9 Ways to Increase Web Traffic

Article Body:

There are many ways to increase web traffic; the most valuable of course is

offering some ongoing and dynamic value such as blogs or online discussion

that keep the same people coming back, but a host of other options exist

including:

Search Engine Optimization

We’ve touched on this in previous chapters but “Search Engine

Optimization” or “SEO” as it is often referred to is a huge success for

many sites, and has even spawned a service industry in its own right

where people are getting paid to optimize your site and site

submissions to try and increase how well your site ranks on various

search engines. Ideally you should do this yourself by submitting to

various directories and using the tips and hints I’ve already mentioned but if you are ‘Internet Impaired’ it may be worth paying a consultant

to assist you.

List your site in Directories and Search Engines

There are many search engines and directories out there where you

can list your website for increased exposure. Some charge a fee while

others are free or low-cost but the important thing to remember is to

go through each one IN PERSON and optimize the data you provide

each to ensure the listing provides the best interface to your site as

possible.

Participate in Link Exchanges

A ‘link exchange’ refers to the act of having a URL or ‘hyperlink’ from

another site either on your page or another site pointing to pages on

your site. With Exchanges another webmaster will link to your site in

exchange for you linking to theirs – hopefully complimenting each

others sites.

Advertise your site via AdWords or other resources such as

banner ads

There are many advertising avenues out there to get your website

increased recognition, the simplest of course link exchanges and wordof-

mouth, but paid methods such as using Google’s AdWords program

to pop up a link to your site when certain keywords are entered into

search engines is a very effective way to increase traffic to your sites.

From the vendor side it works like this: you bid (or offer) an amount

that you will pay for a list of keywords used when people query.

Depending on your bid and the maximum daily expenditure settings

you specify (the largest amount of payout you are willing to do on any

given day) your ad shows and you’re charged for each user who “clicks

through” the ad to your site.

Get published on other sites

The Internet is a wide place and a lot of people are out there every

day so try to participate in other sites with a similar interest to yours

and post articles and stories – be sure to include a link or reference to

your web site and viola! Free advertising!

Request Reviews from magazines and online webmasters

Many other sites have a link or ‘rating’ page where you can ask them

to provide feedback and suggestions on your page and its content –

doing so will often not only gather additional interest and visibility but

can help you to tweak your site and improve it to better meet your

needs.

Post in chat rooms and on blogs

Just as with posting articles using chat and blog entries to promote

your site is a good ‘semi-permanent’ way to get your website address

out there before the public.

Give away free gifts and hold contests

This is actually a variation of the customer rewards program idea – by

holding a contest, say a $100 grand prize eBook contest where you get the rights to all submitted eBooks and the winner gets $100 you can

generate traffic and often get other benefits. Ideas include ‘help

create a logo’ or ‘closes predictions for the upcoming election’ …

anything you can think of can be pressed into service in fact!

Join local business organizations

An often overlooked benefit of any community is the local businesses

and merchants as well as the Better Business Bureau. Being a

member can not only let your fellow businesses be aware of you and

your site, but can also introduce you to new concepts and tools you

can use to increase both your visibility and profitability.