Wouldn’t it be wonderful if one day you have the problem of how to handle too much traffic coming to your website instead of struggling to think up new ways to get it there in the first place! Well maybe this article will hasten that great and glorious day! Here are 10 things to try which should increase traffic to your website:
1. Shout about it!
To ensure that you get your site noticed you absolutely must advertise it! Yes there are many other ways of attracting attention but this has got to be the number one priority. Paid search, social media advertising and display advertising are all excellent ways of bringing traffic your way, and you constantly need to tweak your adverts to fit your current business objectives. Also don’t overlook email marketing, which can be a powerful tool to attract new traffic or remind previous visitors about your products and services.
2. Think social!
Social media is everywhere and if your brand is not out there you are at a significant disadvantage. Use different social media channels for different purposes. Facebook is great for interacting with consumers in a number of different ways, Twitter is a great media for brief witty comments and links, and Google+ promotion works well in B2B environments. Don’t overlook other image-oriented social sites like Pinterest and Instagram, particularly if you have products to feature. On all these sites the key thing is to be interactive and responsive so that you engage with your readers and don’t just use social media as a broadcast channel.
3. Wow with your content!
Use an attention-grabbing headline then make sure the content backs it up. Vary the length and format of your content to make it as appealing as possible to different kinds of readers and to prevent it becoming formulaic. Post regularly and include both short newsy blog posts and longer factual content posts. Also include content such as infographics and videos, not just text.
4. SEO is not dead!
It’s still vital to optimise your content for search engines. It doesn’t have to take long and will definitely make a difference. For example are you making the most of image alt text? Do you have relevant meta descriptions? Are you creating internal links to new content? Give careful consideration to every keyword used: don’t just focus on high commercial intent keywords but also use long-tail keywords, which account for the majority of web searches.
5. Guest relations!
Put yourself out there! If you can secure a guest post on a reputable site this can not only increase blog traffic to your website but also help build your brand into the bargain. Also invite others to guest blog on your own site. This is likely to lead to them sharing and linking to their guest article, bringing new readers to your site. You could even request to interview people for your blogs: most people are willing to talk to you if you ask them. Publishing an interview with a thought leader in your industry could boost your credibility and increase traffic to your website.
6. The missing link!
It can be painfully embarrassing trying to persuade other sites to link back to you so concentrate your efforts on creating content that other sites will actively want to link to. Experiment and learn what types of links attract lots of referral traffic. Also use every opportunity for internal links. This helps with SEO and also improves user experience.
7. Make haste while the sun shines!
Do make sure that your website is fast to load and that you have a mobile version. Your website needs to be accessible and able to be viewed effectively across a range of devices, including tablets and smartphones. For all devices, your pages need to be as technically optimised as possible, including image formats and sizes, page layouts and structures and the robustness of third-party plugins. The slower your site is to load, the higher your bounce rate will be.
8. No comment?!
Create every opportunity for your customers to interact and engage with you. Building a forum and/or commenting system in your site is a great way to start a conversation and increase traffic to your website. Make sure you manage this well to keep it up to date and interactive. Also ensure that you join in conversations on other related sites. By contributing insightful and thought-provoking comments you can gradually make a name for yourself and this will then begin to result in more traffic checking out your site.
9. Use the data at your fingertips
Google Analytics provides essential data on various aspects of your site, from your most popular pages to visitor demographics. This information can help you to plan more effective promotional and content strategies by showing you which posts and pages are proving the most popular. Visitor data can also tell you how, where and when your site traffic is coming from. You can also use software like BuzzSumo to check out what your competition is doing. You can find out what topics are resonating with readers and being shared on social media then produce similar kind of content to bring traffic to your website.
10. Education… Education… Education!
Have you thought about running a webinar? They are a great way to increase traffic to your website. If you choose a current topic within your area of expertise and promote it well via email and social media you could be onto a winner. You can also archive it for later viewing. Also make sure you attend industry conferences and events yourself, even try and get yourself a speaker slot if you can! This could be an excellent way to establish yourself as a thought leader in your industry and gain interest in your site.
Why not try some or all of the above and see the difference that they make? We would love to hear how you get on and to feature your story in a future blog!
