/suede-directory-submissions

name: suede-directory-submissions
description: "Suede AI directory distribution for selecting listings, sequencing submissions, tailoring positioning, keeping entity facts consistent, and verifying backlinks. Use when a product needs startup, SaaS, AI, MCP, marketplace, or review-directory submissions with a measurable tracker, or when directory and review-site presence should feed AI answer-engine recommendations. NOT FOR: broader launch orchestration (use suede-launch-packaging); scalable destination-page production (use suede-programmatic-seo); AI visibility measurement and on-page citation work (use suede-ai-seo)."
metadata:
  version: 2.0.0

Suede Directory Distribution

Suede treats directory distribution as a verifiable discovery layer, not a submission-count contest. Build the user's backlink and buyer-discovery foundation by selecting the right directories, sequencing them around real launch moments, adapting truthful positioning, and checking that each listing and backlink actually landed.

**Iron Law, approval is per destination:**

No external submission, account creation, paid placement, or review request
happens without explicit approval for that exact destination, copy, assets,
timing, and maximum cost. Approval for research or for another destination
never transfers. Any delta is re-approved before it ships.

Before Starting

**Check for product marketing context first:** If `.agents/product-marketing.md` exists (or `.claude/product-marketing.md`, or the legacy `product-marketing-context.md` filename, in older setups), read it before asking questions. Use that context and only ask for information not already covered or specific to this task.

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Core Philosophy

Directory submissions can add discovery surfaces, referral paths, and backlinks, but their value varies by product, directory, listing quality, and current platform rules. Treat each benefit as a hypothesis to verify with listing status, referral analytics, search data, and qualified outcomes. A directory plan complements destination pages and other distribution; it does not guarantee authority, citation, traffic, ranking, or leads.

The full directory catalog lives in `references/directory-list.md`. The positioning variant library lives in `references/positioning-variations.md`. The submission tracker template lives in `references/submission-tracker-template.csv`.

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Three Operating Rules

Rule 1: Foundation before submission

Before recommending a submission, verify the directory's current official requirements and record the source URL and check date. The linked page should be publicly reachable, truthful, useful to the directory's audience, and measurable. Prepare only the assets the current form requires, using real product screenshots and approved brand files. Add pricing, legal pages, video, schema, or additional formats when the product, jurisdiction, or verified directory rules call for them; do not invent universal prerequisites.

Rule 2: Destination pages before directories

Choose the most relevant verified destination for each audience: a homepage, use-case page, integration page, comparison page, template, or documentation page. It must accurately fulfill the listing promise and have a measurable next step. Do not impose a fixed page count or block a suitable listing merely because an unrelated content type does not exist.

Rule 3: Positioning varies by directory type

Adapt the description to the directory's verified fields, audience, and rules. Reuse approved facts, but change emphasis when that improves relevance; do not claim that duplicate descriptions trigger a search or AI penalty without current evidence. See `references/positioning-variations.md` for templates.

| Surface | Lead with | Why | |---|---|---| | Startup directories | **Outcome** | Audience is other founders. They care what it does. | | SaaS directories | **Alternative framing** | People search "[competitor] alternative": meet them there. | | AI directories | **AI-first architecture** | TAAFT/Futurepedia audiences explicitly want AI tools. | | Agent/MCP directories | **Agent/MCP angle** | Use only for a live compatible capability. | | No-code directories | **Ease + power** | Audience values speed-to-build over depth. | | Dev directories | **Technical depth** | Dev audiences reward technical substance. | | B2B review sites | **ROI + use case** | Buyers want outcomes and case studies. |

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Workflow

Step 1: Readiness assessment (Phase 0)

Assess the selected directory against current requirements:

1. Is the product publicly accessible (no password wall)? 2. Is there a pricing page (even "free while in beta")? 3. Are privacy policy + terms live? 4. Are the required approved logo, screenshot, and video assets available? 5. Does the destination page match the proposed listing copy and CTA? 6. Is referral and conversion measurement configured? 7. Does the current directory policy allow this product, claim set, and category? 8. For review sites, are there genuine eligible users and a policy-compliant ask? 9. Who has authority to create the account, accept terms, and submit?

A missing current platform requirement, truthful destination, or submission authority is a hard block for that directory. At the block: stop work on that directory, name the blocker in one line ("<directory>: missing <requirement>"), list the resolution options (obtain the requirement, substitute a truthful destination, get explicit submission authority, or drop the directory from the tier), and wait for the user's pick before submitting there. Other gaps are prioritization inputs, not universal launch blockers.

Step 2: Choose the tiers

Full catalog in `references/directory-list.md`. Summary:

| Tier | When | Illustrative candidates to verify | |---|---|---| | **Flagship launch** | Around a relevant launch | Product Hunt, BetaList, HN Show HN, Fazier, DevHunt | | **Startup/SaaS** | Launch and rolling | Alterna