What Nofollow means
A nofollow link is marked so search engines should not treat it as a strong endorsement of the linked page, though people can still click it and land on your site normally.
A founder listed on a large, nofollow-only directory might dismiss it entirely as worthless for SEO, while ignoring that the same listing is still sending real human visitors who might become customers.
Nofollow does not mean invisible or useless. It affects how search engines weigh the link for ranking purposes; it does not stop real people from finding and clicking it.
Check a link's rel attribute before deciding whether a directory is worth your time, but weigh traffic potential and audience fit alongside the link type, not instead of it.
Why this matters for builders
A nofollow directory can still be worth it for traffic and brand mentions.
Mistake builders make often
Some founders write off any nofollow directory entirely, ignoring that it might still send meaningful direct traffic even without passing search authority.
What to do now
Read Dofollow vs nofollow, then check Nofollow directories for options that might still be worth listing on for traffic alone.