1. Submit you site to the right category in the dmoz and Yahoo directory and other directories and portals.
2. Continue building unique (new) content.
3. I have a financial / IT ad driven news and link collection site (ranked and ordered by me as a professional - 20 years experience from the research department of the central bank of Norway). It is difficult to get traffic. Some even copy links and leave.
4. There are so many directories and portals out there. It is my view that a few will survive in the long run. Ask yourself. How long are my horizon? In theory infinite? What is your aim? Make money or be a free service to the world? I see that you have the heading "UK's leading finance portal" in the upper left corner. Finance is very special. Your psyche has to be stronger than that of people working in the force and you have to be
absolutely earnest. Therefore I would be very careful with the heading. Where is the links to the Bank of England? Where is the link to the ministry of finance, bureau of statistics and other government sites related to finance? Where are the links to Financial Times, and the most important institutional investors? You have to include them for free in my view, and where it is easy to find them. In my view, the most important financial link in the UK is the link to the Bank of England. What does "UK's leading finance portal" mean? Is it a niche portal? What should I expect to find there?
5. Study anything about good
SEO practice here and elswhere. Build it into your site. If possible write a new story on your site, at least once a week.
6. It is all about traffic, if you are able to get high traffic, companies will pay for placing Ad on your site. Do you think you find many big banks and institutional investors among merchants by affiliate providers?
May be in 10 to 20 years in the next stage of the digital revolution. May be never. KW's visual Ad through WebTv, Podcasts etc. It is here today, but financial institutions are slow.
7. In the long run, you have to be better than the other financial directories / portals out there. Work with the aim of being the preferred financial directory in the UK, Europe, Globally.
8. Always, think
what is best for the surfer? If you think that my site is of value to your surfers, include it in your directory.
9. Magnetic, banners, links, content and design. Try to make it. Example from the front page of
MultiFinanceIT The value line banner "should be a magnetic banner." The table of exchange rates from a
Swiss bank (that does not function when I write this - the devil is in the details. First time it happens) should be magnetic content.
10. Stability of links, banners. Bad day for my site. The table of exchange rates is down for the first time, and the link to a central banner on the front page is broken. Try to get stable links and banners, links that are live even in weekends.
That was my advice to a competitor.
P.S.
I think it was Thomas Jefferson that said something like this. The bank system is more dangerous than a standing army.