How to Build a Better Blog: Traffic

The flipside of creating content is generating traffic. The pyramid to the left works the same as the content pyramid. The three sides are the guiding principles that will inform your actual traffic generation efforts.

In this case, I stole the “principles” from traditional SEO thinking. In that context, the search engines rank your site based on the relevance to what the reader is looking for, the popularity of your site (or even individual posts), and the frequency—or freshness—of the content.

But these principles can be applied (if a little bit differently) to each stage of the traffic pyramid, too.

CONVERSATIONS
Get out there and talk to people. This can happen in a number of ways. Respond to comments on your own blog, comment (meaningfully) on blogs that are relevant to your blog—more importantly, comment in ways that are relevant to the readers of that blog. Participate in forums. Reach out to your list with more than thinly disguised sales pitches.

TRACKBACKS
If you have something to contribute that seems to long to be a comment, or that would be of specific merit to your readers, then turn the comment into a post and add a trackback link to the original post.

If you can increase the level of conversation with both the originating author AND you own readers, then this can be a great way to generate solid traffic.

KEYWORD RESEARCH
While I don’t want to get into a big sermon here, I do want to say that I hope you’re tracking your stats. If not, start.

One of the simplest things you can do to get more traffic is to see which keyword searches are bringing traffic in, and create more content like that. Then go to SEObook’s free keyword tool and see if there are any variations on those keywords that get more searches, and create content around those keywords.

If they pull a whole lot of traffic, create a free report and put it up on your site.

These are just a few quick things you can do. Put a little time each month (week!) into keyword research, and you’ll be surprised at how much you’ll learn, and how much it will help your blog.

GIVE TO GET
Give stuff away. Information is the easiest. Pull together a 7-15 page report each month, and offer it. Take a local expert in your niche to lunch and record 15-20 minutes of conversation on a hot topic, and offer it as a free download, instead of a regular podcast. Product samples can be the most effective. Or offer your own time and expertise.

If you can give them something they want, they will give you something in return. Like a name, a title and an email address. If you’re not building a list, then you are leaving your fate completely in the hands of the search engines. A list can be a way to engage with someone who otherwise might have just come in for one post and left, never to return.

ADS
I wrote a good bit about this in the series Crush AdWords. But there are instances when advertising your blog is a good idea.

PPC ads are easy, and can be effective, but don’t forget there are other options. You could set up a sponsorship ad with a site that is complementary to your own. You could do article marketing, which is free. And speaking of free, you could always get out there and do a couple of guest blog posts.

Just remember, never just do any of these just to be doing them. Approach them withing the framework of relevance, popularity and frequency, and you will increase the effectiveness of your efforts.