xxxGenerating Traffic to your Site
Lots of people ask me how I manage to generate so much traffic to my websites and so in this coaching session I am going to take you through the process I use. Basically, I've found there's no magic, it's simply creating a lot of content rich sites that link to each other. No trickery/tons of pages needed.... it's all simply working smart to create a lot of genuine content, that's linked together out there..
I have tried nearly all the different tricks and shortcuts there are however my most successful sites that generate traffic day after day and year after year follow these simple strategies.
Recently I have spoken to many of the top marketers and web designers and they mostly use what I am going to show you. Here is a quick post I took off a forum which summarises the system precisely by a good friend of mine Ken Calhoun. Ken is putting on the Mega Seminar in July which I have been invited to speak at. Come join me and for more information see below.
TIP: I have Zero cloaking or false-type pages, none of those template type pages, they're all content pages only; done by hand, added over time.
To make this process easier, eg write separate htm pages with articles in them, and add to your site, eg a page a week or whatever. 2-3 years later, you'll have a few hundred real pages on your site. Very immune to google dances, since it's Real content, which is what's needed ... not false SE trickery stuff like the automatic page making programs out there. Never used those myself.
It's surprising to me that many people want to try and trick search engines and put up fake pages, instead of simply working hard, honestly, adding real content/value to the online community. It's rewarding in so many ways, to do it right, vs trying to get shortcuts. Hard work pays off.
Traffic Strategies
Running my websites is something I want to be able to do for many years so my strategies are always based on building sustainable long lasting sites that will grow and develop over the years and not just be one hit wonders.
I see so many people coming online looking for the shortcuts only to find them complaining in forums a few months later because it did not work out for them. The Internet is like any other medium and unless you add content to your site then eventually the search engines will change how they rank you and you will slip into obscurity.
Just imagine tuning into a TV or radio station and just hear adds all the time. Now there are a couple of programs that have majored on this theme and done well but percentage wise they are negligible. Websites are no different.
The Internet is called the information highway and so obviously the key ranking feature of any website whether it be business or social is information. All the search engines and traffic generators will base your relevance on the information you provide. It still is and always will be the best way to generate traffic to your site.
How to Create or Get Content
For the purposes of this coaching we'll define content as the stuff people come to see. (Or hear) If you're not giving people a compelling reason to visit, they won't.
There is great competition for eyeballs on the Internet that increases with every site that's launched. As Einstein said, "Content = Weight". Many visitors to your site may not otherwise know you, so the content you post may be their only way to gauge your legitimacy. The more content you add to your site, the more weight you give to your implied argument that visitors should use your services, buy your products, or subscribe to your newsletter.
As always, you have to look at your audience to determine why they might visit your site.
Many of you are writers by nature; you already have plenty of articles to post on your site, or you can choose to create fresh material. If you find yourself in this group, consider yourself lucky. You may be able to turn this desire to write into a weekly or monthly column that can be sent out as an email newsletter, as well as posted to your site.
Even if you're not the world's greatest writer, people may still be interested in what you have to say if you've got knowledge in a particular area. They may overlook poor grammar, bad puns, and self-serving rhetoric to uncover information that could be of use to them. After all, you're still reading this, right?
Putting Your Visitors to Work For You
There's another way of creating content if you don't feel you have the time or the skills to bake something from scratch. Ask your visitors.
If you're just launching a Web site you may choose to include an F.A.Q. (which stands for Frequently Asked Questions). To start, you can come up with a few questions that you think the average visitor might ask, and create your own answers, no matter how self-serving they may be. This content then gets posted to your site.
By adding an online form, or even a simple email link, you can empower your visitors to ask their own questions. Add a disclaimer asking permission to use their questions (with or without their names) and you have a steady stream of fresh content to add to your site or newsletter.
The nice feature of the F.A.Q. or Ask the Wizard is that you don't need a lot of traffic to start one. It's the perfect solution for new sites.
Bulletin Board Systems (BBS) a.k.a. Message Boards
If you have enough traffic the BBS may be for you. It is also an important tool for community building. Visitors can post questions and comments at your site that can be viewed publicly. Both you and other visitors can post replies to these comment, thus creating a "thread". This is a compelling reason for return visits as people will want to see the replies to their post. There is a plethora of different ways to configure the BBS software depending on your needs. You can allow anyone to read or post messages, require them to log in first, or add private forums where only invitees can enter.
Chat Rooms
The chat room is not something to be entered into lightly. It requires a large amount of regular traffic to your site. Many clients come to us with requests for chat rooms, but we advise them to crawl before they sprint. Although many people point to AOL's huge number of chat rooms as an example that chat rooms work, AOL's dirty little secret is that the popular chat rooms are all adult-oriented. (So I've read; I don't have any first hand experience and you can't prove that I do.) For an example of what an under-utilized chat room might feel like, walk into an empty room, close the door behind you and start a conversation. A chat room with only one visitor is even worse than an empty one.
Article Repositories
To get you started there is also a great resource on the net where writers post articles that you can use for free. Usually the only stipulation is that you add their by-line in the article promoting their product or service.
These article sites have articles on almost everything you could think of from business to finance, health social issues etc.
Of course you can use these sites to also submit your own articles which others will also use in their web sites or newsletters and generate even more traffic.
What's the difference between an article directory and an article bank?
Article directories are one-way places on a Web site where the site's owner lists their articles. Here you can read the articles and sometimes these articles are available as free or paid content for publishers.
Article banks are two-way Web sites or pages within a Web site. They are places where authors "deposit" articles to invest and where lenders "take" the article to use. The "interest" someone pay for using an article consists of a bio or resource box. Each article bank site includes guidelines for authors and potential publishers. Authors retain first rights - retain ownership - to articles placed on article banks. Some article bank sites publish e-zines that include recently submitted articles, ad swap requests and/or an "articles wanted" area, too. You'll find many article bank Web sites listed below. If you know of a bank I've missed please send them to me.
For Authors
Are you a new writer? Gifted writer? Business owner who enjoys writing? Writing can be an excellent way to market services or products with little capital outlay. Any article posted to an article bank includes copyright year, name of author, short author bio (sometimes called a resource box), and a link to the author's Web site at the end of each article. Some article bank sites or publishers may also request the authors' picture and/or logo, too.
A few words of caution for authors.
- Never give blanket permission to anyone to use your articles. Not an article bank, Web site or author. Instead, set boundaries and your articles will appear in places you'd enjoy visiting. When someone requests to use your article, check their Web site or request a copy of their e-zine. If you don't like the Web site, the product or whatever - remember to say "no"!
- If you don't always catch your own writing mistakes consider hiring a Virtual Assistant or Copywriter to assist you with proof reading, submitting articles, or even keeping track of places your article appears.
- Place your articles on your Web site as a way for your potential clients or publishers to get to know you a better. If you provide your articles for free, make sure that your bio includes a link to your Web site or e-zine information. Also include an easy way for anyone to request permission to use your article as text or to copy the code directly from your Web site (if you allow that).
For Publishers
Articles banks are for you if you don't enjoy writing or are looking for some extra content for your e-zine, magazine, Web site, e-book, etc. With the permission of an article's author and some times the article bank owners themselves, you will be provided with free content. In return, the author will provide you with copyright information, a brief bio and link to their Web site. Many of the sites below contain both article banks and e-zine directories. When you visit article banks, look for the other services that the site owner provides for you as a publisher and utilize the other helpful services, too. If you find yourself using an article bank over and over again, consider providing a link from your site to their site - maybe on a "recommended links" page. It's an excellent way to thank the site owner for providing such a valuable resource.
One of our newsletter readers has a great site for articles. Visit him here at http://EzineArticles.com/
I cannot guarantee that all the links are valid at time of publishing.
- Format: Word Processing Document, Wrapped
- http://www.topten.org/- Top Ten Lists on personal, career and business subjects. Sends out top ten lists.
- http://www.marketing-seek.com/ - Business and marketing articles only.
- http://www.selfgrowth.com/ - Self Improvement and Personal Growth.
- http://www.ultimateprofits.com/ - Easy to use web site. Clear and to the point! web site
- http://www.jogena.com/articles/content.htm - Business and marketing articles only
- http://www.makingprofit.com/mp/ - Very professional site for article content, book and e-zine directory, too.
- http://womans-net.com/submit.php - Most subjects of interest to women.
- www.upromote.com/newsletter/submit.html - WebMasters, Web Marketers, and IT articles only.
- http://www.business-dynamics.com/cgi-bin/resource_library/add.cgi Business, marketing and professional articles.
- http://www.goarticles.com/ - Article search engine contains a wide variety of article topics and information for writing articles, e-zines & e-books.
- http://www.vectorcentral.com/articles-form.html - Professional looking and accepts all type of articles under 800 words.
- www.boconline.com/sub-art.htm - Form requests a link to your article. If you article is accepted at this site, you will receive a year's worth of free advertising.
- http://articlecentral.com/cat.asp - Articles pertaining to all areas of web design and programming. Link your articles from a web page to this site, for review.
- http://www.allnetarticles.com/submitarticle.aspAccepts a large variety of articles.
- www.clickforcontent.com/link_to_us_php.htmMost business subjects, html or text.
- http://www.family-content.com/articles/submit.shtmlMost subjects.
- www.shoppingwithwomen.com/Articles/index.htm
- www.webmomz.com/resources_article-directory.shtmlMost subjects.
- Format: Document With A Little HTML Code Allowed, Wrapped
- Format: E-mail only, 60 Characters Per Line
- Place a Link From Your Article To This Bank
Writers Resources (In alpha order)
Well I hope this really gives you some food for thought. I have been doing this for a number of years now and it has always proven a better source of traffic than any other form of promotion.
Expect Success
Quentin Brown
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