That topic is actually getting visitors to your website and converting those visitors into customers.
The great fact is that without website visitors you really AREN'T in business.
This whole traffic generation "thing" is incredibly simple though. You just need to identify where a LOT of your ideal customers are, and then you need to be highly visible there.
Your website visitors, and future customers, find you by following links sprinkled across the web. So, the secret is to get your links in all the right places.
Since time is the most limited resource that most of us have, although some of us think that it's money, you have to do things in the most efficient manner. You need to get the greatest ROI on your time, and this is where a large percentage of marketers do things wrong. They spend all of their time doing things that produce very poor results.
The facts are:
1) Only a few search engines generate the majority of search engine traffic. So if you can get prominent front-page listings on those search engines you'll get your share of search engine traffic. If you can get numerous top-10 listings on the top search engines, your traffic from the search engines goes up exponentially.
Imagine for a second owning the top 10 positions at Google for your keyword. A random visitor searching on your keyword would have a hard time NOT clicking on one of your links.
2) Only a few top video sharing sites get the majority of traffic in most niches. That tells me that you need to focus on the top 20-30 sites when submitting videos.
3) Only a few top article sites generate lots of high quality traffic. This has proven true for me, and for many of my friends who generate six-figures per year JUST from "article marketing."
4) The major search engines give "extra points" to news sites, and things that they consider "news." That's why you'll often see the news sites at the top of the listing for your keywords.
That's also why you absolutely MUST be submitting press releases to those news sites.
Another reason is that your "clueless" competitors aren't noticing that the press releases and news sites often show up before the other search results.
The way to actually generate a flood of free, highly targeted, website traffic is to submit a lot of articles, press releases, videos, and podcasts to a lot of top-ranked sites. You want to submit so many, that when someone searches on your keywords it hard NOT to find an article, video, press release or MP3 podcast that's YOURS.
In case you haven't noticed, when you do a search at Google, and the other major search engines, the results are often a mixture of all of the above media. Google no longer returns just static html webpages in the organic search results. They know that traffic to video sharing sites is growing faster than about anywhere else, so they constantly crawl and index the video sharing sites.
You had noticed that - hadn't you?
The secret is that you need to submit a lot of content to all of these places in a high concentration. That's how you dominate the search results.
However, it's almost impossible to do that by hand.
Even if all you did all day long was visit article directories, or video submission sites, you could only submit to a few places in a day. It's just too tedious, which is why I personally use software to do it.
More correctly, I use an automated submission site.
I've used about 2-dozen different sites for submitting my videos, podcasts, articles, and press releases in the past. Today, I do 99% of my submissions through one site because it's cheaper, more efficient, and gets us the "concentrated firepower" that we need.
I use a site called "Easy Pushbutton Traffic." There are others out there. However, none of the others allow me to submit all four media (videos, audios, articles and press releases) in one place.
I don't have the inclination to learn numerous different interfaces, pay for numerous site memberships, and visit DOZENS of sites. Remember, time is our most limited resource.
Prior to discovering Easy Push Button Traffic, I actually HIRED people to submit my articles, videos, press releases, and podcasts. I'd create a video for example, and then I'd pass it to an assistant, and have him upload it to 20-30 sites (using an automated submission service that was just too confusing for me to figure out).
Today (as in this day), I'll submit several videos, several articles, several press releases, and several audios. I'll do it myself because I've set aside part of today just for doing that, but also because it's become FUN creating and submitting content, and then watching the increase in my search engine rankings that often happen in just a few hours.
Anyway, the secret to an amazing amount of free website traffic is "volume." You want to submit a lot of content in multiple mediums (since different people prefer their information in different formats) and it needs to be submitted in a high enough "concentration" to break through the clutter.
Now that you've confirmed the secret, a secret that you already knew intuitively, the only remaining question is "now what are you going to do with the information?" If you want to start seeing a lot of traffic, you'll take massive action TODAY, while you competitors aren't paying attention.
And believe it or not, this strategy will never fail.
Now, that's a bold claim, and I'm sure it's setting off some "BS alarms" in your head right now - but stay with me, and I'll show you exactly how simple this really is, and why it makes so much sense...
As I'm sure you've already realized from your own research and experience - the only way to build a substantial amount of traffic to your site is by getting other sites to link to you, tell their email subscribers about what you have to offer, and otherwise publish your content on their site in some way.
This might be in the form of an affiliate program, it might be a link-trade, or it might be some other type of arrangement - but one thing's for certain - it will be partnership (or Joint Venture) of some kind. This is the only way to drive hordes of traffic without paying through your nose for it!
But let's take it a step further...
The Pareto Principle states that 20% of your actions will produce 80% of your results. This "formula" can also be applied to your marketing partners, because only a handful of your affiliates, JV partners and sites that you trade links with will actually provide you with any substantial results.
In fact, the time you spend setting up deals with the "lesser" partners is almost always a complete waste of time. And the fact of the matter is that it takes the same amount of effort to form an alliance with a "player" in your industry as it does to partner with a small site or resource that really can't help you when it comes to producing real results...
What it comes down to is that if you want to generate a tsunami of traffic in record time - you're going to have to go for the gold right from the start. This means that you need to form partnerships with the "players" in your industry right from day one.
And this is how you do it:
1. Use a "primer email" when you contact potential joint venture partners. Instead of simply nailing them with a pitch/proposal right off the bat (without any formal introduction), introduce yourself, address the them personally by name, and ask if they'd be interested in discussing an idea that would benefit them directly.
Get their attention, pique their interest and initiate a conversation. Don't just jam a proposal in their face. Chances are, they probably receive multiple partnership proposals daily...
2. When you approach prospects that have large mailing lists and lots of traffic, always emphasize the exclusivity of your offer.
Make them a unique offer that only they'll get. Do whatever it takes to make it totally irresistible - even if that means giving up most (or all) of your profits, or offering other incredibly lopsided incentives.
You have to remember that you're getting free traffic from this - along with the opportunity to build a client base that you can leverage again and again by selling them additional products, and having them evangelize your business for you as time goes on...
Think long-term, and view joint ventures as a way to build a business for free - not so much as a "quick cash" strategy (even though that's often a part of it).
3. Get their complete attention by sending a "hard copy" of your proposal. Not just another email cramming up their inbox (which is all to easy to delete...)
Instead, try using Fed/Ex (or even a fax message) instead of simply firing off an email. You'll be surprised with your results.
Also, once you've received some kind of response, take it to the next level as soon as possible by arranging a time to speak on the phone. When your partner hears your voice audibly, it will be much easier for them to get a feel for who you are - which will make them feel more comfortable in dealing with you.
Rapport goes a long way...
4. Set up the deal and make it happen. Make things as easy as possible for your partner.
Have mailings, articles, banners, links and other promo tools built and ready-to-go in advance. The less your partner has to do, the better.
Additionally, make sure that you set a date for the promotion to begin. If possible, solidify a start-date as soon as you can. Most deals end up evaporating because there is no deadline or schedule in place.
5. Before your JV partners start promoting you - and before their traffic hits your site like hurricane and your sales start flying off the charts - make sure you have a plan in place to maximize their traffic as much as possible.
There are hundreds of ways to do this, but this is what you need to consider doing for the most part:
a) Have a system in place to capture leads that aren't ready to buy your offer yet - but that want more information. (This is typically done by offering a free mini-course, a free demo, or something similar in exchange for a newsletter subscription)
b) Consider using an "exit-popup" to try and salvage visitors that are leaving your site. (Make sure this doesn't conflict with your ordering process)
c) Find (or develop) numerous products and services to promote after people buy your product, or subscribe to your newsletter. Remember that this is the whole point of setting the deal in the first place - you're trading upfront profits in exchange for long-term revenues from an active customer base...
d) Have a backup payment processor, web host and other "pick and shovel" necessities in the event that the sudden spike in traffic and sales causes problems with your host or your merchant account.
(This happens frequently in larger-scale product launches where several "super affiliates" promote a single offer. You need to be prepared...)
6. When the deal is done and over with, make sure to stay in contact with your partner regularly. One partnership can lead to several, and by building a relationship with the key players in your niche, you'll literally be holding the "keys" to all the traffic in your market.
And then you'll be able to generate massive traffic on demand - whenever you want - just by leveraging your current relationships.
This is how you can go from being a "nobody" to being an internet all-star in a matter of days. It takes planning, motivation and the will to actually follow-through, but it is well worth doing.
Big time.
In fact, you're only one successful partnership away from transforming your online business from being a "bill payer" into a cash-spewing powerhouse that will support a ridiculous lifestlye.
All you have to do now is find the super affiliates in your niche and use the 6-step formula you just read to generate as much traffic as you can handle...
Both Willie Crawford & Chris Rempel are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
Willie Crawford has sinced written about articles on various topics from Internet Marketing, Computers and The Internet and Internet Marketing. Willie Crawford has been marketing over the internet for 12 years. During that time, he has written over 1100 articles. Recently he has added multi-media and more press release to the mix, with very notable results. Willie now loves, and highly recommen. Willie Crawford's top article generates over 110000 views. to your Favourites.
Chris Rempel has sinced written about articles on various topics from Small Business, Credit Cards and Online Business. Chris Rempel just released a video that reveals how he tracks down super-affiliates in any niche at the click of a button.