Acne.

Recently Google updated again the value of Page Rank for all websites. Google handed many directory operators a brown bag full of cat manure in this last Page Rank Update with PR 0 for their directories.

The value of Page Rank was a key element when someone wanted to submit a website to a website directory.

Dirmania.org managed to keep it's well deserved PR 3. This value is great compared to all other web directories.

Many established directories went from PR 4-5 to PR 0. A directory owner said:

"Well, if you lost PR in the last few days, your ranking in the SERP may not be affected by it YET. Dropping PR is a different from dropping a rank. Mine dropped to PR4 but didn't lose rankings for a while. It went down to PR3, still kept the high rankings with many keywords. But then it got PR0 with no rankings. The site got PR3 back, so I am expecting to increase the ranking again if the pattern is applicable."

So, the value of Page Rank is still important. I don't speak here about free web directories because many of them didn't invest a penny in marketing and brand buildig. I am thinking about the "big chess" players, who invested a lot of money in building a good, an authoritive web directory.

We shall wait and see what's next, but I DO think that Page Rank is still important. Why? Because according to Google, that green bar measures the important of any given web page in Google's eyes.