Not all traffic is created equal. In fact – a lot of it is worthless. If you want to make your blog or website a success, you need to make sure you’re getting the right sort of traffic. In this article, I’m going to show you how to un-tap a few streams of good quality, highly-motivated traffic that’s more likely to spend money at your site.
When I first started in internet marketing – I thought more was always better. I was wrong. While you do want to get as much traffic as possible – you need to make sure it’s good traffic. Some types of traffic are nothing more than a waste of bandwidth.
What if I told you that a few simple tweaks to your marketing and optimisation efforts could give you steady, active traffic that was already switched-on to your message and more likely to make a sale?
Why is some traffic worthless?
Some people are simply looking for a free ride. If someone arrives at your site after searching for a keyword like “free download” – they’re not looking to spend money. These are the types of traffic you want to avoid.
Equally, if you “tricked” someone into coming to your site with worthless clickbait – and they arrive expecting something completely different, it’ll have been a waste of both yours and their time. You want traffic that knows what they’re looking for – and you need to be the site giving them what they wanted.
While paid traffic can work – you need to tread carefully and make sure it’s from a relevant, quality source. Lots of people have email lists full of addresses that have been relentlessly spammed. The people on those lists, if they haven’t unsubscribed, are probably so over-spammed that they ignore everything in their inbox – or don’t even log-in to that account any more.
How long-tail keywords could help fine-tune your audience
While some long-tail keyword additions deliver you the wrong sort of traffic, some actually goes in the other direction and gives you the sort of visitors you want. Active, engaged traffic that wants what you have to offer. These are the sorts of keyword additions you want target.
One of the best ones for this is “discount”. People searching for a discount know that they’re going to be spending money soon. They just want to see if they can save a bit before they do so, naturally. Not only do these people know that they’re going to be spending, they’ll also be extra motivated if you can be the person delivering exactly what they want – that discount.
You can also try other additions like the current year. There’s so much outdated information on the internet, people add that to make sure they’re getting something relevant and up-to-date.
Here’s another tip that might seem counter-intuitive but can actually work. Add “scam” or “legit” to your keywords. You might want to avoid the negative connotations – but people also search for these sorts of things when they’ve just heard about a new product and are not sure whether it’s really legit. If you can be there to convince them – they could be close to a sale.
Source: https://neilpatel.com/blog/how-to-generate-long-tail-keywords-using-quora-and-google-trends/
Why becoming an authority in your niche sets you apart from the crowd and offers exactly what your visitors want
Not only does targeting niche, long-tail keywords help you get active, motivated traffic – it also gives you people who’ll be super-targeted to what you’re offering. They might have typed in that niche search term thinking nobody was going to be offering what they wanted. When they find your site, they’ll be pleased and surprised – giving you an extra step up the conversion ladder and giving you an instantly loyal customer (hopefully).
Why you can’t ignore the benefits of creating great content
Most successful websites are built around great quality content these days. There’s no shortcut here. You might have been able to trick people with spammy, worthless rubbish in the past – but if you want to be a success, you really need to offer quality.
Great content speaks for itself and gets people to come back to your site regularly. Not only that, but quality content helps market itself by becoming sharable on social media. If you can get your visitors to “like” your posts, they’ll spread the message to their extended friend list – giving you more potential visitors (and customers).
With really good content you can also build a number of valuable relationships with other authorities in your niche, on a content syndication basis. Offer them something of value that their visitors will like, and you’ll get a great backlink as well as relevant residual traffic that’s already switched on to your message.
How to make your traffic even more targeted to specific offers
If you’ve got different sources of traffic, you might want to try custom landing pages for each one. For example, certain keywords take people to your free report funnel, other traffic ends up at your discount page while syndicated traffic lands on your main site. This is a great way to get extra-relevant traffic exactly where it’s supposed to be – maximise sales possibilities and reducing wasted traffic dropping off.
Here’s another thing – don’t assume anything when it comes to landing pages and site design. Test everything. Repeatedly. You might think you know which layout or design converts the most traffic, but you won’t really know unless you’ve tested all the options.
Source: https://www.optimizely.com/ab-testing/
Other traffic conversion tips to take your site to the next level
Here are a few more tips that should increase conversion rates and make sure you’re making the most of your traffic…
Make sure your calls to action are clear and above the fold
Far too many sites bury their calls to action or make it unclear what they want visitors to do. Additional ads on your page could be good for a bit of extra cash – but make sure they’re not a distraction that takes people away from your main offer.
If you want someone to sign up for your list – make it clear and above the fold. If you want someone to click through to an affiliate – make it clear and above the fold. You get the picture.
Make sure what your offering has clear and unique value
Don’t assume people know why what you’re offering is good for them. Tell them. Tell them why it’s better than what everyone else is offering and what it could do for them. Spell it out simply and concisely.
Short forms
If you want people to opt-in or complete a form for further information – make it as simple and easy to do as possible. Far too many sites have complicated forms that are too rigid to follow. What if someone has a request that doesn’t fit your pre-conceived notion of what a request should be on your forms? Leave your form open-ended. Those complicated forms with 10 different fields turn people away – losing you potential visitors and sales.
Sticky widgets
Hopefully you’re creating long, compelling blog posts that people have to scroll down to finish. One thing about having normal sidebar opt-in widgets is that they often stay at the top of the page when people scroll further down. Use sticky widgets to get around this, so that your opt-in panel is always there.
Relevant testimonials from authorities
If someone’s said something good about your business – let people know. If it’s a recognisable brand or authority in your niche, even better. Make it clear and obvious that other people support and recommend what you’re doing.
You can take this a step further by doing testimonial exchanges with other popular businesses. Provide a testimonial for them in return for a link back to your site. You can do the same for them.
Hopefully these tips are enough to get your started on your way to converting more traffic and getting the right sort of visitor for your site.
