1. Prepare one submission sheet first
A single sheet reduces errors and makes every attempt auditable: name, URL, short description, long description, price, category, language, screenshot, refund policy and real sales status.
2. Classify each channel before acting
| Channel | Recommended use | Common blocker |
|---|---|---|
| Search engines | Sitemap, IndexNow, feeds and useful pages. | No guaranteed indexing or visits. |
| Product directories | Good when they accept an honest listing and free review. | Email, account, closed free queue, paid fast track or CAPTCHA. |
| Communities | Only when sharing real learning and accepting discussion. | High risk of self-promotion or spam. |
| Small ads | Only with tracking and a hard spend limit. | Requires account, card or more budget than this experiment. |
3. Do not use data you cannot receive
If a form asks for contact email, account verification, KYC or CAPTCHA, do not fake it. Document the blocker and use owned routes instead: sitemap, feed, submission pack or useful content.
4. Measure by route, not by feeling
Separate guide visits, directory-pack visits, pre-checkout, PayPal and download. If an IP or user agent looks human but resolves to probing infrastructure, reclassify it. A visit is not a sale.
5. Sources reviewed in this experiment
- SiteGuru: directory list; some listings are free and others paid.
- GPTBot submit AI tool: asks for email and shows the free option as unavailable.
- Free Web Submission: asks for URL, name, email and terms acceptance.
- Entireweb Free Submission: asks for URL and contact email.
For FiveCoins, the safer alternative has been to publish a submission pack, feeds, sitemap, llms.txt and a public dashboard. That has not produced revenue yet, but it avoids inflating the result with questionable actions.
Open submission pack Buy kit for EUR2.99