So many of my clients ask “what can I do to get traffic to my web site”? Well, if you are a business executive at a Fortune 500 company you would have a number of ways you could spend your corporate budget to drive traffic. But what if you are a little guy who is just starting out? Are there affordable ways to drive traffic? Sure there are! And here are a few:
1) PAY PER CLICK TRAFFIC:
When you bid for a keyword phrase at a pay per click traffic directory, you state a price that you are willing to pay for each person who clicks to your web site. My favorite pay per click directory is GoTo.com(now Overture.com). When selecting keyword phrases to bid on, choose a targeted phrase, rather than a general term. For instance, if you are a coach, bid on a more targeted keyword phrase such as “weight loss coach” or “relationship coaching”.
HOW TO BID
You set your own budget by determining how much you bid on each keyword term. The more you bid, the higher your listing. While the #1 position is highly sought after, as long you bid enough to stay in the top five, you will receive a strong boost in traffic. Why pay top dollar for the number one site, when you can pay MUCH less for spots 2 to 5? For instance, if bid for number one position is $1.50 and the number two position is $.50, you could bid $.51 to attain the number two position. Bid prices typically range anywhere from five dollars to as little as one penny.
THE POWER OF THE GOTO/OVERTURE NETWORK
I personally recommend Overture over other pay per click engines, because of the strategic relationships Overture has with major search engines. Overture reaches an astounding 75% of all Internet users through their extensive partner network, which includes: AOL, AltaVista, Lycos, Earthlink, Netscape, Hotbot and others. Why is this so important you ask? I would guess that few people actually go to Overture to search for something? (Well have you? I sure haven’t!) But since Overture search results feed into those all those major directories that people DO search at, it REALLY multiplies your exposure. Anyone who searches at one of their partner networks will have Overture listings in the search results.
OTHER GOOD PAY PER CLICK BUYS
Google now offers a new pay per click offering called AdWords, where you can bid on various keywords. Pricing for AdWords is based on the position in which they’re shown. However, Google positions your ad based on how many users click on it over time. Similarly, DirectHit/AskJeeves offers paid ads. Not only do your results appear on DirectHit and AskJeeves, but they also appear on their partner directories including: including MSN, Bomis.com SuperCyberSearch and Searchalot.
Before you sign up with a pay per click directory, check first to see what other directories they are partnered with. If they don’t feed into other major search engine directory results, then I recommend you choose a different vendor.
2) PAID SUBMISSON DIRECTORIES:
It used to be that Alta Vista, Look Smart, and Yahoo were free submission, not anymore! Yahoo is such a MAJOR directory; you can’t afford NOT to be listed. Most pay for inclusion programs range between $30 and $200 dollars. Some of these “business express” programs can get you listed in as little as two days!
3) GATEWAY/DOORWAY PAGES:
Basically, these pages are designed to be highly optimized for a certain keyword set and for a certain search engine. For each keyword phrase and each search engine, they will design a different page. Different search engines use different “rules” to decide which sites will rank highly. Trying to tinker and figure out what work on your own can be maddening. Professional doorway page service providers have this down to a science. A service that I recommend is Pinnacle Placement at http://www.seposition.com/. For about $500 start up and $30 per month, you can get Top 30 positions for 10 keyword phrases. Believe me, I’ve shopped around, and these guys offer top rate services at bargain prices and they GUARANTEE results or your money back!
4) ARTICLES:
I can’t overstate the importance of writing articles to gain exposure for your business. Even if you DO have your own ezine, you should seek to get your materials published elsewhere. This showcases you and your expertise in front of thousand of potential customers.
WORK THE “LOCAL” ANGLE AND GET RESULTS!
If you can spin a “local” angle, you should submit an article to your local newspaper. I submitted an article idea in May of last year, and this March got a 4-page article spread in our local paper, The Gurnee Sun. Click here to read the article. http://www.kcustom.com/sun-cover-story.htm . You can’t GET better exposure than THAT!
IF YOU GET PUBLISHED SHOW IT OFF
If you DO get a great article published, there’s a neat little service called IN-THE-NEWS.com that will make a wall plaque out of it to proudly display it your office! Here are my favorite article directories and article lists to submit to:
ARTICLE DIRECTORIES
WebMomz – http://www.webmomz.com/resources_article-directory.shtml
Ezine Articles: http://www.ezinearticles.com/add_url.html
Ultimate Profits: http://www.ultimateprofits.com
Marketing Seek: http://www.marketing-seek.com/articles/submit.shtml
Dime Co: http://www.dime-co.com/articlesub.html
The UK Marketer: http://www.theukmarketer.co.uk/
Making Profit: http://216.147.104.180/articles/submit.shtml
Mega Success: http://www.mega-success.com/articles/submit.shtml
Websource: http://www.web-source.net/articlesub.htm
Certificate.net: http://certificate.net/wwio/ideas.shtml
ARTICLE SYNDICATION SERVICES
– The Syndicator: http://www.web-source.net/syndicator_submit.htm
ARTICLE LISTS TO POST YOUR ARTICLE AT
(Note: these are subscribe addresses, please read their posting rules prior to posting):
mailto:Free-Content-subscribe@egroups.com
mailto:PublishInYours-subscribe@onelist.com
mailto:article_announce-subscribe@egroups.com
SUMMARY
Well, that’s the scoop on my personally recommended methods for “little guys” and big guys alike to build traffic on a budget. Oh, and did I forget to mention that you need to make sure your site is sharp looking, quick loading, easy to navigate, and easy to purchase from? No sense sending traffic to your site if they won’t be convinced to buy when they get there. Happy promoting! You’ll get back whatever you put into marketing your site, and more!
Click here to sign up for FREE B2B newsletters from Murdok!
Kristie Tamsevicius, is the author of “I Love My Life: A Mom’s Guide to Working from Home”! Thousands of aspiring entrepreneurs have used her step-by-step home business system to earn money working from home. Get a free ecourse Home Business Success Secrets at http://www.webmomz.com/ilovemylife1.htm
