Blog and/or Website Directories

I posted this to a thread, but I think it got lost there so I decided to start a new thread for this instead. Can someone or someones (not sure that's a word :) ) explain this a bit for me? What are blog directories? Are they the same thing as website directories? Why are the useful? Do they actually help bring traffic, increase rankings through backlinks, or both? Is there a list of these somewhere?

I know lots of questions. I really appreciate the willingness of the people here to answer my questions, even the most basic of them. Hopefully I'm helping someone else too, by asking things they also wanted to know but didn't ask for whatever reason.

Okay, I'll jump...I see no one has gotten here yet to answer your questions so I'll start. And probably by the time I get done with my words of wisdom several someones will have come in and answered.

Thank you for asking this question, Kathleen, because as you suggest, your question may help someone who didn't want to ask. :)

I'm not sure about the difference between website directories and blog directories; if there actually is any.

However, I do know a little bit about blog directories...and I would think the website directories would probably follow suit with the blog directories.

As you suggested, they are another great way to drive traffic to your site/blog and a way to get backlinks. Also, when your blog is listed at the directories, others in the same niche (or not) will see your blog and be interested in what you say. Who knows, a JV partnership might develop. Or someone might want to purchase what you're selling...if you are selling, etc.

I'm not sure if there is an actual list of blog directories...as in hard copy. However, I do know that if you Google (or whatever your favorite search engine is) "the name of your niche and blog directories" like so: dog blog directories, a whole listing of dog directories will materialize! :)

Good luck.

The biggest difference between regular directories and blog directories is that blog directories usually have some sort of social aspect to them whereas regular directories are static creatures.