

Third Line would be Business/Insurance/Agents and Marketers and Regional/North_America/United_States

[jimi_l]

I had this very question and it has been answered here somewhat. I composed a similar letter but sent it to the info link on the page as opposed to an editor directly. Do you think it prudent to send another??
BTW I got no reply at all from the first letter, not even a "sorry but your an idiot so we left you out" :)
Its going on 2 weeks since the letter and about a month since the submission.
Any other advice??

[newriver]

always send it directly to the editor..

Side Note to All: When emailing an editor on the Open Directory Project, NEVER CC: Staff.

Keep it casual, and between the two of you.

[Dom]

Why should it remain casual conversation, like just between the two of you? Shouldn't every legitimate inquiry be taken seriously? Why are we so scared of offending an editor? Obviously because they won't list us. If we put, CC: Staff, would the editor just delete our inquiry? Is that professional? I don't get it. Have they been that abused that they are that sensitive? Please explain, somebody because I just don't get it.

[ihelpyou]

Welcome to the forums Dom! :hi:

As with anything that is free, one must be very polite and considerate with email. Especially with ODP. The answer to this question:
Have they been that abused that they are that sensitive?
is a big yes.

[Farhan]

LOL Hey Doug! at least thats not the case with me!

Welcome to the forums Dom :cheers:

Well as an editor, recieving a straight or rather unpolite mail, will not make me to delete the listing. However, everyone knows that when you are asking something for free, being polite is the only cost!

[Sydney]

Uh,oh! Just broke the unwritten rules, I guess. I sent another email to an editor, and checked the "staff" box.

I know what you mean about no reply, Doug. I first applied 8/8, then again 9/9. I sent the editor an email 10/6 and was told not to re-submit or she would consider it spamming.

Since then I haven't heard a word, so sent another email today. If nothing happens now, I'll follow the advice here and go to an editor above her.

Thanks for the help. This is a great board.:cheers: