They say the universe is expanding. That should help with the traffic.Steven Wright

 

If I had a dime for every time I get a call or email from a client asking how they can increase the traffic on their website, I could quit working so hard building websites that are custom created to…well, get you great website traffic.

The truth is, there is no website on the planet that, on its own, automatically gets traffic! The other truth is, there are no internet pixies that can sprinkle magic fairy dust on your website to make it appear on page 1 of the search engines. You have to work at it!
 

Can you increase your website traffic without spending a ship load of money?

 

Most of the mythunderstandings out there revolve around SEO! Without Search Engine Optimization, can a website get the kind of traffic it needs to get you business? Absolutely!!!

Let’s take the search engines and Google out of the mix for a second. How would you get people to your site if there wasn’t something like Google? Taking the approach most websites don’t get the love of the mighty G, one must become their own traffic driving source. To increase your website traffic, let’s get back to the basics…
 

How can you consistently drive traffic to my website?

 

Have you said this before:

I want my website to be on page 1 of Google! Why? What good will that do you?

The reality is, you still need folks to click on your website! Being in the good graces of Google and the other search doesn’t guarantee anyone will ever visit your site! You need to get them there yourself. But how?

Let’s take a look at some simple tips and tricks to not only drive traffic to your site but to drive traffic to specific pages on your site…like your home search or your blog.

 

5 Simple Ways to Increase Your Website Traffic

 

1. Socialize your Posts and Pages

 

One of the easiest and by far most affordable means to get traffic to your site is by pasting your URL on your social media sites. You have the luxury of using other services for this but the good ole fashioned copy and paste method gives you a few extra benefits.

The first is, having the ability to edit what comes over from your site.

Looking at the screenshot below, you can see the yellow highlighted area may not be exactly what you want to say to get the message across. If you were to use one of those sharing services, you would not have the ability to edit any of the content. If you take a look at the lower part of the content you see just the letter ‘f’ and the rest of the word is cut off. By using the copy and paste method, you have the luxury to either add the rest of the word or change the entire content all together.

Secondly, once you have everything pasted in, you can now get rid of the URL you pasted and add a call to action like you see I’ve done on the image on the right…

Increase your website traffic

 

This not only applies to Facebook, you can do the same for Google+, Linkedin, Pinterest, and Twitter.

 

2. eNewsletters

 

Probably the most under used means to drive traffic to your site. Creating a weekly or (if necessary) Monthly eNewsletter blast to your subscribers, you have the ability to drive traffic to your site in multiple ways. By designing your email Newsletter, you can add a portion of your weekly blog post with a nice link at the bottom to “Read More”.

On top of that, you have the options to add past posts to create more links to other pages of your site. You may want to also add links to your home searches, community pages and your buyer or seller pages.

The services we like for this are:

  1. MailChimp
  2. Constant Contact
  3. Aweber
  4. Happy Grasshopper
  5. Emma

Of course there are other email newsletter services out there so use what works for you and your business.

 

3. Offline Marketing

 

For some, a farming letter or a simple neighborhood postcard with your URL (domain name) is a great way to get tons of traffic to your site. When advertising a listing, adding the URL of your listing page (not your home page) drives folks to the homes specifics as well as additional photos and descriptions.

 

4. Add https:// on YouTube

 

Using YouTube is an awesome way to get traffic to your site. When you are adding more info about your video, be sure you add the https:// in front of your www.website.com to create a hyperlink back to you desired page on your site.

Here is a screenshot:

Increase your website traffic

 

5. Boost your Facebook Posts

 

Because of the limited exposure your post will get with the algorithm created by Facebook called Edge Rank, you may want to get more eyes and ears on your post. To do this you have really 2 options:

  1. Boost your post. This is an affordable means to get fans and friends to see your post. It costs as little as Starbucks Latte and you can go up from there depending on how many folks you’re interested in reaching.
  2. Share your post on your Newsfeed (Timeline). A way around the Edge Rank algorithm is to take your fan (business) page post and simply share it on your own Newsfeed. This will allow more of your friends to see the post and dramatically increase the number of page views and overall traffic you get.

 

Summary

 
You can drive your own traffic.

Using:

  • Social Media
  • Email Marketing
  • Offline Marketing
  • Video
  • Facebook Boosts

Aside from boosting on Facebook, these hints, tips and tricks won’t cost you a single penny.

Again, it’s not easy sometimes to wrap your head and your busy schedule around all this but the alternative may mean spending money on confusing PPC campaigns…or remaining stagnant and getting only a fraction of the traffic…and potential business by utilizing these 5 Simple Ways to Increase Your Website Traffic!