They have been around since the end of the 19th century and even today in the age of digitization they are indispensable: yellow pages. So one can truly speak of a successful model that has been around for more than 120 years and has found its way into the dictionaries of the most diverse countries.

If one speaks of the "Yellow Pages" in Germany, in the USA they are the so-called "Yellow Pages". Despite the fact that Google is constantly striving to increase the usability of its search engine and thus expand its own range of information via snippets, business directories are still justified.

They provide users with relevant data in compressed form as well as extensive research options. While the publication of business directories used to be reserved for larger organizations such as telephone companies, nowadays any website operator can set up and operate such a directory with the right software or a corresponding WordPress plugin.

But is such an undertaking worthwhile? The clear answer is yes, if you do it right. Business directory is actually an under-appreciated yet interesting way to make money online compared to affiliate marketing or selling e-books. You can find out why in this guest post.

For which sectors is it worthwhile?

Of course, you will not be successful with the plan to establish your own business directory if you choose the topic "doctors", "Travel" or "restaurants".

Here it is certainly difficult to assert oneself against the large and established providers and portals. Such a project is understandably quite risky and effort and money are not always in good relation to each other.

As so often in the field of search engine optimization (SEO), it is more likely to succeed by doing something "different" and "better". This includes, for example, choosing an industry that is less present on the web and in which there are numerous companies that do not have good visibility on Google. Or you specialize in a sub-sector.

The business directory is already firmly established in other countries as a passive source of income, but has not yet really caught on in Germany. This is an opportunity for anyone who wants to make money online with a blog or a website and wants to break new ground.

Of particular interest is the fact that a directory can be linked very well to other sources of income such as advertising, e-book sales or affiliate marketing , since one also benefits from additional streams of visitors regardless of monetization of the business entries as a vacation rental sites too.

Till Tauber