Cannot remember last time submitted...

I have an ecommerce website of my own, registered in 2001 and active in same category since then.

Not a ton of unique content in it, mostly because my category is mature with lots of legitimate qualified sites. There are only so many ways to try and sell goods online.

Our site is certainly a quality site with nothing poor or spammy. Quality items and solid, useful content for our users. My site, along with many other legit sites are excluded from DMOZ at this time.

Shopping>Jewelry>Varied Merchandise

However, I submitted my site many years ago (2005-2006) and nothing as of yet.

I also have a faint memory of submitting it in the last 6 months, but not sure. I may have just looked into it again????
And if not, when should one re submit a site? Never?
Anyway to find out when last submitted?

Also, I applied to be an editor in my category many years ago and was told no because it was a mature category. However, it is the category that I know very well. It is now several years later and still no editor????

Is there any way I can be an editor with a mentor or something? I know this category well, I have been in this niche since 1996 online and longer off line.

Or can someone make a suggestion of a place to start? I have no problems learning a new category. I live on the net and read tons of stuff all the time. Sure would like to put my obsession to good use!

Your thoughts?

At the end of 2006 we had a crash and lost most suggestions. If you haven't suggested your site in 2007 or 2008 you are free to suggest it again. If you can't remember if you suggested it after 2006 also feel free to suggest it once again. One extra suggestion won't be a problem.

If you want to become an editor a good place to start is reading the thread called
FAQ and General Advice About Becoming an Editor

Nobody expects uniqueness in "ways of selling merchandise". Basically, everyone on earth uses the same model: you give them money and they give you the merchandise. The number of people who use the internet AND barter, really isn't significant.

Every retail business is unique in the same way. With their own minds they select merchandise, with their own money they purchase and store it, with their own hands they deliver it to people who might actually use/consume it.

The uniqueness is the minds and hands at work together, because no OTHER retail business can call on those minds and hands to provide goods and services in exactly the same place and exactly the same way. All milk is the same--well, actually NOT--but only employers of Kroger's deliver any kind milk to the corner of Coit and Independence in my hometown. Therefore Kroger's is unique, even if the milk comes from the same cows.

And an e-business like Amazon is unique, not because they deliver to any particular street corner (the post office delivers books for anyone including me!) but because they have a warehouse of books where Amazon employees pick and pack my selections.

Any businessman will understand this. He'll be able to tell you exactly what is unique about the goods and services he and his employees/partners have together prepared and worked to be able to provide. But what some businessmen forget is, that same information needs to be on the website!

Update

pvgool,
Thanks for clarifying that I would not be spamming to submit again. I re-read and re-read the submission guidelines and I believe I submitted in the correct manner. At most, I have made three submissions in 8 years, one in 2006 or 2007 and potentially two in 2008, so I hope you are correct and my editor (which there is none) feels the same way.

hutcheson
That was a very thoughtful post and really helped me understand the thinking. I could indeed tell you why my site/business and value proposition is different (and superior of course) to my competition !

Regarding being an editor:

I have looked at my category, which is obviously my field of expertise, and according to my last rejection letter, you guys were wanting me to take on a smaller category. In jewelry at least, there are very few cats that have less than 50 as you suggest. And those are pretty far out of my field and I have none or very little knowledge of them.

I feel stuck, I would like to volunteer, but am conflicted by my lack of experience in the smaller cats.

Any suggestions or insight?

Michael

You could always take on another category in a completely different area first. Then when you've built up some experience you'd be able to apply for the larger jewellery categories.

The ODP doesn't just have business categories. Do you have any hobbies or sporting interests? Have you thought about editing a category in http://www.dmoz.org/Regional/ related to where you live or grew up?

Shopping/Jewelry/Varied_Merchandise has 201 sites. We've learned through experience that a category of that size is far too large for a brand new editor. But it is divided into subcategories by an alpha bar. That means that all of the subcategories have the exact same focus/subject matter, but that the sites are divided by their business name. You could select a subcategory which can be built up and apply. The largest subcategory is "J" - Shopping/Jewelry/Varied_Merchandise/J/ with 35 sites. Can you find 10 or 20 sites which start with an "A" or "B" or some other single letter or number and belong there?

If not, chaos127 has some excellent suggestions.

Just to be clear...

Glorida

I think what you are suggesting makes the most sense, I will apply for one letter of the alphabet (not J) that could use some help, I will concentrate on that and if and when I think I have completed that letter, then I can ask for another and another. I know this space and feel my experience will help me spot what's good and bad and so I would like to use that to everyone's benefit.

No worries, I won't start with G !

Michael