Traffic is the lifeblood of any business. Without it, you won’t have any visitors to your blog posts, videos, landing pages, sales pages etc.
In other words, no traffic equals no leads or sales, so it is an essential skill to muster.
You need to consider whether you want to use free or paid traffic, although nothing is really free, because organic traffic is time consuming, whereas paid traffic is instant, but you will need a budget to run enough paid ads to get any viable metrics that you can use.
Basically, before you jump in, you need to do some planning first. Read on to learn how to develop a solid website traffic strategy.
Before you start bringing traffic to your site, you’ll want to determine your overall goals. Specifically, what are your overall goals in terms of revenue and sales?
You need to figure this out first, and then in a moment, you’ll determine how much traffic you need to achieve your goals.
Note: these numbers need to be realistic. While you may want $10 million this year, that’s not realistic if you’re still new to online marketing. You may find a goal like $100,000 (and the traffic required to get to that number) more realistic.
Now that you have your overall goals, your next step is to work backwards to determine traffic and conversion specifics to achieve these goals.
Here are the questions you need to ask yourself:
The point is, don’t just pick a traffic goal out of thin air. Do some realistic calculations to determine how much traffic you need, minimally, to achieve your goals.
It’s a good idea to add at least 20% to your estimates as a cushion, as most people underestimate the traffic they need to obtain to achieve their goals.
Now that you know how much traffic you need, you can start setting specific traffic goals for the year as a whole, for each month, and even for each week.
Be sure your traffic goals include the following characteristics:
For example, “I want more traffic by the end of this month” is not specific nor measurable. Instead, you’d set a goal such as “I’d like to increase traffic by 25% this month.” (Naturally, you’d know what your baseline traffic number is, so that you know exactly how much traffic you need to reach the 25%.)
The next part of your planning is to determine where you’re going to send your traffic, and what you want this traffic to do when they arrive at the destination. Take note that you’ll likely send traffic to a variety of links, and you’ll want the traffic to do different things at each of these destinations.
Common destinations include:
And similar.
Be sure to create a specific plan for how much traffic you want to send to each destination. For example, you might send the majority of your traffic to a variety of relevant lead pages, and then send some traffic directly to sales pages.
As you’re creating ads and content to drive traffic, keep in mind that not all prospects are in the same place in their buyer’s journey. That means you need to create content that appeals to people in these three stages:
Next…
Another factor to take into consideration when developing your traffic strategy is what part of your sales funnel will you be promoting?
There are 3 main parts to a sales funnel, namely top, middle and bottom.
As the prospects move down the funnel, the numbers decrease, but their receptivity increases.
A basic funnel looks like this:
Not everyone is going to follow your sales funnel exactly. For example, some people may start by buying your core offer or even your backend offer.
As such, you need to consider your funnel and the path most people will take as you develop a traffic strategy (and how you’re going to allocate that traffic throughout your funnel).
You don’t necessarily want to send all your traffic to sales pages. In most cases, it’s wiser to send traffic to your lead pages.
That way, you can build your platform – and then use your email list to send your traffic wherever you want.
Before you start creating a traffic strategy, it’s a good idea to determine how much money you have to invest in this strategy. Primarily your investment will be put towards two things:
After you determine how much you can invest per month, then you’ll need to allocate these funds (e.g., X% to paid ads and Y% to outsourcing). The exact allocation depends on your needs and budget.
You don’t need to implement your traffic strategy yourself, as you can outsource all or part of it. For example, you can hire someone to:
And so on. The exact needs you have will depend on the traffic strategy you develop, but you’ll want to start thinking early on about what parts you might be interested in outsourcing.
If you have a limited outsourcing budget (as most of us do), then you’ll need to decide what to outsource. Consider these points:
Next…
There are multiple ways to find freelancers to help you with your traffic-generation activities. These methods include:
PeoplePerHour.com, Upwork.com, Freelancer.com,
Fiverr.com or similar.
Next…
Ultimately, you’re going to have plenty of traffic methods included in your overall traffic strategy. However, a big key to your success is to keep it simple.
Start with ONE traffic method. Study this traffic method so that you understand it. Implement the traffic method and refine your method as needed.
Once you’ve got one traffic method up, running and delivering results for you, then you can add another method. But don’t do this until your website traffic rankings are high enough to justify it.
You can use Google Analytics as a good free website traffic checker, although it can be a little complex due to the mountain of information you get!
So, to put it another way: focus on just one traffic method at a time.
Before advertising, you need to know everything you can about your ideal customer. That way, you can place ads in the right locations, you can select the right keywords and audiences for generating quality traffic, and you can create ads and content that really resonate with the targeted audience.
Here is the type of information to include in your customer avatar:
… And anything else you can dig up that will help you find and connect with your audience.
Here’s how to collect information on your audience:
Next…
Avoid these two common traffic mistakes:
#1, Using non-targeted advertising. Targeting narrower audiences often means you’ll get less traffic from a particular source, but that traffic will be more responsive than a broader audience. This usually results in a better ROI.
#2, Using little-known methods or platforms. For example, if you’re going to place a pay per click ad, then stick with well-known platforms (like Google Ads), as the big platforms combat costly click fraud.
So, you will now be hopefully be generating more traffic to your website, but now you will need to convert that traffic into either leads and/or buyers and we will cover that in another post here.
For your convenience, you can get all the tips mentioned in both posts in a single handy detailed report; just click on the featured resource below, download, read it and take action 🙂
If you’re going to build a list of subscribers and send emails to that list, then you need to select an email service provider.
The key here is that you must select a GOOD provider.
Otherwise, you’re going to have issues with poor deliverability, spam complaints, losing access to your list and more.
Let me make a quick note here. If you do a search for list managers or autoresponders, you’ll quickly discover that you have two options:
A lot of beginners look at option #2 and think it’s a good idea. One benefit is that it’s cheaper, as you generally just pay a fee for the script once, and it’s yours forever. Another benefit is that some folks like the idea of controlling all aspects of their list in any way they choose.
But despite these benefits, there’s one very big downside that trumps them all:
Deliverability.
In a nutshell, if you’re running your own list, then you’re going to spend an incredible amount of time working on deliverability issues.
The point is this lesson is about selecting a third-party email service provider because it’s the best, easiest and safest option for both beginners and seasoned marketers alike.
With that out of the way, let’s take a quick look at what benefits and features you should be seeking in an email service provider. Read on…
There are a lot of email service providers, but they don’t all offer the same level of service. That’s why you’ll want to make sure your provider offers the following:
Great Customer Service
No matter what features and benefits are available, you want to be sure to choose a reputable, well-established ESP (email service provider). The ESP should have multiple customer service options available (such as live chat, email and/or phone), and they should respond quickly.
You’ll also want to check when customer service is available. Is it 24/7? If not, are the available hours during your typical business hours?
Good Uptime
The next thing you want to check for is how often the ESP is up (or, conversely, how often it goes down). Ideally the ESP should communicate in a transparent way if an issue does arise.
For example, Aweber has a status page where you can always check the status and recent history: https://status.aweber.com/
A Focus on Deliverability
A good ESP will devote a significant portion of its staff and resources to deliverability issues. To that end, look for a company that monitors deliverability and works to improve it.
A good ESP will also include a built-in spam checker so that you can tweak your emails to avoid spam folders and filters.
If the company and its customer service look solid, then you can start reviewing the ESP’s features. Here’s what to look for:
See if Templates Are Available
Look for a company that provides both opt-in form templates and email templates. A good company will provide a variety of templates, plus these templates will be “point and click” customizable.
Check for Tracking Tools
Next, see if the ESP offers built-in testing and tracking tools. You should be able to check open rates and clickthrough rates which you can use to track things such as subject lines, calls to action, and more.
Ensure Segmenting is Available
Another good feature you’ll want to look for is the ability to segment your list. Often this is done with “tagging.”
For example, if you want to send out an email to people who’ve purchased a certain product from you, then you can include all recipients who have a “Purchased Product X” tag.
Note that you should also be able to segment based on recent email behavior.
For example, you can pull out a segment of your list who did NOT open your last email. You can then send these folks a follow-up email with a different subject line to see if you can catch their attention and get them clicking.
Look for Automations
You’ll find that automations, if available, are a time-saving feature. You can think of automations as “If – Then” features (if X happens, then Y should occur).
For example, if someone clicks on a link, then that person should get a particular email, or they should be added to a particular segment of your list.
Now that you’ve determined that a potential ESP includes the core features you need, you’ll want to think about any other features that are important.
For example, if you’re already using other tools and platforms, you’ll want to check if your selected email service provider will integrate with the tools or resources. E.G., If you have a shopping cart, see if it integrates with your ESP. (Some do it with just one click, while others will integrate if you do a little technical work.)
Now that you know what to look for in an email service provider, you’ll likely still find it an overwhelming task to select an ESP since there are so many options. As such, you can start your selection process by reviewing some of the top ESPs, including:
The list above is in my personal preference order. Best for marketing and growth in your business is Active Campaign. Best for novices and affiliate marketers is Aweber; either of those will be a great choice.
This is especially important if you are going to be relying on affiliate marketing as your business model because most ESP’s don’t like this particular model due to the fact that most marketers don’t do it correctly and end up spamming their list with offer after offer and provide no value whatsoever.
You don’t want to build your mailing list on a house of cards, which is why it’s important to choose the right email service provider. Use the tutorial above to help you do it!
If you want to know more about building and nurturing your email list, check out the featured resource below where you can get a free report about simple list building to expand your knowledge further. If you do download it, please read it and take action and good luck 😊
Email marketing is a great way to reach out to your customers and keep them updated about your latest products and services. It is also an effective channel for getting feedback from customers.
As, I have said, email marketing is a great tool for communicating with your prospects and customers. But it’s only as good as the copywriting and design. If you want to get better at email copywriting, here are some tips to keep in mind:
But the most important thing of all is to really care for your readers. Don’t just sell for the sake of selling and making a profit or a commission; you must want to help your readers and buyers to overcome the obstacles that they are facing in the niche you are writing in.
Believe me, if you are just out to make money from your list, they will find out and many may unsubscribe; this is the ‘churn and burn’ model that many Internet Marketers unfortunately adopt.
The basics of email copywriting and effective email marketing can be broken down into three core components: the subject line, the body and the call to action.
Email marketing is one of the most popular ways to reach out to your customers and prospects. But, with so many types of emails, it can be hard to know which one is right for your campaign.
Below are the different types of emails you need to know about:
A well written email is a combination of a well-written subject line and opening sentence. It should be short, concise, and to the point. These are important elements as you need to draw the reader in.
The subject line is the first thing your recipients will see when they open their inbox. It should tell them what the email is about without giving too much of the email away.
One of the most important parts of an email is the opening sentence. This will be the first thing your reader reads, and it should be short, concise and make them want to read on. You should also use keywords to grab their attention.
Designing your emails to give them that professional look and feel can be difficult. You want them to look good, but you also want them to be effective. You need to make sure that your design is not too cluttered, but you also need to make sure that it is not too simple either.
The first thing you should do when designing your emails is decide what the purpose of the email is going to be. That will help you decide what type of design will work best for it.
For example, if you are designing an email with a signup form in it, then a simple and clean design would work best so that people can easily fill out the form and get on with their day.
The second thing you will want to do after deciding on the purpose of your email is brainstorm different designs and copy that you can use for your emails. This can help give you ideas on what to include in your email, how to structure the email, and more. The design of your message is important because it can set the tone for the entire email.
The third thing you will want to do after deciding on the purpose of your email is create a template or framework that will help with making sure you’re sending emails correctly and effectively. This should include email subject lines, opening paragraphs and closing paragraphs. Have a good swipe file and make use of it regularly.
A call to action (CTA) is a button or link that encourages the recipient to take an action.
CTA buttons can be placed in a variety of locations, such as the top, bottom, or side of the email. Buttons at the top of an email are most commonly used because they are more visible and less likely to be missed.
The text on your CTA button is important because it needs to speak directly to your audience and encourage them to click it. It should also be short and simple so that it’s easy for them to understand what they will get if they click on it.
Another couple of important element in your emails are scarcity and exclusivity.
Scarcity is very powerful as it works on that fear of missing out (or FOMO) that resides inside every one of us!
Offering exclusive discounts and deals to your readers (and especially previous buyers) is a great way to increase loyalty.
All these things can help your emails to be more successful when you are going for the sale.
In conclusion, it is important to remember that the key to a good email is in the content. The way you format your email will not matter if you don’t have a quality message that connects with the reader. So, before you start formatting your email, make sure that it is properly constructed and has a compelling message.
If you want to know more about building and nurturing your email list, check out the featured resource below where you can get a free report about simple list building to expand your knowledge further. If you do download it, please read it and take action and good luck 😊
Ahh… everybody loves the sound of the word, “Free!”
In this case, free traffic means that you’re not spending money on paid advertising. However, it’s not entirely free, since almost all methods of free traffic require an investment of your time. Since time is money, you’re paying for it even if not a cent leaves your pocket.
Now that we’ve established that time is currency, you’ll realize that to drive ‘free’ traffic, you’ll need to get the most mileage from your efforts. Below, you’ll find a few free methods to drive traffic.
These have been proven to work and yield excellent results. Do note that when trying out any traffic generation method, it’s best to stick with it until you see results. Pick one method, focus on it and go all out.
Do not spread your efforts over several different methods. Your results will be sporadic and elusive if you take this approach.
OK, on with the post…
Social media platforms are excellent places to siphon traffic from. Basically, you’ll be trying to leverage these sites to drive traffic to your own blog.
If you’re using YouTube, your videos and channel will have links in the description pointing curious viewers to your blog.
If you’re using Pinterest, the images will be linked to your blog posts or landing page.
If you’re using Facebook groups/pages, you’ll have posts and links pointing back to your blog.
Build a profile for your blog on the different social media platforms and tap into the massive amounts of traffic there.
Once again, pick just one social media platform and focus on it. This is a mistake that many novices make; they try to be everywhere all at once, but this doesn’t really work. Pick one platform and go all in until you have completely mastered it and are seeing results; only then should you think about trying another platform.
This is a HUGE topic in the make money online niche. Getting ranked organically for highly searched keywords is one of the best ways to drive traffic to your site. The bugbear here is that SEO takes time, and you must have a solid knowledge of it.
Do your keyword research thoroughly and focus on ranking for the easier ‘lower hanging fruit’ keywords. Then you can move on to the more difficult keywords and try ranking for those.
But don’t just write posts for the search engines! People want to read your posts and find them engaging, informative and useful. If you write to satisfy the search engines, you can end up stuffing keywords and the whole article simply doesn’t read well for a human.
So, first and foremost, write for your audience, and optimise later.
This is a method where you create unique content that you’ll give away for free to a relevant site in your niche. You’ll need to approach the site owners with your offer and all you’ll ask for in return is for a backlink to your blog.
You’ll want to pick a site that’s popular, but NOT inundated with posts daily. One or two posts a day is fine. This will give visitors time to read your guest post and check out your blog. If there are too many new posts constantly appearing on the site, your guest post will be drowned out.
This is an old-school method but don’t discount it. You can easily get your post in front of a lot of eyeballs, and if you do a good job, you can get a lot of visitors to your site.
Use a software like Thrive Leads or Conversion Gorilla to create sticky banners, scroll mats, pop ups, etc. to capture the email addresses of visitors to your blog and add them to your autoresponder of choice (I recommend Active Campaign)
Once they’re on your list, you can email them whenever you have a new blog post and this will drive traffic to your blog.
They often say that content is king. The truth is that GOOD content is what matters. The content on your blog should be informative, entertaining, and memorable.
Use catchy titles and headlines. Have internal links in your blog posts so that you increase the ‘stickiness’ of your blog and readers keep clicking on links to learn more from you. This will reduce the bounce rate of your blog and is a good sign to Google that your site is ‘worthy’.
While these pointers are not directly linked to driving traffic, they’re crucial to building your reputation and making you look like an authority in your niche. When you appear to be a serious player in the scene, your blog’s reputation will drive its own traffic.
Now that you know a few ways to drive traffic to your site, you just need to apply them. There are bloggers who have built a six-figure income just by driving traffic from Pinterest to their site.
This is just one platform. Now imagine if you had several working for you. The possibilities are endless. Choose one method and get started with it as soon as you can. Then move on to the next… and the next… and the next.
That’s free traffic generation in a nutshell.
If you really want to know more about the power of blogging, you can take a look at the Rapid Blogging Blueprint training course or if you just want a few pointers for now you can grab the featured resource below for a free blogging report; download, read it and take action 🙂
Email marketing is a powerful tool when used right converting subscribers to paying customers over time. It allows you an opportunity to easily share what you have to offer in a manner in which the subscriber is receptive, but only when it is done correctly.
Let’s have a look at the 8 steps you should use to enjoy email marketing success.
For your email campaign to be a success you need to know what your actual goal is. This allows you to accurately target and measure the success of your goals along the way.
Here are some examples of goals to consider:
The name and email address that you send your email from needs to remain consistent on every single email you send.
That creates brand recognition, and you are less likely to land in spam.
Try to use a custom email address rather than Gmail e.g. YourName@YourBusinessName.com. It looks more professional too.
Your email subject line needs to be a call to action for your subscriber.
They need to immediately know what action is required of them and why.
Remember you only have 45 characters that are visible so make sure that you use them wisely and your message does not get cut off.
Did you know that most people will read an email in under 10 seconds?
Therefore, it is important that you are presenting the most important part of your message at the top of the email.
This is also helpful because it shows as the snippet in the subscribers email program.
Also, make use of bullet points for skim readers.
Your email signature should match the ‘from’ in the email. You should sign the email and include any other information you think the recipient should have such as your phone number, or perhaps your degree is important, or your web address.
Also include social media details if they are appropriate; the more people interact with you, the more likely they will change from a cold prospect into a customer.
It is important that you always test your email on a number of email platforms and on mobile devices, which make up a larger percentage of where email is read.
That way you can make sure that your email is coming through correctly on all platforms.
Most email autoresponders such as Active Campaign will allow you to check what they look like.
Also, sign up for a new campaign yourself with a test email address, to ensure that you receive any welcome emails and any tags are appropriately applied.
Always include the option to view as HTML or text.
This is it! It’s time to send out your email campaign and start to enjoy the benefits.
Don’t make emails too image heavy as they can take a long time to open.
This leads onto the final step…
In order to know if your email campaign is successful you need to measure the click through rate and the unsubscribe rate.
This will help you determine what you need to change or what’s working.
All marketing is driven by the data, and email marketing is no exception.
If you are running online email marketing campaigns, chances are you are already using the popular newsletter format, which usually are sent out monthly or every couple of weeks.
The trouble is far too many of us stop right there and don’t use any other type of email campaign, and that’s a big mistake!
Let’s look at 4 types of email, other than newsletters, that you can use to connect with your subscribers.
Informational emails are not very long and generally, they do not require any action by the subscriber.
They are simply there to convey a message and provide information to the recipient.
Examples of informational emails include ‘happy birthday’ messages, course ending reminders, or webinar reminders.
Educational emails are very popular with recipients because they help to solve some type of problem or answer a question.
This becomes even easier if you took the time to group your subscribers, because that way you can send the right content to the right people.
This type of email is one of the least used or when it is used it is often used wrongly. It takes a lot of time and effort to take a lead and move them through the entire sales cycle.
Both 60 and 90 days are popular depending on what your product or service is. These should be short messages that are packed with content rich information and that try to get the lead to respond to your call to action that will lead them to your website.
This type of email, if not done right, can find you with a subscriber that will unsubscribe or simply trashing your message. Too many promotional emails and you will annoy your recipient.
The only time you should use this is if you have a new product or service, a special deal going on, or a special event coming up. You should not use this more than a couple of times a month.
What types of emails do you use in your email marketing campaigns? Now you have some new ideas so why not give them a try.
If you want to know more about nurturing you list, check out the featured resource below for a free Simple List Building report; download, read it and take action 😊
