Driving Site Traffic

September 16, 2010

Michael Schwabe :: Account Manager

Joshua Mathe :: Search Engine Specialist

Two Ways to Drive Traffic to a Website ::

• Online– Decide who you want– Research– Optimization– Marketing

• Offline– Marketing Tactics

Online Methods for Driving Website Traffic ::

• Get to know your ideal user– Don’t target blindly– “Everyone” is not a valid client base

Image taken from Quantcast.com

• Who do you want to get on your website?

Getting to know your user :: The Who?

• Research– Who is your current website traffic?

Getting to know your user :: The Who?

• Where do they go?– News and information websites?

• CNN, MarketWatch, MTBR

– Social Websites?• Facebook, Twitter, foursquare, CollegeOnly

Getting to know your user :: The Who?

• What do they read?– Magazines– Websites– Books– Pamphlets– Menus– Nothing?

Getting to know your user :: The Who?

• What do they search for?– Where do they start their search?

Getting to know your user :: The Who?

Quantcast Compete Alexa

Google Google Google

Facebook Yahoo! Facebook

Yahoo! Facebook YouTube

YouTube YouTube Yahoo!

MSN Wikipedia Live

Live Amazon Baidu

Amazon MSN Wikipedia

Microsoft Live Blogger

Wikipedia Ask MSN

AOL Ebay Tencent

*All figures as of Sept 15, 2010  

Getting to know your user :: The Who?

• Where do your users go?

• Offline– What do they do when they aren’t online?– Where do they go on the weekends?– Where do they go in the evenings?

• Online– What ELSE do they do online?

• Games?• Videos?• Music?• TV?

Getting to know your user :: The Who?

• Don’t just ask “who” the user is...

Getting to know your user :: The Who?

...When “why” can be so rewarding

• Why are they looking in the first place?

Getting to know your user :: The Why?

• Why should they choose us?

• Why should they choose us right now?

Getting to know your user :: The Why?

• Keep asking questions– What?– When?– Where?

• Ask them to anyone/thing that will listen– Keyword tools, survey tools, search engine

trend services

Getting to know your user ::

• ...as long as you build it for the user

If you build it they will come...

• It may be your website but that doesn’t mean it’s for you– Design for the user– Build for the user– Optimize for the user

If you build it they will come...

• Address desideratum of the clientele in the vernacular to which they are accustomed

If you build it they will come...

• It’s going to require work to keep the traffic flowing– Thankfully there is the greatness that is

search engine optimization....

Why yes that was shameless self promotion

You won’t get it right the first time...

• Find the analytics package that’s right for you

You won’t get it right the first time...

• Monitor how people find your site– Search engines– Direct traffic– Referrals

You won’t get it right the first time...

• Monitor how the website is being used– Site entrance pages– Site exit pages– Duration of visit

You won’t get it right the first time...

• Once again ask “Who’s coming to the website?”

• Are they who you want?

You won’t get it right the first time...

• Adjust your content until you are receiving the users that you are looking for

You won’t get it right the first time...

• You know where you target audience goes...now use that knowledge

Having the site is only half of the solution

• Use other blogs to your advantage– Comment on them– Link to your site– Interact with people

Having the site is only half of the solution

• Better yet, start your own blog

• Then start using

Having a website is only half of the solution

• Use the social networks

Having a website is only half of the solution

• If your company keeps– Changing– Growing– Adapting– Living

• Tell the world

Having a website is only half of the solution

• Advertise– PPC– Banner ads

• Make your client base see you even when they’re not looking for you

Having a website is only half of the solution

Online isn’t everything

• Don’t just focus online

• Pick a good URL– Easy to remember– Easy to understand

Online isn’t everything

• Radio / News– Look for any way to put yourself out there– Prove you’re an expert– Receive the credit you want from your bio

Online isn’t everything

• Similarly, be a guest speaker– Colleges– Chambers of Commerce– Conventions

• You have knowledge, share it

Online isn’t everything

• Use existing publications– Magazines / Newspapers

• Target Subject Matter– Write Opinion Piece

• Target Demographics– Publish Advertisements

Online isn’t everything

• Create a promotion– Event marketing– Guerilla marketing– Anything that puts you in front of them

Online isn’t everything

• Word of mouth...and e-mail signature

...and business cards

...and t-shirts

...and stickers

...and random whiteboards

...and....

Online isn’t everything

September 16, 2010

Visit us: www.thundertech.com

chatter.thundertech.com