Introduction
In today’s web-obsessed world, more and more people are turning to the
net for just about anything and everything. In fact, the Internet is the
number one source for shopping, for researching term papers, for
chatting with friends, for catching up on celebrity gossip, for buying
consumer products, for watching the news and for generally staying
informed with the world. This is why the World Wide Web has also been
hailed a cyber-gold mine for marketing.
Regardless of what you want to do with the web, there is the potential to
make a lot of money and market your product or service to the right
clientele. Because the Internet is a global phenomenon, more and more
marketers and every day Joes are discovering the potential of traffic.
What we mean by traffic are those people who visit your website. Every
time someone clicks on your website, this is traffic to your site.
Want an analogy? In the real world, the equivalent would be a shop
browser. Anytime someone browses through your shop, there is a better
chance that he will buy something. This can be considered traffic.
Traffic generators can be a personal website, a business profile, a blog
site or anything else. The rewards of this traffic are twofold. For one, if
you own a business, the more traffic your can direct to your company
site, the more people are going to buy your product or service. For two, if
you are part of an affiliate or membership site program, you can get paid
anytime someone clicks on your website from pay per click or other web
marketing programs.
Sounds pretty good, doesn’t it?
That’s what the rest of the world thinks too.
And, therefore, the cyber world holds even more competition to get
noticed than in real life. More and more people are using the net to
broadcast themselves and their service to those who may be interested.
However, the World Wide Web is so incredibly extensive that it is easy to
get lost in traffic.
This is where 110 Traffic Generation Tips come in. By administering
certain tips and tricks of the trade it is easier to get noticed in the cyber
community and not lost in space.
Let’s go back to the real world shop analogy. In a mall, storeowners
constantly want the prime locations, usually by the entrances and the
food court where more traffic passes by each day. This is the same
concept as in cyber-space. However, because you do not have a set
location, you can use simple traffic generation tips to move your store to
those interested in your product.
Think of it like this: if your website is targeted to those who enjoy
skateboarding, in cyber space, it is possible to move your website right
next to a virtual skate park. If your website is catered to new mothers
trying to lose weight, your website can actually be placed in the same
cyber location as a gym, or a baby store.
This may be hard to understand, but you need to think outside the
computer box and into the crazy realm of cyber space. And we have just
the tips to get you there. In fact, we have 110 of them! From social media
traffic to PPC marketing, from SEO to Blogging, we have the tricks of the
trade that can generate the traffic you need.
So join the web-solution and discover how to earn traffic on your website
with 110 Traffic Generation Tips.
SEO Traffic Generation Tips
SEO, or search engine optimization is the be-all-end-all of traffic
generation. The two go hand in hand. This is because, in order to gain
traffic to your site your articles, your advertisements and your website
must all be search engine optimized. So, when it comes to SEO, make
sure you target everything and anything around this incredibly important
concept.
Essentially, there are three basic elements to SEO- keywording, linking
and content. Consider keywording, linking and content the three
musketeers to successful SEO. To get you started, we’ve offered the top
ten tips to SEO. Keep these in mind for all your copy and content to
ensure the maximum traffic generation results.
1. Choose good keywording phrases- instead of shaping words around
articles, shape articles around words. Target your content around
keywords or ideas. In order to find an angle for your article,
consider using Google Adwords to see which keywords are most
likely searched. Then, write an article around these key phrases and
terms. This may seem like an odd concept, but as soon as your
brain gets used to it, the writing will flow naturally.
2. Use keywords throughout your website, marketing and
advertisement- use keywords in your title, your subheadings and in
your links. If you can, even use your keyword in your URL.
3. Link away- it is okay to link to other sites. In fact, it’s a good idea,
especially if these sites are highly respected and informative. Sites
with .edu and .gov are often the best because they represent a
highly regarded source.
4. Link to your heart’s content- Links do not have to just be certain
words. You can also make title links and anything else you want
links. People are automatically drawn to links, so switch it up and
make your content stand out.
5. Use your anchor text in links- Make sure your link text features your
keyword phrase. Links stand out on websites and most people will
click through, especially if your keyword phrase is directed towards
their interest.
6. Always add new content- are you constantly updating and adding
new content to your website? Well you need to be to ensure SEO
success! This cannot be stressed enough. Content is what will make
or break your site so make sure your content is entertaining, up to
date and informative. For more content tips, check out the Article
Marketing section.
7. Be Bold- make use of Bold HTML tags and other HTML tags to make
your website stand out. Bold is beautiful.
8. Use Alt Imaging- a picture is worth a thousand words, especially on
the net. Putting alt attributes on your images can allow you to place
relevant text around your image, better for search engine indexing.
Keep in mind that images are searched just as much as content is.
9. Include a site map- a site map is a great way to navigate through
your site and can also be submitted to Google with XML site map.
Site maps help search engine robots find every page on your
website in just two clicks. What this means is better search engine
results for all your web pages. Make sure you link all pages properly
for the best SEO results.
10. Follow the rules- SEO has a set of particular rules. You need to
understand the legality of SEO so you don’t get banned from search
engines. So how do you do this? You research. You study. You
learn. Take some time and go through the basics of SEO on the
main search engines. Understanding the do’s and don’ts of SEO is
critical when it comes to generating traffic. After all, you SEO
strategy can either make, or break your website.
Social Media Traffic Generation Tips
The Internet is a social place. Although everything is done in the virtual
world, the place is swarming with social networks, social media sites and
social opportunities to target your niche market and network with the
right prospects.
So why not take advantage of the social nature of the net by using social
media as a way to generate traffic and target your niche. Below we have
listed some of the top tips in the subject of social media traffic.
11. Get Noticed: go in with a bang by launching your new site, or new
content on social bookmarking sites. Many social bookmarking sites,
such as Digg, Reddit and Netscape are read on a daily basis and a
perfect place to start your traffic generation debut.
12. Take advantage of free ads: GumTree is a great place to get your
new website noticed. Gum Tree is a free advertisement space where
you can make an ad for your website, for free! It doesn’t get any
better than that!
13. Get Accounted: start creating as many social networking accounts
as possible. Social networking is a great way to get your product or
service noticed. Set up a MySpace Page, a Facebook Page, a Yahoo
Page and much more. Ask your friends to add your page as “fans”
and watch your traffic jam up.
14. Use StumbleUpon- Submit your site to Stumble Upon and then get
your friends to stumble on it as well.
15. Create a Yahoo Group- join or create a Yahoo group in your area of
interest. Most likely others in that group will be interested in
knowing about your website and checking out what you have to
offer.
16. Tweet with Twitter- Tweet Tweet, you have mail. Twitter is a new
social media revolution that combines text messages with the
Internet. It may seem a little confronting, but it’s a great way to
advertise your website. Get a following and send them a tweet.
17. Contribute to Forums- one of the best ways to use social media in
your favor is to make a brief contribution to Forums in your topic of
interest. Include a link to your website after offering incredibly
advice. However, make sure you use sparingly- don’t spam.
18. Search for relevant sites- there are literally social networking sites
for everyone and everything. For baby boomers, for music lovers,
for avid photographers, for video gamers, for George Lucas fans, for
Twilight lovers, and for every single other fetish in the world. Take
advantage of this by joining social networking sites that relate to
your website. This is where your prospects will be.
19. Show you care- by participating in other social media outlets, you
are showing to others that you are genuinely interested in the
subject. The more comments you share, the more you will be
respected and revered as an active member in your niche market
community.
20. Add the “tell a friend” function- on your website, add the ‘tell a
friend’ function. This is a simple little button that allows people to
easily connect to your website and inform others about it. In the
cyber world, word of click is just as important as word of mouth. So
make the most of this with social media.
Article Marketing Traffic Generation Tips
One of the best ways to get your niche audience to your site is to target
them in article marketing. Article marketing is a revolutionary way to use
your words to generate traffic. Essentially you (or hired content writers)
can write about a topic directed at your site and include a bio and a link to
your website. Article marketers will submit articles to article directories.
When someone uses Google, Yahoo or any other search engine, often
these articles will pop up and they will click on them.
What this means is that only those interested in the material in the
articles are reading the content. They will also be more interested to click
through to the link (your page) and continue to read, as long as you write
and target your articles properly. Article marketing, when properly
exercised can multiple your traffic in a matter of days!
21. Write something actually worth reading- perhaps you have not
browsed through the net recently, but, unfortunately there is a lot
of hogwash out there. Many people attempt to use article marketing
and simply write about anything and everything. Not a good idea.
Write something entertaining, write something informative and
write something worth reading.
22. Use keywords- keywords are searched words- words that will get
your article noticed on search engines. Make your keywords specific
and use them about 2-5% in each article. Any more than this and
your article could begin to sound like an advertisement, or you
could be, gasp, black listed.
23. Beware of black listing- article marketing directories are well aware
of the power of keywording and that is why they have technology to
ensure that marketers are not simply sending them... well... crap. If
you use too many keywords then you could be banned from the
article directory and your articles not accepted. This is a complete
and total waste of time so follow the rules of the directory and don’t
try any sneaky stuff!
24. Don’t advertise, inform- the main point of your article is to direct
your prospects to your website; however, you want to do this by
proving that you actually know what you are talking about and have
something informative to say. No one wants to be caught in an
article-advertising trap. We get enough advertisements on radio and
television, thank you very much.
25. Don’t re-write- it’s tempting to simply type in your keyword and re-
write similar articles. Don’t do this. First of all, it’s illegal. Second of
all, you are not providing your prospects with anything new, and
thus, your website will not be much help to them.
26. Prove you are an expert- you need to prove this with your words
and with your bio line. After the article, you will most likely have a
chance to explain ‘about the author.’ Demonstrate your knowledge
by providing background information.
27. Beware of jargon- if you are writing an article about a new medical
breakthrough, then it may make sense to use medical terms and
diction that any regular Joe would consider to be written in Greek.
Not a good idea; although you want to attract a certain group of
people, regular Joes will be reading your material too. Sure, you
want to sound smart, but you also want to be understood.
28. Be different- Write something that has never been said before; take
a different approach to an old idea; make people read to the end.
This is what generates traffic.
29. Look to help- most of us can write; however, not many can write
well. And, in the article marketing business, you need to ensure
that your articles are written well. If they are not, then you can kiss
your success with article marketing goodbye. There are so many
SEO, web content writing and web marketing companies out there
that have the credentials and the experience to make all the
difference in the web world.
30. Use a sociable voice- make friends with your audience reading the
articles by speaking like them. Colloquial language is okay in certain
situations; as long as you are not offending anyone.
31. Don’t save the link for last- the link is your clincher- it’s what makes
your prospect actually click on your website. It is the traffic
generator. So, link placement is vital. Read the rules of the article
directory to determine the number of links allowed and then, if
allowed, place the link throughout the article, not just at the end.
Many people will not actually make it to the end of the article,
especially if the content is less-than-thrilling. So catch them before
they can click away.
32. Use real-life situations- Make your writing relatable. Think like your
audience when writing the articles and you will have a better chance
convincing them to continue to click through to your website.
33. Make them laugh- reading something that is humorous on the web
is a welcoming change. If you can add humor to your articles, go for
it! This is one of the best ways to gain respect from your readers
and convince your prospect to click to your site.
34. Choose point of view carefully- If you want to relate to your
audience, it’s best to use first person point of view. If you are
offering advice, second person point of view is often a wise choice.
Third person point of view can seem a little too impersonal and
academic; however, it certain articles, this actually works well.
35. Choose your title wisely- it’s all in the title. You need to make sure
your title uses the keywords you have chosen and is specific enough
to be noticed by search engines. For example: “Carpet Cleaners” is
not a good title even if your website is all about carpet cleaners.
Instead try “The Top Five Reasons to Use Carpet Cleaners” which
gives your article an angle and an informative spin.
36. Make friends with bold subheading- many people will simply skim
through an article looking for the most important parts. So give
them what they want by bolding the important parts and using
bolded subheadings to split up the article.
37. Uncover the power of lists and bullets- numbered lists and bullet-
lists are an immediate eye-catching device. As mentioned above,
most people will simply scan the article for useful information. This
usually comes in the form of bulleted and numbered lists. They can
attract viewers and also make your content easier to read and
therefore more interesting.
38. Add a picture, if you can- if you are able to add a picture to your
article then do so. However, in many instances this is not actually
allowed. Make sure the picture relates back to the article
information. For example, if you are discussing the best massages
for your massage therapy website, a picture of a woman getting a
foot massage is a great visual addition.
39. Mix up your paragraph sizes- short and long paragraphs grab
reader’s attention. No one wants to look down an article and see 5
perfectly shaped paragraphs- talk about boring! This isn’t English
grammar class after all. You don’t have to use the standard 5-
paragraph format anymore.
40. Shine through- let your voice and your personality shine through
the pages. Speak like you are talking. Be funny, be creative and be
witty. Let that voice out and paste it all over the pages of your
content.
41. Stay away from swear words- don’t try to be cool. Don’t try to be
pretentious. Don’t try to be bold. Swear words look just as stupid on
the screen as they sound coming out of people’s mouths. They are
offensive; they are crude; and they are not suitable for articles.
Prove your point with other terms that are not swear words- use the
thesaurus if you have to. There are plenty of other words out there!
42. Always, always, always proofread- there is nothing worse than
reading through an article that has grammatical and spelling errors,
unless, of course, you are the one writing it. So take the extra time
and actually re-read your work. This does not mean simply pressing
the spell check button. It means reading it, top to bottom and
catching all of those hidden errors.
43. Remain up to date- one of the most important things to remember
when it comes to content is that it is all relative on the date and
year. If you are talking about Y2K, most people will click away-
after all, that was nearly ten years ago. Stay up to date on the
political and current event trends.
44. Discover the angles- there are so many different angles you can
take when writing an article. While some choose to write
informative tips, others choose to write something controversial to
really get the readers going. Both can work in your benefit. There
are many more article angels to use. Adapt them to suit your
website needs.
45. Use ‘Top Ten’ Article Lists- “Top” lists are great for articles because
the reader knows exactly what they are getting. Top Ten Hottest
Baby Celebrities, Top Five Worst Pick up Lines, Top 100 Best Songs
Ever- all of these will reel in the reader and make them want to
learn more.
46. Use ‘Benefits of’, ‘Pros and Cons’ and other article marketing gold
mines- there are other great article ideas other than just “top lists.”
You can also list the benefits of a product, the pros and cons to a
certain person, place or thing, to a list of the biggest “no’s” in that
industry. All of these are easy for readers to follow and set up in an
informative way.
Pay Per Click (PPC) Traffic Generation Tips
Pay per click or PPC marketing is a way for both the advertiser and the
website owner to benefit. To truly get the most out of PPC marketing, it’s
a good idea to become both the advertiser and the advertisee. What we
mean is, create ad copy using PPC, but also offer PPC on your website so
other relevant ads can pop up on your site. This will bring in an additional
income, especially if your website is generating a lot of traffic (which,
after reading and applying these 110 tips, it most certainly will!)
PPC advertisements work with pay per click meaning, as the advertiser,
you only pay if someone clicks on your ad. Essentially, you are only
paying for prospects and not for every single surfer who stumbles upon
your ad. This is a revolutionary way to advertise as you are literally only
paying for those who actually stop by your online store.
PPC marketing works with keywords and keywords phrases. By following
these tips below, you can discover how to generate traffic to both your
site and your PPC ads and thus multiple your traffic and your return on
investments (ROI).
47. Know the search engines- when PPC marketing, you need to deliver
your PPC ads to the right places. The top five search engine sites
are Google, Yahoo, Ask, MSN Search and AOL. Make sure you target
all five of these. Many people use just Google, which is great as
Google does control more than 50% of all searched material;
however, what about the other 50%?
48. Understand keyword bidding- keyword bids will constantly change.
You can either continue to check it out every day, or invest in bid-
management software, which can watch the different bids so you
remain on top.
49. Find the middle ground in bidding- when you are bidding for
keywords, you need to find that happy medium between high and
low. If you bid too high, then you are simply wasting a lot of
money; however, if you bid too low then you ad may not appear
until the third or more page (and who flips through more than three
pages of search results anyway?). So, aim for the 5th to the 15th
position. This will keep more money in your budget and ensure that
you remain in a good viewing spot.
50. Stay away from Bid wars- bid wars are bound to happen between
you and your competitor. However, it’s best to simply step down.
Bid wars do not benefit anyone except for the publisher. However, if
you happen to be the publisher of your website, then bring on the
bid wars!
51. Become a PPC pro- PPC marketing is not something that you will
wake up and automatically understand. Consider getting some help
with PPC marketing. Read books, attend seminars and spend some
time with a PPC consultant to see what can be done in your
particular situation.
52. Research the competition- there’s nothing wrong with a little
competitive analysis. See what your competitors are doing with
their advertisements- what keywords are they using? What affiliates
are they working with? Have a look around, then adapt and change
to suit your PPC strategy. This is one of the greatest benefits to
competition.
53. Choose you affiliates wisely- PPC marketing is not all directed at
search engines. You also want to partner up with some of the best
affiliate programs elsewhere to ensure that your ads are being
placed in the right places, and that the right people are advertising
on your site.
54. Don’t bombard your advertisement with all your products or
services- advertisements should be targeted towards one fast-
selling item. The advertisement on this one item will draw the
prospect to the website, where you will advertise all your products
or services offered. If you simply list all your products in an
advertisement, you will bore the reader away.
55. Create a landing page for each of your AdWords - Instead of always
linking to your home page, link to various different web pages. Link
to various product pages for the different AdWords you choose. For
example, if you have a massage service company, then link your
“massage therapy” to the home page but link “foot massage,”
“pregnancy massage” and “Swedish massage” to the various
product pages.
56. Understand keyword buckets for Ad Group- what we mean here is
that you should always separate your keywords into different Ad
Groups. By doing this you can test and track the different Ad
Groups and see which keyword phrase is performing the best.
57. Go for Gold with Keyword Content- make sure you advertisement is
rich in keywords. Simple as that.
58. Don’t overlook quality score- quality score will rate all your
keywords. If you have a keyword with ‘poor’ quality score, then it’s
a good idea to delete it as this one keyword can bring down your
entire quality score.
59. Use DKI- this is a great little trick of the traffic generation trade-
DKI, or dynamic keyword insertion. Dynamic keyword insertion will
insert certain words into your copy as the prospect types it in. This
means that your ad copy will appear with the exact same keyword
phrase they he just typed- your advertisement thus looks like it was
catered just for that person. How can they not click on it then?
60. Sprinkle Keywords- many people choose just one keyword per
advertisement. It’s a better idea to sprinkle your ad with a few
different keywords. Two to three keywords per advertisement is
more effective in reaching a wider audience and also ensures that
your advertisement copy flows a little better. No one wants to be
bombarded with the same keyword every second word.
61. Use all types of keywording- learn the different types of keywording
include exact match, phrase match and negative keywording. Look
through Google Adwords to understand the difference between each
one and determine how and where these keyword matches will help
you.
62. Create a negative keywording list- negative keywording is incredibly
important in advertising to ensure that the right ads pop up with the
right person. By using negative keywording you are saying what
you are “not” selling and thus targeting the right niche.
63. Talk to customers- see what your customers are looking for in
advertisements. Ask friends, ask family members- it never hurts to
ask, and sometimes they might come up with an incredible idea.
64. Geo-target- for those who have a specific area where your niche
market is located, for example, in Vancouver, then you can geo-
target your advertisements to people connected from there.
65. Track your advertisements- it’s important to know who and where
your customers are coming from, even in the virtual world.
Furthermore, tracking your ROI and your clients can help you tweak
your campaign marketing strategy to gain even more prospects
66. Never stop tweaking- PPC marketing is something that never ends,
or, at least, it never should. You need to constantly test, tweak and
change in order to compete with the millions upon billions of
advertisements being put out each day.
67. Perform A/B testing- PPC marketing is all about testing and
tweaking to ensure you are getting the most from your
advertisements. A/B testing is one of the best ways to do this.
Create at least 2 Adcopies per Ad group and let them fight for the
most traffic generation. It’s a battle of the Adcopy.
68. Make sure your landing page is correct- this may seem simple but
you need to ensure that your advertisement actually goes to the
right website landing page. If you are advertising a certain product,
perhaps link that that product’s web page rather than your home
page. People are a lot happier when they are directed to exactly
what they are looking for. If they like what they see, then they will
most likely continue to browse your website and check out the other
pages.
Blogging and Forums Traffic Generation Tips
Blogging has hit the World Wide Web with a bang. Every single person
wants to put in their two cents, and can with a blog. Although blogs can
be tedious and pretentious in certain instances, it is possible to use
blogging as a way to gain traffic to your site. Just read on to find out
how:
69. Make friends with other bloggers- ask other bloggers to review your
website, in exchange for a link of course. Blogging is a community
thing and the more you participate in this community, the more
successful you will be at generating traffic.
70. Make use of Technorati- Technorati allows you to ‘claim’ your blog
which can be great for social networking and gaining traffic.
71. Add your Link to any posts- make your link like a signature.
Anytime you make a post (relevant to your website of course), add
a link at the end. Many people will read the comments, the forums,
and the discussions for additional information. If a link is included,
they will click on it.
72. Write something controversial- there’s nothing like controversy to
get the traffic flowing in. Write something controversial and then
ask for comments, questions and concerns about what you have
said. This will help to get the cyber conversation going and ensure
traffic to your site.
73. Blog often- blogging is not necessarily a full time job; however, you
should always set aside some time during the week to contribute to
your blog. While some people blog two or three times a day, it’s
probably best to blog one day a week. Stay on schedule to create a
following and give your readers something to look forward to.
74. Blog on and away from your site- there are several different ways
to use blogging as a way to generate traffic. Many people choose to
blog on a different website such as HubPages and then link to their
website. This works. However, another good way is to include a
Blog section on your website. People who are interested in your
website content may subscribe to your blogs which means even
more hits and traffic generation to your sites.
75. Don’t forget about SEO- blogging is, essentially, SEO article writing.
It is much less informal and much more fun- however, it still follows
the same rules surrounding content, links and keywording. So make
sure you re-read the above tips on “Article Marketing” and “SEO
Marketing” when writing your blogs.
76. Yahoo Answers- whenever someone types a question into a search
engine, Yahoo Answers usually comes up. Check out Yahoo Answers
and see what questions have been asked in your niche category.
Then, answer them and include a link. This is a great way to gain
free publicity and market yourself as an expert. Another good
resource is Wiki Answer.
77. Keep informed with the world- one of the best ways to generate
traffic through blogging is to write something that is new to the web
world. Watch the news, subscribe to updates and keep your ears
open for stories that are related to your website’s product or
service.
78. Stay within your Niche- another important thing to consider when
blogging is that you will need to always write about something
related to your website. Sure, it might be fun to write about the
latest Michael Jackson scandal, but how is that helping your website
on massage therapy? If you can find an angle and link the two
together, then you have just uncovered a great traffic generation
secret.
79. Include blog interviews- interviewing someone in the field of choice
is a great way to gain traffic to your blog. Sure, it may not be an
interview with Brad and Angelina, but a well known figure in your
niche market will get the traffic you want. Interviews are unique
and they are informative. They make great blog material.
Additional Traffic Generation Tips
Now that you understand the basics in SEO, PPC, social media and article
marketing, it’s time to use the rest of the World Wide Web to generate
traffic. There are plenty of other ways to gain traffic with simple little
tricks of the traffic trade.
These traffic generation tips are straightforward and easy to do;
furthermore, they can boost your website traffic heaps. Some are as
simple as opening your mouth while others take a little more effort.
However, one thing is for sure, these additional traffic generation tips will
get your website noticed and fast!
80. Tell your friends, tell your neighbors, tell your family- it is one of
the simplest tips we can give you, but it cannot be overlooked. At
family dinners, discuss your website and ask for input. Many people
will have a quick look and, if they like what they see, they will most
likely recommend it to friends who could use your products. Word of
mouth is a simple, yet powerful tool.
81. Analyse- you need to know who is visiting your site in order to
make the most out of your traffic generation marketing strategy.
Google Analytics is free to use and can tell you the demographics of
who is visiting your site. This is vital information for ROI and niche
market campaigning.
82. Use RSS feeds- syndicate your sites content with RSS feeds which
can keep your clients updated on the latest news and sales.
83. Use aggregator sites- Aggregator sites will have your content all
over the net. Sites such as Feedburner, Squidoo, Feedboy and
Jordomedia are great RSS feed syndicators.
84. Offer a monthly newsletter and mailing subscription list- mailing
lists are great ways to keep your customers coming back to your
site. This is an important aspect of gaining traffic- after all,
recurring customers are often your most loyal and best customers.
Offering a monthly e-letter to a subscribed mailing list will keep
your customers connected with their favorite products. Offer great
content, sales, new products and lots of pictures to keep your
customers happily reading and visiting your site. And, don’t forget
to include plenty of links!
85. Use free search engine site directories- the most important aspect
of generating traffic on the site is making use of the search engines.
You can submit your site to free search engine friendly directories,
you just need to know where to look. Start your search at “Info
Vilesilencer” which can give you a great list of all free search engine
directories.
86. Discover the benefits of Craigslist- Craigslist offers free advertising
so why not? Advertise your website on Craigslist and you just never
know you might stumble onto your site. Craigslist is one of the most
popular resources to find just about anything.
87. Launch a video- YouTube and Google Video are both great
resources to submit a relevant video that links back to your site.
Essentially, it’s like free television advertising. Videos that are
controversial or humorous are often the ones most clicked.
88. Include a video on your site- another great idea to generate traffic
is to include a video on your site. A ‘how to’ video, a ‘tips and tricks’
power point presentation or anything else that is visual can gain a
lot of attention. Many people also choose to use an interactive
person speaking directly to the client; however, a lot of people hate
these things with a passion so it’s best to tread lightly.
89. Submit a site map to Google- if you use XML site map, then you can
submit it to Google, which can bring you a lot of traffic. Google can
easily find your pages relevant to different site searches.
90. Donate money to a charity- if you donate money to a charity, they
will include a link back to your website on their thank you website.
This can be a great way to receive free publicity, plus you are
helping a good cause.
91. Use Flickr- upload some product photos to Flickr and other free
photography sites. That way, when someone searches for an image
related to your product, they will find your product and your site.
Flickr is a type of social networking that can have great benefits to
your traffic generation. Keep in mind that there are more things to
search for than just content. With Flickr, you are taking advantage
of the multi-level facets of the Internet.
92. Use Favicon- Upload a favicon.gif file so that your users have a nice
icon when they bookmark your site. This is a simple yet effective
tool that can make a lot of difference. It’s the small things that
count, after all.
93. Keep in Simple- there are so many different scripting types out
there. However, the best is still CSS for control layout, style and
color, and HTML for text. If you want to go into the heavy weights
such as Flash and Java, then make sure you include a “skip intro”
section during your big introduction debut. Although some people
want to sit through a 30 second trailer, most just want to get to the
product.
Re-Vamping your Website
You’ve learned the tricks of the trade on how to generate traffic with
article marketing, blogging, PPC and SEO; however, now you need to put
it all together. Getting people to click onto your site is one step- the next
step is re-vamping your website to make it traffic-worthy. You are re-
releasing your website back into cyber space. To make sure you are ready
for the grand cyber-opening, follow these heavy weight traffic-generating
tips.
94. Conduct a survey- everyone wants to put in their two cents and
with a survey, they can. You can conduct a survey about your niche
both on and off line. Publish the results on your website.
95. Bookmark- Add a De.lic.ious, Facebook and any other bookmark to
your website for easy access from social networking to your
webpage.
96. Include Forums or Comments for your clients- another great way to
generate traffic on your site is to include a customer-friendly forum
or comment center where your customers can put in their two
cents. Ask questions, set up online chat rooms or games and give
your niche market a reason to come to your site. If they are a part
of the action, they will most likely visit.
97. Include testimonials- let your potential customers see what others
have said about your product or service. Testimonials can help your
customers make that final decision about what to do- although the
traffic is already there, testimonials help push this traffic into actual
profit and sales.
98. Offer something for free (if you can) - everyone loves free stuff. A
website that offers free goods is a website that gains traffic. Think
of it like this- more people are likely to stop by a Baked Goods store
if they are offering a small sample table where they can taste a
piece of Danish. You cannot exactly give away Danishes in cyber
space. However, you can give away information such as eBooks or
online coupons to use in stores or through the e-cart checkout. Be
creative.
99. Make sure your contact information is widely available- many people
use the Internet as their yellow page directory. Often they are
simply using your website as a way to find your store location or
your contact information. So include this important information on
the main page, bolded so everyone can easily see it.
100. Change the content frequently- make sure you are always updating
your websites. This is important as a way to compete with the other
constantly changing World Wide Web. Set up a certain time once a
week or once a month where you completely re-vamp your website.
Keep the logistics the same (for easy navigation), but feature
different products, offer different sales, and include a news feed
with various publications and events.
101. Offer various ways to contact you- phone is not good enough
anymore. More people are turning to the web for contact
information. So, instead of just including a phone number, you need
to include an email address, Skype, MSN and anything else that you
are a part of.
102. Pictures, pictures and more pictures- websites with pictures are
proven to be more successful. In fact, aim for at least one to two
pictures on every webpage. Pictures bring color and vividness to
your website. If you have a catalogue of various products, make
sure you include pictures of these different products. This is a great
way to multiply your traffic and your ROI.
103. Make your website user-friendly- perhaps Granny is not going to be
your main niche market; however, consider the fact that not
everyone grew up in the cyber-savvy world. Some of your
customers may not be familiar with browsing, YouTube, Facebook
and other Internet phenomena’s. That’s why you need to ensure
that your website is as simple and easy to use as possible. If it’s
not, no one, not even the super-savvy will put in the effort to find
what they are looking for. They will simple click onto the next
search option on the list.
104. Create a Custom 404 page- no one likes to see that ugly ‘Page
Error” page. With a custom 404 page you can re-direct your
customers somewhere nice if there is a broken link or the web
hosting is down. This is much nicer than that annoying ‘Error’ page.
105. Set up a 301 re-direct page- another great idea is to get a 301 re-
direct page that can take traffic from your non www. Address to
your www address. Some web hosting companies offer 301 re-
direct pages with their plans. However, you can also search online
for 301 re-direct page options.
106. Use an easy to navigate menu option- there is nothing more
frustrating than having to look for the information that should be
right in front of you. Make it simple by always including a Menu tab
on the left hand side, or across the top. Your customers do not want
to waste their time scanning through pages trying to find what they
want. So keep it simple!
107. Spell check- avoid silly errors by spell checking all content that goes
on your site. If you don’t, then you can end up looking
unprofessional. Furthermore, it’s incredibly annoying to have to go
back, edit and re-launch because of the wrong ‘there.’ So get it
right the first time and spell check.
108. Buy enough hosting- there are many different web-hosting plans
out there. In fact, it is quite overwhelming picking the right
company and web-hosting plan. Make sure you choose something
that offers enough bandwidth per month that your customers will
not have to succumb to a slow website. If you find the website is
simply too slow, upgrade or think of switching web hosting
companies to something a little more advanced and reliable.
109. Respond quickly to enquiries- if someone emails you looking for
answers give them the answers they need, in less than 24 hours.
You need to be on the ball when it comes to email enquiries.
110. AND FINALLY.... Test your site- it’s one of the simplest tips we can
offer you, but it’s also one of the most important. You need to make
sure everything is absolutely 110 percent perfect before you launch.
Even if you combine all 109 of the above tips, if you miss out this last tip,
then it’s all wasted. After all, website traffic generation starts at your
website- so test it to ensure that it’s working the way you want it to work,
each and every click.