UBL.org Is A Joke (Universal Business Listing Reviews)

65 replies
If you're thinking to use their services to submit your client's website in different directories, might instead hire someone else to submit it manually.

They can't give you any reports at all that your site has been submitted to directories they promised.
They submit incomplete information to some directories.

In short, it's a waste of money.
#joke #ubl #ubl.org #ublorg
  • Profile picture of the author caryduke
    I 100% agree with this
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3343179].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author Dexx
    Agreed. Maybe they were good at one point, but I think they just pocked the cash now.

    ~Dexx
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3343257].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author SamyE
    hmmmm


    leaves room for some one else to step in and take the market.


    trick me once shame on you, trick me twice shame on me.
    Signature

    Samy Elashmawy Simple Sales Training
    Personal One on One Coaching, Training, and Consulting. Phone 201-467-4929 or Cell 201-926-9412. And Yes, I answer my own phone. If I am on a call, please leave a message and I will personally get back to you!

    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3343276].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author marketingva
    I haven't had that experience. It is not the fault of UBL that incomplete information is in some directories. The directories cut off the fields or don't include certain fields that were pushed to them. No directory submission service is perfect. You need to go to each of those directories, claim the listing and fine tune the information.
    Signature

    Magic Wand Author Services helps writers polish their manuscripts and connect to readers.
    http://www.mwauthorservices.com

    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3343683].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author JoeCool
      "UBL.org Is A Joke"


      Agreed!


      ~ JoeCool
      Signature

      My Favorite Charity .:: www.Unitus.com ::. Helping Third World Entrepreneurial Families Help Themselves.

      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3344544].message }}
      • Profile picture of the author Darren Critchley
        Yes I agree, absolute rip off.
        I had mixed emotions when signing up a client of mine in Canada. I signed them up in September and by January, my client had not received the verification phone call from them.

        I talked to someone in live chat, who said the next run was days away and that we would get a call.

        That date came to pass, so back to live chat I went. I pretty much told the person on the other end that they had taken my clients money in September and done nothing, that I would never had signed up with them if I had known now what I knew. I mentioned that their name was pretty much mud in many forums. The operator got very defensive about their reputation.

        The operator then blamed Brad & Dunworthy as they are the ones that do the research. I got some more excuses and a promise that something would happen within the week. I left it at that, as there was no point in shooting the messenger, it would not have got me any further anyways.

        My client did get an email a week later saying that they had been verified and the first submissions were going out. I have no idea how to verify that these went out at all.

        So I would have to say, the service is unreliable, and unverifiable. Of course, I can only speak for the Canadian arm of this business, as that is the only one I have used. I know someone from Ubl.org has gone into forums, defending the company by saying the Canadian division is new, etc. For me this is a rip off, and if so much time had not gone by from when my client paid, I would have had my clients report this as fraud to their credit card company. Ubl.org flies the BBB label, but I doubt a report to there would be of any use.

        So anyone thinking of using this service, think twice, at least in Canada.

        Regards
        Darren
        {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3344607].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author philboy uk
      Originally Posted by marketingva View Post

      You need to go to each of those directories, claim the listing and fine tune the information.
      Isnt that like paying for a meal in a restaurant and then having to go into the kitchen, cook the food and clean the plates afterwards
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3347840].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author Chris Lagarde
    UBL seems to be worth the (currently) $30 from my experience with lots of different businesses, but ultimately, I can't say for sure. It's part of a total package I offer.
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3344625].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author Rob Richards
    I've had negative experiences with UBL as well, both for myself and for my client's websites.

    That's why I began offering the service in my signature. Confirmed, correct submissions with a 2 -3 day turnaround instead of 2-3 months.

    Keep me busy folks, I'm here to help =)

    Rob
    Signature

    Need Help With Your Google Places Results?
    Let Me Create 50/100 High PR Citations For You!
    Just $50/$100 - PM Me When You're Ready

    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3344678].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author Headfirst
      Originally Posted by Rob Richards View Post

      I've had negative experiences with UBL as well, both for myself and for my client's websites.

      That's why I began offering the service in my signature. Confirmed, correct submissions with a 2 -3 day turnaround instead of 2-3 months.

      Keep me busy folks, I'm here to help =)

      Rob
      Rob does great work. He's an efficient, cost-effective alternative to UBL
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3702414].message }}
      • Profile picture of the author wenwon
        What is Rob's URL?

        Originally Posted by Headfirst View Post

        Rob does great work. He's an efficient, cost-effective alternative to UBL
        {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3726928].message }}
        • Profile picture of the author wenwon
          for those that are interested, my firm is now submitting local listings ourselves. we're doing it manually and there will be full reports provided. if you're interested, please pm me.
          {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3890813].message }}
      • Profile picture of the author Rob Richards
        Originally Posted by Headfirst View Post

        Rob does great work. He's an efficient, cost-effective alternative to UBL
        Thanks Headfirst for the Kudos, I really appreciate that.

        Ok Warriors, it's pretty clear that many of you are looking for a viable, cost-effective alternative to UBL

        I'm here to help, so feel free to drop me an email...

        rmarketshare AT yahoo DOT com

        and I'll take care of what you need.

        Thanks

        Rob
        Signature

        Need Help With Your Google Places Results?
        Let Me Create 50/100 High PR Citations For You!
        Just $50/$100 - PM Me When You're Ready

        {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[4081353].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author Valeriu Popescu
    I agree, UBL disappoint me. Their lack of reporting it's a shame. I pay them since October last year and haven't seen a single results until now. A waist of time...

    Val
    Signature

    >>> Partner In Profits => Learn How To Find JV Partners and Super-Affiliates From Scratch!
    >>> Local Internet Marketing Services => We offer: Local Maps Submission, Internet Marketing Consulting, SEO and SMM services.
    >>> Internet Marketing Profits Secrets Revealed => Help You Start A Profitable Home Based Business On A Shoestring Budget.

    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3344994].message }}
  • I used them as well. They said they do NOT provide the urls that were created with this directory submission.

    I dont think I like them much either.

    WE need someone else to do this as well. Someone?????


    Tommy
    Signature

    Solving Multimedia Expectations. AppleCreekMedia

    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3345129].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author jig
      Originally Posted by www_retireonme_com View Post

      I used them as well. They said they do NOT provide the urls that were created with this directory submission.

      I dont think I like them much either.

      WE need someone else to do this as well. Someone?????


      Tommy
      Really? That's kind of ridiculous. I'm pretty surprised to hear that, actually.
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[4068500].message }}
      • Profile picture of the author Tess D
        Well, I was very happy with UBL originally, so much so that I entrusted a lot of my submission to them.

        I have a personal story with Localeeze regarding sales tactics and a lack of delivery. I agree they will likely be another UBL.

        I'm not thrilled with either. What I do like about UBL and feel is worth the $37 is that my customers DO show up on the in car navigation systems in a short time. Every thing else seems to take forever.
        {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[4074875].message }}
        • Profile picture of the author Rock Solid Links
          I'd like to chime in with my UBL experience. I registered my business in December 2010. It is now June and UBL has not managed to get me listed with a single source. I've contacted them a number of times over the past six months and am always told that the next round will be the one for me. I'm often encouraged by UBL to wait just a little longer and I will see hundreds if not thousands of listings. What a waste.
          {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[4075177].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author AdBankPro
    I have also had an incomplete experience with UBL. Signed up one of my clients, and after 60 days, I still had to reach out to axciom, localeze, etc. to establish basic citations...I'm glad I only wasted $30!
    Signature

    Phil Benham

    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3347893].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author winston
    I only used them once and had the same issue will never use them again.
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3347966].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author djenkins
      Good afternoon all. As the Director of Customer Support I would like to clarify our business model, product offerings and the value we bring for better understanding and expectations. Our primary value is depth of distribution, consistency of the information distributed and time efficiency. Although many of our sites do have public access there are some that do not such as navigation systems and 411DA, even if someone actually wanted to spend the hours manually submitting to all of these directories.
      We certainly do advise where listings are distributed as we outline in our site's distribution list however, as anyone in the listings space is already aware the challenge is that directories are not yet able to notify when they actually publish a business listing and hence, why there are a growing number of citation tracking/reputation management companies. With our modest fee for Standard offering this is not feasible to include.
      For U.S. market we have various package offerings that include claiming services, added social and blog sites, and video content for which we do include "reporting" such as credentials, links to the specified directories and profile information.
      We invite and expect anyone wanting to do business with us to review our FAQ's where we clearly outline the process and time line - we have nothing to hide.
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3349211].message }}
      • Profile picture of the author AdBankPro
        Originally Posted by djenkins View Post

        Good afternoon all. As the Director of Customer Support I would like to clarify our business model, product offerings and the value we bring for better understanding and expectations. Our primary value is depth of distribution, consistency of the information distributed and time efficiency. Although many of our sites do have public access there are some that do not such as navigation systems and 411DA, even if someone actually wanted to spend the hours manually submitting to all of these directories.
        We certainly do advise where listings are distributed as we outline in our site's distribution list however, as anyone in the listings space is already aware the challenge is that directories are not yet able to notify when they actually publish a business listing and hence, why there are a growing number of citation tracking/reputation management companies. With our modest fee for Standard offering this is not feasible to include.
        For U.S. market we have various package offerings that include claiming services, added social and blog sites, and video content for which we do include "reporting" such as credentials, links to the specified directories and profile information.
        We invite and expect anyone wanting to do business with us to review our FAQ's where we clearly outline the process and time line - we have nothing to hide.
        I feel your pain. Wow! I wonder how hard it is to manage crowd control like that. I would promote your service if there were a way for you to be able to report on the efforts your service accomplishes. Just an idea...
        Signature

        Phil Benham

        {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3349745].message }}
      • Profile picture of the author Drakuul
        Originally Posted by djenkins View Post

        Good afternoon all. As the Director of Customer Support I would like to clarify our business model, product offerings and the value we bring for better understanding and expectations. Our primary value is depth of distribution, consistency of the information distributed and time efficiency. Although many of our sites do have public access there are some that do not such as navigation systems and 411DA, even if someone actually wanted to spend the hours manually submitting to all of these directories.
        We certainly do advise where listings are distributed as we outline in our site’s distribution list however, as anyone in the listings space is already aware the challenge is that directories are not yet able to notify when they actually publish a business listing and hence, why there are a growing number of citation tracking/reputation management companies. With our modest fee for Standard offering this is not feasible to include.
        For U.S. market we have various package offerings that include claiming services, added social and blog sites, and video content for which we do include “reporting” such as credentials, links to the specified directories and profile information.
        We invite and expect anyone wanting to do business with us to review our FAQ’s where we clearly outline the process and time line – we have nothing to hide.

        Worthless smoke. This many complaints and rather than at least give the illusion that you are receptive and accomodating, you get defensive and excuse your service as not being able to afford to do it for such low fees.
        Well, obviously your service is newsworthy and well known, so offer what all these people are asking for as an option, bump the fee up a bit, and watch how many people bite. Letting people guess as to whether or not their money was spent wisely is just going to perpetuate the complaints.

        Like going to an auto shop for an oil change... you assume the oil was changed and you pay the $29 or whatever, and then go on about your business. Then you read in the papers later how the oil change shop is accused of NOT changing oil. Can't prove or disprove, but will you go back to the same place 3 months from now?
        {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3351937].message }}
      • Profile picture of the author Darren Critchley
        Originally Posted by djenkins View Post

        Good afternoon all. As the Director of Customer Support I would like to clarify our business model, product offerings and the value we bring for better understanding and expectations. Our primary value is depth of distribution, consistency of the information distributed and time efficiency. Although many of our sites do have public access there are some that do not such as navigation systems and 411DA, even if someone actually wanted to spend the hours manually submitting to all of these directories.
        We certainly do advise where listings are distributed as we outline in our site's distribution list however, as anyone in the listings space is already aware the challenge is that directories are not yet able to notify when they actually publish a business listing and hence, why there are a growing number of citation tracking/reputation management companies. With our modest fee for Standard offering this is not feasible to include.
        For U.S. market we have various package offerings that include claiming services, added social and blog sites, and video content for which we do include "reporting" such as credentials, links to the specified directories and profile information.
        We invite and expect anyone wanting to do business with us to review our FAQ's where we clearly outline the process and time line - we have nothing to hide.
        This still doesn't explain away why it takes almost three months just to do a verification of the business owner. Google can do this in two weeks using the post office to send a post card. What are you guys doing?

        No sorry, this just doesn't cut it, three months to verify a business and now we are to assume that you are sending out the citations.

        I cannot speak for the US, but in Canada, where they charge us $50 for this service, your are just pissing your money away. Do it yourself or hire an outsourcer, you will be much better off.
        {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3374767].message }}
      • Profile picture of the author jasonthewebmaster
        Banned
        Originally Posted by djenkins View Post

        Good afternoon all. As the Director of Customer Support I would like to clarify our business model, product offerings and the value we bring for better understanding and expectations. Our primary value is depth of distribution, consistency of the information distributed and time efficiency. Although many of our sites do have public access there are some that do not such as navigation systems and 411DA, even if someone actually wanted to spend the hours manually submitting to all of these directories.
        We certainly do advise where listings are distributed as we outline in our site's distribution list however, as anyone in the listings space is already aware the challenge is that directories are not yet able to notify when they actually publish a business listing and hence, why there are a growing number of citation tracking/reputation management companies. With our modest fee for Standard offering this is not feasible to include.
        For U.S. market we have various package offerings that include claiming services, added social and blog sites, and video content for which we do include "reporting" such as credentials, links to the specified directories and profile information.
        We invite and expect anyone wanting to do business with us to review our FAQ's where we clearly outline the process and time line - we have nothing to hide.

        Then why do you even offer this service???

        I was considering re-selling your service but after reading how you do business, forget about it! There is no way I am going to promise a local business owner that they will get a universal business listing only to make myself look bad!

        Now, after reading your response to this thread, and seeing how you are trying to side-step the issue, I am DEFINITELY NOT going to use your service.
        {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3501677].message }}
        • Profile picture of the author wenwon
          first off, i've been a lurker of this forum for about nine years but i've never joined. i want to thank all of you guys that have helped me in the past without even knowing it.

          i thought i'd chime in on the ubl.org issue as well.

          my firm has had dealings with ubl and their way of doing business (so far) appears to be very shady. like jasonthewebmaster, we decided recently to resell their services. the surprise came when we implemented their api on our website. if the client wants to do a search for an naics code on our website, they're prompted with a pop up window with ubl branding and a ubl url. this is a complete conflict of interest if i'm an agency on record for them; not to mention the fact that they use their api to sneak their branding on to my website. what's the point in reselling the service if the client can see that they can deal directly with ubl? worse yet, what happens when the client refers all of his friends to ubl directly without giving you the credit? hardly seems fair to me.

          i addressed the issue with their director of customer service and her response was basically, "we understand your concerns but we're not changing the protocol." a response that is strikingly similar in tone to the ubl representative comment above. not very helpful. ultimately we found a "work-around" for the issue but that doesn't change the fact that our brief history with this firm has been littered with issues.

          we're on a trial basis with ubl for now and we'll see how they do with a couple of listings. so far, our dealings with them have been suspect on a number of levels to say the least.

          so if you're thinking about doing business with ubl, be aware of the risks especially if you're reselling the service. be aware that ultimately, it might make more sense to hire a responsible freelancer that will be accountable directly to you to perform local directory submissions.

          based upon what i'm reading here, that's probably the route we're going to be taking in about two weeks unless something drastically changes with ubl.
          {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3596929].message }}
          • Profile picture of the author djenkins
            Originally Posted by wenwon View Post

            first off, i've been a lurker of this forum for about nine years but i've never joined. i want to thank all of you guys that have helped me in the past without even knowing it.

            i thought i'd chime in on the ubl.org issue as well.

            my firm has had dealings with ubl and their way of doing business (so far) appears to be very shady. like jasonthewebmaster, we decided recently to resell their services. the surprise came when we implemented their api on our website. if the client wants to do a search for an naics code on our website, they're prompted with a pop up window with ubl branding and a ubl url. this is a complete conflict of interest if i'm an agency on record for them; not to mention the fact that they use their api to sneak their branding on to my website. what's the point in reselling the service if the client can see that they can deal directly with ubl? worse yet, what happens when the client refers all of his friends to ubl directly without giving you the credit? hardly seems fair to me.

            i addressed the issue with their director of customer service and her response was basically, "we understand your concerns but we're not changing the protocol." a response that is strikingly similar in tone to the ubl representative comment above. not very helpful. ultimately we found a "work-around" for the issue but that doesn't change the fact that our brief history with this firm has been littered with issues.

            we're on a trial basis with ubl for now and we'll see how they do with a couple of listings. so far, our dealings with them have been suspect on a number of levels to say the least.

            so if you're thinking about doing business with ubl, be aware of the risks especially if you're reselling the service. be aware that ultimately, it might make more sense to hire a responsible freelancer that will be accountable directly to you to perform local directory submissions.

            based upon what i'm reading here, that's probably the route we're going to be taking in about two weeks unless something drastically changes with ubl.

            Hello Wendell, If I am to be quoted I would like to be quoted correctly please. What I had relayed to you was that our template is used for all customers, retail and agency. I have included our last email communication that advises my alternative solution which appears to be the 'work around' solution you now offer.




            -------- Original Message --------

            Subject:

            Re: API

            Date:

            Fri, 25 Mar 2011 13:18:20 -0400

            From:

            Deb Jenkins <djenkins@ubl.org>



            Good afternoon Wendell,

            We understand your concern and if you prefer, you can replace that URL with a direct link to NAICS: http://www.naics.com/search.htm which is what our link is based on.

            Kind regards,


            Deborah Jenkins
            Universal Business Listing
            Director, Customer Relations - Support Services
            {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3702204].message }}
            • Profile picture of the author wenwon
              Deb,

              That "workaround" is not a viable alternative. I stated that. I've sat with clients attempting to sign up for our service (as we resell yours) and that section of the process is completely baffling to them. My clients are not technical and they don't understand the three columns that are presented from the NAICS website.

              As for the quote, the spirit of the message is completely correct. Nothing has been changed from UBL's perspective.

              Finally, I gave your team a test client to grade the value of your service on April 1, 2011. As of today, I have no status reports in my e-mail or UBL control panel. Over two weeks after joining your service, I have no information to provide to my client.

              I appreciate the time you took to speak to me on the phone but with respect, something is not right here. You might want to read the reviews in this forum and make your service better.
              {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3726914].message }}
      • Profile picture of the author Dr Dan
        Originally Posted by djenkins View Post

        Good afternoon all. As the Director of Customer Support I would like to clarify our business model, product offerings and the value we bring for better understanding and expectations. Our primary value is depth of distribution, consistency of the information distributed and time efficiency. Although many of our sites do have public access there are some that do not such as navigation systems and 411DA, even if someone actually wanted to spend the hours manually submitting to all of these directories.
        We certainly do advise where listings are distributed as we outline in our site's distribution list however, as anyone in the listings space is already aware the challenge is that directories are not yet able to notify when they actually publish a business listing and hence, why there are a growing number of citation tracking/reputation management companies. With our modest fee for Standard offering this is not feasible to include.
        For U.S. market we have various package offerings that include claiming services, added social and blog sites, and video content for which we do include "reporting" such as credentials, links to the specified directories and profile information.
        We invite and expect anyone wanting to do business with us to review our FAQ's where we clearly outline the process and time line - we have nothing to hide.
        I really hate these kinds of responses. It sound like a robot wrote it with a bad article spinner! Sounds like the verdict it "IT JUST SUCKS!" and not a good one either ;-)

        I just use merchant circle, pixelpipe, pingfm, and classified sites and my client is all over the first pages for multiple search phrases. Usually between 3-11 first page listings.
        {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3605889].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author philboy uk
    Prompted by comments on this thread, I went to ubl.org let them know peoples feelings.. I had intended to recommend their services to local businesses, but was concerned about the negative comments.

    So, what to do, manual submission ?
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3349295].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author JJOrana
      Originally Posted by philboy uk View Post

      So, what to do, manual submission ?
      For now, that's our only choice unless you still want to proceed after an overwhelming disappointment by warriors you've seen in this thread at UBL.
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3349510].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author David B.
    Agree, UBL sucks. Merchant Circle now offer a submission service @ $99, haven't try it yet.
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3350454].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author skylarw
    UBL.ORG

    Ripped me off... I will forever tell everyone that I come accross not to use this service.
    Signature

    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3351997].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author philboy uk
    I use roboform to help speed up the process, I think some of the directories do benefit from submitting manually, as you can add extra services, videos etc
    It is boring though
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3353019].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author joshril
    Originally Posted by JJOrana View Post

    If you're thinking to use their services to submit your client's website in different directories, might instead hire someone else to submit it manually.

    They can't give you any reports at all that your site has been submitted to directories they promised.
    They submit incomplete information to some directories.

    In short, it's a waste of money.
    I had a positive experience with them overall, but this was some months back. Perhaps things have changed...
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3353810].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author rafterman
    i just have an outsourcer list them
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3354014].message }}
  • guys, I am looking for a place to do my submissions to the directories as well. I used UBL and I was NOT pleased with the response.

    Tommy
    Signature

    Solving Multimedia Expectations. AppleCreekMedia

    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3359539].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author Jimian
    Signature

    OFFLINE Marketing Strategies For The OFFLINE Warrior
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3359598].message }}
  • That wasnt the answer I was looking for. I already know that most of us do NOT like UBL, I was looking for a replacement or outsource. I know about fiverr as well. But, I might have to just do this myself. UGH, cant make any real money if I am going to be doing the work myself.
    Signature

    Solving Multimedia Expectations. AppleCreekMedia

    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3359739].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author tonydbaker
    UBL appears to be yet another service that simply sends data updates to the big three data providers.

    Oh... didn't you know that YP.com, Merchant Circle, Yahoo, Local.com and all of those guys buy their data from the same places?

    I can't tell you who, but it's not hard to figure out. And yes, it's just the basic info.

    If you really want to get good exposure in all of the directories you have to either hand submit the information or hire someone who can.

    Disclaimer... my company provides this as a premium service on a monthly basis by SEO experts in the midwestern U.S. PM me for details on how to get this or be an affiliate.

    - Tony
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3359775].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author John Pawlett
    I use wlmarketing.com for my business listings, their service so far has been fantastic and the reports they send on completion are really good. Could not recommend them more highly.

    John
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3360853].message }}
  • I agree , UBL is a joke. I have moved on from them. NOT worth the money!
    Signature

    Solving Multimedia Expectations. AppleCreekMedia

    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3376815].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author jsherloc
    Wow...just reading through this thread and I am honestly kind of stunned. I used UBL a lot when I first started out in offline marketing....and I always thought they were a god-send, they just saved so much time.

    Now 2 years later though, I can understand why people are unhappy I guess as there certainly are other options/competitors out there that go above and beyond just updating the provider feeds and what not.

    - Jim
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3385338].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author mrwill
    Originally Posted by JJOrana View Post

    If you're thinking to use their services to submit your client's website in different directories, might instead hire someone else to submit it manually.

    They can't give you any reports at all that your site has been submitted to directories they promised.
    They submit incomplete information to some directories.

    In short, it's a waste of money.
    Yeah, it's nonsense to work on DS, sadly. Shouldn't invest any more money for this kinda of job. Just like pouring a drop of water into the sea
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3414842].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author belinda806
    JJOrana,
    I am agree with you .
    Yes to submit web directories through others is really waste of money .
    I don't like it by mine clients .
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3415251].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author asialin
    I totally agree with you! I am very disappoint about their service. feel bad for recommend to my client.
    I paid $49 package for 180 more listing and 5 report, and I wait for 6 months, from last year Oct, 2010 till now March, 2011
    well, there is nothing happen!

    I chat with the online, they email me back bing and google is online listing.
    but, Google- I menuly submit by my own.
    bing- has the old information, not what I submit through ubl.org.
    I check mapquest, aol, garmin, nothings come up to the list.
    only infousa/yahoo has 2 lines of address showing up, so I still manually submitted by my own. (yahoo using infousa's data)

    result: looks like only infousa take there address information, but no one else. and I email ubl.org back, non reply. I chat, no one online.

    I was so exciting about this service, but now, I need to find the way to submit everythings manually to finish what we promising to the client.

    Solution:
    -how much listing you promises our client, we need input data manually each one by one
    -get refund from UBL.org (I don't know if I can get it, but I will try)

    Questions: any one know how to submit listing to mapquest? and GPS (garmin & tomtom)?
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3501008].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author honestnotes
    so can anyone recommend an alternative ? got about 180 new listings I need submitted ASAP
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3501384].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author nunugenius
    agree with you,

    but sometimes we dont know what owner mean, see and analize
    Signature

    nothing signature

    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3597206].message }}
  • Haven't tried that before. But I'm happy as I got this message before I try them.
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3605799].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author spesialis
    this is what I call forum un-marketing lol

    just another company who got cocky
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3605891].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author jsherloc
    Thought I'd chime in here and mention that we've started offering this manual business submission service to assist fellow "offliners" with client citations as well.

    We "soft launched" the service here on WF a few weeks back, and people seem happy with the citation results they're achieving for their clients.

    These things work great for reputation management/brand awareness in my opinion. Google "eats them up and spits them out" all over the front page for your client's business name and geographically related terms, etc. They are certainly not a HUGE part of the local search process that most small businesses need to go through, but they certainly have their place in terms of "What needs to be done" in order to increase a businesses' local online presence.

    Bottom line, they increase your client's virtual real estate and help Google establish local relevancy...both of which should ultimately lead to happy and satisfied clients.

    - Jim
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3890995].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author Voasi
    Localeze will more then likely be just like UBL. Both companies take an "automated" approach to keeping data accurate. Unfortunately, the only part that is automated is everyone else's ability to grab the data from their website, which will always be "when they get around it".

    The alternative, is to have someone post manually. Of course, there are +'s and -'s to this too. For instance, let's say a client changes their phone number. You'll need to manually go into each directory and change. Or what if they change their hours. Same thing.

    Localeze and UBL both try to solve this issue by giving a central location to update ALL listings within their distribution lists. Unfortunately, they can not "force" an update to directories in their distribution list.

    As Offline Marketers, we know that our clients want to rank in Google Maps yesterday... Oh...and they want 10 more phone calls a day...as of yesterday too. So waiting 90-180 days to get the data distributed is out of the question.

    There is definitely a hole in the market if someone can fill it effectively, with semi-automation and a timeline we'd (and our clients) would be happy with...they'd make a good amount of money.
    Signature
    Want $6,000/mo. SEO Clients? Watch My Free Video!
    We do WSO Designs TOO!!! Best on WF! - Click Here
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3946254].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author Bennette
      I had the same problem as mentioned by others and also spent hours adding missed information as well. Manual submission has been the best solution for me as of now.
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3946420].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author predayshus
    As a matter of fact I've been quite happy wlmarketing services when it comes to mass listings. Their price is quite right.
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[4081375].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author AdrianB
    I'm pleased I checked this. I saw them listed elsewhere but when I went to check the UK version, I couldn't believe the number of other sites they were listing, implying they could somehow get your site listed in these too. If it sounds too good to be true...
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[5721129].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author shaded2
    I used their basic plan some time ago. The do what the say they will do but unfortunately it just takes too long. I started seeing listing within 3 - 6 months.

    More importantly, im just not sure its necessary. Instead of getting calls from customers, I received an influx of calls from the listing services asking me to either sign up for a premium slot or they tried to sell me their own listing services.

    I also got lots of calls from other random vendors trying to sell all kinds of services.

    In short, it takes a long time for them to deliver, and when they do, the service itself is really not what you'd expect. You're better off just manually registering in the popular sites like yelp, kudzu, google places etc.
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[6485492].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author Rus Sells
    UBL and WLMarketing, I haven't had the best experience with either of these companies.

    One of the most important factors for citation building is having structured citations.

    A structured citation is mainly a complete and accurate NAP, now I know that both these services can probably at least provide this but its also very inconsistent overall when building online business profiles on the net.
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[6490092].message }}
  • I've been using WL Marketing and they've been pretty good. It seems they don't get every citation right but I'd say they are about 90% accurate and good at what they do. I think in the end manual submissions are the best. To that end I think I'm just going to find an outsourcer to do this. It may cost a little more but at least I'll know everything is done 100%.

    Travis Van Slooten
    Signature
    TVS Internet Marketing: Helping small businesses get more visibility & sales online.
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[6664720].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author wenwon
    We've also used WL Marketing without issue. I think their service is fair and and they seem to care about what they are doing.
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[8762462].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author JulieSecret
    I can honestly say that this company is all screwed up. Very unorganized and unprofessional. Take it from an insider point of view, which at this time, I choose to remain anonymous since I am still with the company (my husband thinks they won't be around much longer). UBL has so much going on right now and don't know how to handle it. They can't even pay the employee's they have working for them. Two months behind in payments, on everything, wow! But yet have a huge contract with big businesses such as HIBU and revenue is coming in, not to mention all those many more companies they are with. I am thinking is not long before I lose my job as well. There is definitely something fishy going on here. Companies dealing with UBL. please BEWARE. This is just a WARNING. I just can't believe how they keep falling and are so behind in work. Vacations must be nice! Since the CEO's are always traveling, and for what? Nothing happens, except for the fact that they can't even pay humble teams they slave and have working for them off-shore.
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[9440197].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author jasonthewebmaster
    Banned
    I provide a much cheaper alternative to universal business listing - i will manually submit your business listing to top 50 local citation directories for only $3 each: http://www.your-web-traffic.com/busi...nt-service.php
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[9500851].message }}

Trending Topics