What’s The *~%# DOES It Take To Get Site Visitors?
The thing I love about blogs is the opportunity to share your knowledge with others to assist them in becoming successful.
I read a lot of information on the web, some I take on board, some I reject. Not because the advice is not sound, but because it may be difficult to implement their suggestions right now (financially and technically). This seems to be common with “newbie” website entrepreneurs.
One of my readers posted a comment to my blog article “How to Get Your Site Visitors NOT Doing What You Want” asking how do they get their website noticed.
There is no one step answer to this question. In fact it’s hard work! However there are many ways which (when you combine them together) you can drive visitors to your site. I will give you my top 4 ways to get your website noticed. Just keep reading…
What we know for sure is that unless you ARE known, the first port of call for anyone looking for answers to their problem (after all we all “search to solve a problem”) is the search engines (aka Google, Yahoo, MSN, etc)
What you do want is to be visible in the search engine listings, and preferably on page 1 or 2 of the search results for your site keywords.
This in itself is a huge ask. Many factors go into getting a PR1 or PR2 in the search listings. I have come to the conclusion that you have to be well versed in website SEO (Search Engine Optimization), have the right keywords for your site (after thorough research using something like Wordtracker), be constantly adding new information (like in the form of a blog), and include a site map.
All of this takes time, education and money (how much of each usually depends on finances).
Or.. you can use Google Adwords to do the same thing without the depth needed to get an “organic search result”.
I won’t go into Google Adwords here – suffice to say that it’s Google’s advertising juggernaut which returns “sponsored listings” to search engine queries based on the keywords used in the search term.
Yes it costs you money, however given the unlikelihood of getting PR1 or PR2 listings of your website through “organic” means (believe me… there are website owners out there whose sole purpose is to tweak their sites until they crack they PR1/PR2 ranking), this is definitely an avenue to explore.
Getting your hands on as much information as you can about how to utilize Adwords to give you the maximum ROI (return on investment) just makes sense. No point throwing good money down the drain because you don’t understand how it works. Advertising is a known medium for driving customers to buy. It’s no different for websites.
Tell A Friend
There’s nothing quite like viral marketing to spread the word. Every website should have the means to tell others about the site and thereby drive more traffic to the site. I wrote about this is a previous blog post.
Affiliates & Joint Venture Partners
Another way to get your site noticed is to bring affiliates on board who can promote your site to their subscribers. Check out what other successful websites in your niche are doing. Look to see if they have affiliate programs.
When launching a website it is possible to search out partners to joint venture with to increase your exposure.
Let me give you an example.
I have a friend who I did a website for her to sell an e-book. She is an accomplished travel agent with a wealth of knowledge only a travel agent could give in her e-book. I suggested to her to partner with an eBay powerseller (one who sells a lot).
Simply look for a powerseller who sells travel goods, write a quick email asking if they would be interested in sending out an email to their list promoting her e-book with a cut of the purchase price going back to the Powerseller. Just be careful how you approach them as you don’t want to be in violation of Ebay rules and have your account terminated.
Print Media Advertising
Offline Print Media can be a great way to boost your exposure. If your site is in a niche, seek out niche publications to advertise in. Make sure you track your advertising so you know what works and what doesn’t. Don’t put in small classifieds in publications. Far better to save up and go for a decent size advertisement which has all the elements of good sales copy (sell the benefits!!) to entice the reader to act.
Branding
I couldn’t finish this post without mentioning product branding. We can all see that product branding works (you only have to think McDonald’s).
Branding a website starts with using consistency. Same colours, same logo, same tagline, same, same, same.
Brand your website where ever possible. Put your website details on business cards, letterheads, email signatures, promotional material, all advertising, posters, banners… anywhere where you can put your website details put it!
Getting your site noticed does take time, effort and energy. Consistently applying the methods which I have shared with you above will pay dividends.