HOW TO GET MORE WEBSITE TRAFFIC. laurence learntocodewith.me

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1 HOW TO GET MORE WEBSITE TRAFFIC laurence learntocodewith.me

2 AGENDA Start off talking about the need to create valuable content Such an expansive topic, allowing YOU to decide what you want to learn about. Will show real life examples. Please ask me if you want an example scenario or me to demo something online. Stop and ask questions. I don t mind if I go off the slideshow. I just want to help YOU.

3 WHY DO YOU VISIT WEBSITES ONLINE?

4 Humor - like when I click on Buzzfeed articles on FB Learning - like when I want to learn something about Sass or a WP function or a marketing strategy Entertainment - What did Kimye do now News - Who allegedly is running for President now!?! Information - What time is the movie playing? Where is the closest Starbucks? Any other reasons you visit sites?

5 WHAT DO THESE REASONS HAVE IN COMMON?

6 THEY ALL PROVIDE VALUE. (IN SOME WAY)

7 IF YOU WANT VISITORS TO YOUR SITE Provide value. The end.

8 JUST KIDDING BUT SERIOUSLY. PROVIDE VALUE IN SOME WAY. Whenever putting ANYTHING on your site ask, Is this providing value? or Will this help people

9 AGAIN, TYPES OF VALUABLE Helpful information CONTENT Entertainment Humor News How-to s and DIY In my opinion, this is content marketing. And all brands, businesses, etc. who are wise are doing some kind of content marketing. You should, too.

10 But my site / business is about. What could I possibly write about / make an infographic about / create a video about?? Says everyone

11 WHO HERE BELIEVES THAT? That their business isn't interesting enough to write about... Tell me what it is

12 EXAMPLES OF BUSINESSES CREATING CONTENT True story: The septic tank company that wanted a company blog All-fit Automotive: they sell LIP KITS! (on list bc I wrote for them once.) Zillow: wonderful blog. Skillcrush: Sells online courses. Kills at content marketing.

13 The biggest mistake people make is thinking they have to write specific to site That's not true at all. Zillow being a great example of creating interesting content. It s not all about real estate. Same with Skillcrush. Talk about a range of career and tech topics.

14 But I can t write. Says everyone

15 YES, YOU CAN. Check out my writing tips later. (Github link) But you don t even have to write

16 You can create videos. You can create visuals or infographics. You could do a Podcast. You can curate relevant news in your industry. You can hire someone to write for you. As long as you re creating some sort of value, the medium can vary.

17 SERIOUSLY. UNLESS YOU HAVE SOMETHING PEOPLE WANT, (READ: PROVIDE VALUE), PEOPLE WON T JUST COME TO YOUR SITE. IPO, THIS IS THE FOUNDATION TO GET MORE VISITORS AND PAGE VIEWS. Side note, transparency. Recent quick sprout post all about transparency and growth.

18 OKAY, ENOUGH DRILLING THAT IN. LET S GET TO TECHNIQUES.

19 WAYS TO GET MORE VISITORS TO SITE Which do you want to learn about? Creating valuable content - specific techniques (slide 18) Guest Posting (slide 23) SEO (slide 27) Social media (slide 31) marketing (slide 35) Measuring results and making changes accordingly (slide 38) In my humble opinion, valuable content, guest posting and marketing are the best ways to drive more visitors.

20 SKYSCRAPER STRATEGY The skyscraper strategy, thanks to Backlinko Doing research before you create, so that you know the post will be popular when published Article about the strategy: backlinko.com/viral-marketing

21 THE CONTENT GIVEAWAY Going beyond the blog post and creating something special and useful I.e. - ebook, cheat sheet, tool list, guide, etc. BONUS: Collect in exchange for the resource

22 THE ONLINE COURSE Easiest way via aka drip course Great way to collect s, have people clicking back to site Examples: hackdesign, mail university, freelancer guide to making more money, etc.

23 GUEST POSTING Sort of falls into different categories bc it involves creating valuable content, SEO A lot like networking, or business development Either way, this is a great way to get new visitors to your sites

24 GUEST POSTING, CONTINUED Guest blogging is the quickest way to boost your authority, gain valuable links, and increase subscribers.

25 BUT WHERE? HOW? Sites with similar audiences as yours are ideal Contact site owner Some sites have specific forms and procedures, just research Honestly, it s all about networking and making connections Want a real life example? Use recent Skillcrush reach out.

26 I GUEST POST AS MUCH AS I CAN Examples: When done right, guest writing gets me the most engaged website viewers Show GA data of referrals acquisition - overview - all referrals

27 SEO BASICS This is a vast topic, lots of SEO Methodologies SEO is important because it helps you get found in search engines Data below from Nov 1 to January 1 Typically, though, my Organic has more than social

28 SEO ON WORDPRESS Most basic for WP -> SEO Yoast Plugin - helps with basic keyword structure, etc. This is pretty much all I use, aside from KW research stuff Demo plugin on my own site??

29 BEYOND BASICS: SEO TECHNIQUES I USE Keyword research, targeting long tail keywords using Google Adwords Looking at Google Trends to determine popular topics to write about Open site explorer to look up competitors and who links to them would you like me to show you any of the above?

30 SEO RESOURCES Quicksprout SEO Guide Moz s Beginners Guide to SEO Search Engine Land s SEO Guide

31 SOCIAL MEDIA Spend time where your audience resides Don t know where? Use Pew Studies and other research to find out If done right, can be huge source. (show my GA dash of social visitors)

32 SOME OF MY FAVORITE PLACES TO GET TRAFFIC FROM SOCIAL MEDIA Reddit Stumble upon Hacker news... But be careful!!!!!! Especially when posting to forums, it is easy to backlash. Like on Reddit and Hacker News notably. Post only relevant content and links in said communities. Or you will get flagged. (It's happened to me and is kinda embarrassing.) That said, very selective about what I post on Reddit and Hacker News. In fact, I ve only ever posted one article to Hacker News ever. And I have over 50 blog posts

33 EXAMPLES OF BRAND SOCIAL MEDIA ACCOUNTS Tumblr = Younger, artsy.. Denny's account Pinterest = Women. Upper middle class. Makeup, clothes, homes, weddings.. Lauren Conrad. Vine = 18 and below. Urban.... Dunks. *Vine is very new, so experimental*

34 SOCIAL MEDIA RESOURCES Jab Jab Jab Right Hook by Gary V - the bible to social media Get out there and dabble around. Learn the platform. See where you get best results. Every social media account is different. Takes time to learn.

35 MARKETING So, so important Direct connection to end user More recent for me Money is in the list blast outs with new content, gets dedicated readers back to the site, meaning more page views

36 CONTINUED More than that, direct way to contact readers that social media doesn't provide With , you own the list On Twitter or Facebook, any day the policies can change. Meaning you're account and followers and reach can be affected Example, changes on Facebook pages.

37 RESOURCES Mail Chimp (free) Aweber (what I use) Mail Charts University Demo? Show you the Aweber Dash? How I use it on my site?

38 MEASURING RESULTS AND OTHER TOOLS Google Analytics - I use this the most by far. I look at the most viewed pages, pages people stay on the longest, etc. Google Webmaster tools - don t use often, but shows good keyword info Facebook page insights - great for demographics and showing popular post types. Optimizely - AB testing. Still free. Good way to test forms, landing pages, etc. Surveys - Typeform or with basic Google forms. See what your users like and don t like User peek - Hear a person s first impression of your site. Tells you if your site is confusing people

39 IN THE END, THE MOST BASIC RECIPE TO GET MORE VISITORS 1. Know Your Audience (or try as best you can) 2. Create valuable content for your audience 3. Promote said content 4. Measure results 5. Learn from results, apply to future

40 SPECIFIC QUESTIONS? me at Ask me on