Are you questioning how to get more website traffic? It can be frustrating to see your incoming traffic stagnating when you don’t know how to fix it. So what should you do to make 2020 different?
Patience and persistence are key. While it would be nice to achieve an instant turnaround, you need a long-term approach to stand out from all the others in your industry who are vying for the same customers’ attention. The good news is that a lot of businesses won’t bother, or be patient enough, and they’ll suffer for it. So if you put in the groundwork now, you’ll reap the rewards down the track.
We compiled 5 actionable strategies from leading providers of SEO services in Melbourne that will help you:
STEP 1: Develop quality content
Here’s what you need to know:
- It’s all about linkable assets:
“Linkable assets are simply awesome pages on your site that you can leverage for links over and over (and over) again. However, because they have to be phenomenal, they aren’t easy to make. That means you want each one that you create to be a hit.” – Neil Patel, Quick Sprout
- Mediocre content won’t help you:
As Neil says, it has to be phenomenal! When you’re developing your audience, you have to be producing quality content that’s interesting. Brian Dean developed the Skyscraper Technique based on these key steps:
Find link-worthy content
Make something even better
Reach out to the right people.
- There are paid tools to help you:
Buzzsumo and Ahrefs identify the most shared and linked content across the web, providing real information about what works: it removes the guess work and clearly identifies what content is valuable.
STEP 2. Syndication
Syndication is the process of publishing your content across other, third-party websites (often social media) to increase its impact.
Here’s what you need to know:
- A single piece of high-value content can go a long way:
Syndication is a no-brainer. It will increase your reach while creating important links back to your website, which is good for Google and good for your audience.
- Video is the ultimate form of content for syndication:
Before you dismiss video as too difficult or time consuming, take a closer look. Once you see how far it can reach, you’ll can see how valuable that time and effort really is:
- One single video can be distributed to multiple platforms (think YouTube, Vimeo and Facebook).
- It can be broadcast live while you’re making it (think Periscope, Meerkat)
- The audio is an instant podcast (hello Sound Cloud, iTunes and Stitcher)
- Transcribe the text for blogs or LinkedIn
- Take quotes, images and infographics and use them everywhere (Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest…).
STEP 3: PR and Guest Blogging
Guest blogging is the process of creating content for a website other than your own.
What you need to know:
- It builds authority and credibility:
You’re looking for opportunities to connect with other websites in your industry. This helps build authority and credibility for your business, and any links back help your website and drive new visitors to you.
- Quality is still key:
It’s not just about any content, on any site. You need to be looking for sites that are relevant and respected, and that your audience will value.
- Again, there are tools to help you:
Check out SourceBottle: list the categories that you want to provide comment on, and then get notifications when opportunities come up.
You might be interested in our SEO link building guide for beginners.
STEP 4: Be proactive when it comes to outreach
The ‘publish and pray’ approach is over – you can no longer just put out content and hope for the best. The reality is nothing will happen: over 2 million blog posts are created daily, and a single Facebook user may be exposed to up to 1,500 pieces of content per day. So once your content is up, you have to be proactive.
What you need to know:
- Once you’ve syndicated (Step 3), start reaching out directly. Use email, talk to people in person or make contact on social media. This outreach is highly recommended, and you can use tools such as Ahrefs, Followerwonk and Buzzsumo to find out who you should be developing relationships with.
- Pay for amplification: Make the most of opportunities to pay for promotion through different avenues like Facebook or remarketing.
Step 5: Spend money to make money
Before you start, pinpoint exactly what it is you want to achieve, and this will help determine which avenue will be best for you. For example, do you need more leads, brand awareness or simply more points of contact with an already existing audience?
What you need to know:
- There are two distinct models of advertising online: Intent (Google) versus demographic (for example Facebook). While Google can put you right in front of someone when they are looking to purchase, Facebook and other social platforms can give you granular control to pinpoint your exact audience. Some examples include
- When selling a local service:
Intent options include using AdWords to target specific searches e.g. plumbing services Melbourne.
- When selling a product (e-Book):
Demographic options on Facebook mean you can target users with an interest in your book topic.
- When selling a product (e.g. shoes)
Remarketing options allow you to continue targeting your website visitors and remind them of products they were interested in.
- Building Brand awareness
Remarketing means you can target existing visitors with ongoing content and increase their awareness of your range and brand trust.
- Even if your budget is small, it’s imperative that you track your spend and analyse the results to know what’s working and what’s not.
In 2020, content is still the backbone of traffic-building strategies, but your success will be determined by your perseverance with these strategies and ability to generate valuable content for your market. The help of an experienced digital marketing agency can also keep you on track and give you peace of mind that you’re going to get the results you want.
