I see others in my field listing themselves in several categories...is that okay?

Of course - its NOT okay... I see that topic covered in FAQ's.

But I've tried twice in 2 years to be listed with DMOZ - to no avail. I feel it is possible that my initial website did not have enough functionality to be listed. However, after getting a brand new ($2000) website that is fully functional, beautifully designed, offers something new and interesting that other sites do not (a food gallery & blog) and submitting my listing in the single best category, following all of the procedures to the letter, I have still not been accepted.

Yet I see my competition being listed in not only a single appropriate category (Business:Hospitality:FoodService: Personal Chef) - but in many different categories pertaining to food in the DMOZ directory.

Its frustrating because I've tried to follow all the rules and not submit my site to more than one category. Yet I have to watch as my competitors seem to be breaking the rules and are getting ranked higher and higher on search engines....

I don't understand why I'm not being included in DMOZ directory, but lesser sites in my category are admitted with no problem.

The usual reason is that nobody has got around to evaluating your website yet. They will, but we can't predict when or what the outcome might be.

Also, when we do review sites, the cost, and perceived beauty are not factors. We consider the one thing you did not include in your laundry list: unique content.

Just to dispel some of the assumptions you have made

I see others in my field listing themselves in several categories

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Unless they are also editors they are not able to list themselves anywhere, only suggest their site be considered for inclusion.

Website functionality is not a reason for not listing a site unless the site is impossible to use/navigate.
'beautifully designed' - it could be designed by a 6 month old monkey for all it matters. Design is not a factor.
'new and interesting that other sites do not (a food gallery & blog)' Umm there are many 'food galleries' and blogs. What matters is what is contained in the gallery/blog - ie unique content.

my competitors seem to be breaking the rules

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The fact that sites are multiple listed is at an editors discretion, not the site owners, so the site owners may not be breaking any rules, stated or implied.

and are getting ranked higher and higher on search engines

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Sorry but thats a complete irrelevancy - we do not create a directory to aid with search engine rankings.

The category you are discussing is for Personal Chefs, have you read the description for the category? http://dmoz.org/Business/Hospitality/Food_Service/Personal_Chefs/desc.html
Unless you are a personal chef, it's not the right category.

Note that the Business branch does not subdivide below State level, but a site may also be listed in it's physical location in the Regional branch.

The description for that category states

This category contains websites for chefs who offer professional meal preparation in the home. Services may also include menu planning, grocery shopping, food storage and cleanup, in-home and wedding catering, or cooking classes.

Please submit your site to the most specific subcategory for the location where the service is provided.

Individual catering companies should be submitted to the appropriate Regional category.

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(Emphasis mine)

Submitters frequent submit their site to similar categories throughout the directory. That slows down a listing, because sites are actually listed as far "down" the category structure as possible. I suspect that few personal chefs (or doctors, or DJs, etc.) work internationally, so they wouldn't be listed in the top category. Assuming that someone is in the USA, it would be clear down at the state level. Say someone suggests the site to the top category in January. In February someone comes through and works on all the sites waiting in the state categories. But they don't have permission for the top, so it still sits and waits. Finally in March someone works on the top category, but doesn't have time to work on the individual sites, so they are moved to the correct categories, but still have to wait on someone to work on that specific state. We move sites to the correct categories, but it can really slow down the listing. Those "lesser" sites which have been listed may have been waiting for longer than you have, or they might have been listed more quickly because they suggested their site to the correct category in the first place.

We also rarely list the "best" site for a category before "lesser" sites, because that would involve evaluating every site eligible for a category, both suggested and not suggested, then rank them. If we find a site adds value to a category, we just add it.

BTW, our Guidelines don't say anything about how much a site cost or if it is beautifully designed. I've listed some pretty dreadful looking sites, some with fair to poor navigation - I could get around, but things could be easier. We list sites with unique content to contribute to the category. If you can get to the unique content, it counts, even if it looks like a color-blind person on a bad drug trip designed it. Take a look at some of the personal web page categories sometime.

Someone with a local business presence can also suggest a site once to their locality. If you live in say Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, it would be suggested to Regional/North_America/United_States/North_Carolina/Localities/K/Kitty_Hawk/Business_and_Economy/.

I hear you loud & clear, but feel the waters are still murky...

To answer some of the responders questions:

1. I am a personal chef, so yes, I am in the right and best category for my website.

2. I do have unique content - a food gallery with photographs of my ACTUAL food that are ACTUALLY taken by me, and that are not stock photos, IS not only rare but nearly non-existent. Food blogs by personal chefs are also nearly non-existent, as its something the personal chef community has not caught on to. Keep in mind, that we all do exactly the same job, so having truly 100% unique content would be next to impossible, but I feel I have a very unique site with something to offer.

3. Higher ranking on Google - Sorry, but it does make a difference to be listed with DMOZ. When I questioned local Personal chefs in the top 2 spots on google, they personally told me that their google ranking went UP shortly after listing with DMOZ. Why else would so many people want to be listed in your directory? All the links back push a website's ranking higher on google.

4. I have obviously assumed a lot of things about the sites you accept vs. the ones you don't accept. You've made it clear that content is the only real consideration - not functionality, design, or quality of the site. Part of these assumptions I made because there is nothing written on the submission guidelines about WHY one site is chosen over another.... thereby leaving the submitter to make assumptions. I've learned a lot just by reading these forums, and would love to see some of this information available to those submitting a site. (this link was not made available to me until I tried to become a volunteer editor)

5. One more question if anyone is willing - I see my competitor listed on DMOZ. We both submitted our sites 2 years ago - and his was listed with your directory within a few weeks. He has no original content compared to my site, or even other sites that offer personal chef service. In fact, my competitor and myself were friends from the beginning, and we consulted with each other to determine what content to put in our sites. I added a personal chef blog, as well as a food gallery to make my site unique - yet it was his site that was added. Imagine how frustrating to see him listed, yet I am not - even though I helped him design his site@!@!

When I inquired about being a volunteer editor for personal chefs, I was told that the personal chef category is already "Fully Represented". But if this is true, then how is it possible that someone may not have read my site yet in the past 2 years, but read my competitor's site in 2 weeks and listed it? And if they read it and didn't list it, there is no way to know... perhaps a simple e-mail saying, "Sorry we didn't include your site in DMOZ. Please don't resubmit." or something to that effect? At least people would know...


I think its important to recognize that DMOZ is a free service, is not a search engine, and is not required to do anything for anyone. I do get that after reading these forums! But without access to these forums, or this information, most people will probably NOT get it!! That is why you are hearing repeated frustrations from those who visit here, and want to know why they are not being listed, or why it is taking so long etc.

Small business owners like myself really need places like DMOZ to support us. Otherwise - we get swallowed up by the big corporations who have $$$$$ to list themselves on google in the top spot. (pay per click etc.)

Keep in mind that small business owners would also like to support communities like DMOZ....which is why I would like to become an editor!

I am a personal chef, so yes, I am in the right and best category for my website.

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If you mean http://dmoz.org/Business/Hospitality/Food_Service/Personal_Chefs/ then this is not itself a suitable category. As explained above, you need to find the most suitable sub-category for your geographic location.

Keep in mind, that we all do exactly the same job, so having truly 100% unique content would be next to impossible, but I feel I have a very unique site with something to offer.

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Since you are the only person that offers the personal services that you offer, then a site that describes your own services will be fine. Since no-one else will be describing your services, it should be easy for you to pass our uniqueness test. If your site does as you say, I'd interpret any non-listing not as a sign of rejection, but just as a sign that no-one's reviewed the site yet. We get a lot (and I mean a lot) of suggestions from the public. Naturally it takes a long time for one of our volunteer editors to get round to some of them.

Higher ranking on Google - Sorry, but it does make a difference to be listed with DMOZ.

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On ODP listing may well make a difference to your site, but (harsh as it may sound) that's not really our concern. We're here to build a directory of useful links for surfers, and the google ranking of sites pays no part in our decision-making processes.

I've learned a lot just by reading these forums, and would love to see some of this information available to those submitting a site. (this link was not made available to me until I tried to become a volunteer editor)

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It's unfortunate that some of our public-facing information is not getting certain messages across to the right people at the right time. It's something that I would very much like to improve, but unfortunately editors currently don't have direct access to many of these pages. That said, it's amazing the people who obviously haven't followed the link on the site suggestion page to http://dmoz.org/add.html or haven't bothered to read and understand its contents before suggesting their site(s).

When I inquired about being a volunteer editor for personal chefs, I was told that the personal chef category is already "Fully Represented".

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Assuming you applied to the category I linked above, I'd look to the other half of the sentence that phrase was in -- the bit that said the category was too big for a new editor. It contains 284 sites, and as the page before the application form says:
"Your chances of becoming an editor are greater if you apply for a small, underdeveloped category to start (generally categories with less than 100 sites)."

I think its important to recognize that DMOZ is a free service, is not a search engine, and is not required to do anything for anyone.

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More importantly it's purpose is not to offer any sort of service to webmasters. The aim of the directory is to serve surfers who may be looking for information. The fact that this helps website owners who have their sites listed is more or less incidental to our objectives.

chaos127 why arn't you an editor, you like know everything lol xD

Um, chaos127 *is* an editor, a meta editor.

motsa said:

Um, chaos127 *is* an editor, a meta editor.

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Oh, does that mean they edit any section?