Hotfrog
Private | |
Industry | Internet, online advertising |
Founded |
2006 Sydney, Australia |
Headquarters | Chatswood, New South Wales, Worldwide |
Area served | Worldwide |
Owner | Hotfrog Group Pty, Ltd. |
Website |
www |
Hotfrog is a commercial web directory providing websites categorized topically and regionally. Hotfrog's head office is located in Sydney, Australia but maintains directories in 32 countries worldwide and is present in 15 languages.
History and locations
Hotfrog began in Sydney, Australia in 2006 and was originally built by Reed Business Information (RBI) within its Australian subsidiary. In 2012 the Reed Business Information, who is now named Cirrus Media[1] along with Australian subsidiary along with Hotfrog was acquired by Catalyst Private Equity. In early 2015, it seemed the future of the Hotfrog business was unclear, with speculation it could be run down with the buyer shedding staffing and keeping overheads to a minimum.[2] In May 2015, Hotfrog was sold to a company called Hotfrog Group for an undisclosed value. This new group announced major expansions under their new management and plans to expand into new countries and categories.[3] In July 2015, the company became a Premier SMB Partner with Google across Australia.[4]
At its peak Hotfrog employed over 120 staff who built the platform, systems and technology to support revenue generation and its database. The company has one of the largest online business directories in the World. Hotfrog allows online search users the ability to find business products and services via the online business directory listings throughout the world. Hotfrog was unique in the fact that it allowed companies to submit free press releases for brand exposure and was the first American directory with over 2 million companies listed.[5]
Hotfrog has over 59 million business listings worldwide reaching 32 countries and 15 languages. Many search engines view listings in "high quality directories" as a valued citation.[6] Website owners report of submitting their sites to directories can increase their search engine listings.[7] Google's certainly encourages businesses to list themselves on directories such as Hotfrog to maintain a strong NAP (Name, Address, Phone Number) which will encourage their position in the local search results.[8][9][10]
Hotfrog offers listings for both non-commercial and commercial and sites, and places each site that meet their guidelines in its most relevant topic and location.
Paid Listings
Hotfrog allows site owners to purchase a Hotfrog Advantage listing. The paid listing feature allows companies to register their business and receive premium positions in the search results for a fixed fee.
See also
References
- ↑ "Reed Business Information Australia is set to be rebranded as Cirrus Media,". B&T. 2013.
- ↑ "Cirrus Media selling directories business HotFrog as revenues plummet". Mumbrella. 2014.
- ↑ "Hotfrog Announces Major Expansion Under New Management". 24/7 PR. 2015.
- ↑ "Hotfrog Becomes a Google AdWords Premier SMB PArtner". PR Web. 2015.
- ↑ "First American Folksonomy Business Directory with Over 2 Million Companies Listed". PR.com. 2007.
- ↑ Cutts, Matt (2007). How to Report Paid Links As an update to the post, Cutts addresses directories in the Q&A
- ↑ Sloan, Paul (May 2007) How to scale Mt. Google. Business 2.0: 54-55
- ↑ "Businesses Warned To Protect Themselves Against Google's Pigeon Dropping". Realwire. 2014.
- ↑ "The 5 Local SEO Factors That Matter Most". Search Engine People. 2014.
- ↑ "Easy ways to lift your net profile". News.com.au. 2012.