How to Drive Organic Traffic to your Website?
It goes without saying that a website is one of the most fundamental marketing tactic for brands and organisations around the globe. At the same time, it is important that brand managers understand how to enhance and improve website traffic, so that they can maximise their reach on the digital platform. Optimising the traffic of a website is therefore crucial for the digital success and growth of any brand/organisation. One of the way in which brands can do that is by continuously updating the content of the website. At the same time, it is important to remember that the updated content must be line with the needs and expectations of the customers. It must be good enough to keep them interested and engaged right till the end. Further, depending on the source, the quality of the website visitors can also change.
For instance of when the customer has come to the website through paid searches, then the quality of writing is generally superior and better. Also people who click on paid advertisements are generally more interested in the product/service offered by the brand and that is why there is a higher possibility of them becoming a lead. However, other sources of traffic are not so uncomplicated and simple. Many times websites generate most of their traffic from both organic and direct sources. As these are the two major sources of traffic for websites, it is important to understand them in a better and intricate manner, before going ahead.
What is direct traffic?
One of the most common sources of visits to a particular website, direct traffic allows visitors to come without referring website. When a visitor follows a link from another website, the first site is called a referrer. These sites can be multiple types including blogs, search engines, other websites and social media where there are links that visitors follow in order to reach your website. Direct traffic however categorises the visitors that are not based on a referring URL. Many times, direct traffic is a result of of a person entering the URL of the website in a manual manner or because they have already bookmarked the website. In most cases, direct traffic is a result of employees logging into your page and it is important that brand mangers effectively filter this data from the IP address so that this is not included in the traffic of the website.
How is direct traffic different from organic traffic?
All marketers strive to achieve better and higher organic traffic because that is the true proof of the popularity and reach of a website. Organic traffic is defined as traffic that comes from search engines including Google, Bing and Yahoo. It is important to know that paid search ads are not a part of organic search results. Many softwares that track website traffic like HubSpot and Google Analytics have a separate category for paid search traffic or PPC.
Organic traffic is directly dependent and linked with search engine optimisation. The more competitive keywords a brand is able to capitalize on, the more their organic search volume will increase. For brands looking to buy organic traffic, it is important to recognize that purchasing ads does not contribute to organic search numbers but can complement SEO efforts to attract a larger audience. One of the best ways to enhance organic traffic is by consistently blogging high-quality content. Since blogs are rich sources of information, they have a direct impact on a website’s organic traffic. As brand managers, it is essential to always be on the lookout for valuable keywords that can not only improve organic search results but also elevate brand positioning.
Basis for digital success is traffic to a website
The manner in which brands function in the real world is different from the manner in which they function in the digital world. This means that the temperature of your website and marketing initiatives can reach an altogether new level with a rise in traffic data. When brands spend quality time on promoting their blogs on a regular level, it can result in direct ranking for their website and at the same time ensure better return on investment as well. In order consistent results for brands in terms of traffic, it is important that brand mangers track the same for a long period of times, so that they can measure the effects of their results. Gaining high and organic traffic is something that requires constant hard work and effort in the long run. It cannot show results in a short time and that is why brand mangers need to be patient as sooner or later, their efforts will bear fruits.
Another important thing that brand managers must keep in mind, in relation with traffic is that search engines like Google have the maximum say in queries related to the same. And Google has made it clear, post their implementation of Google Panda algorithm that it is one of the biggest priorities of the company to be able to provide users with the best possible search results for all their queries and questions. This is a very important update for digital brand managers as it can directly impact their operations and management. This in turn will have a direct influence on both search engine optimisation and content development. With Google Panda signifying the start of a new era in SEO and organic traffic management, there is more emphasis on recognising human behaviour through analyses of meta information as opposed to crawlers and bots which were based on robotic behaviour. All this means that content that is informative, engaging and entertaining will be at forefront of digital management and dominance.
User experience is therefore at the forefront of anything that a brand does in the digital arena and this is something that will impact brands and companies, not just in the current times but in the future as well. Further, as user experience comes to the forefront for Google, the whole playing field is set to gain even more importance and become a dominant feature in the growth and development of brands. In short, to build and sustain an audience in a successful manner, brands will have to continue to place importance on user experience, as it will directly impact their digital success and failure, both in the short and long term.
Here are some ways in which user experience can be impacted, especially when it comes to websites:
1. Your website must have a responsive design
From the point of SEO, design is not just about the website being pretty and attractive. Of course that is important but at the same time, the website must be engaging and also improve the experience of the user, so that they spend maximum time on the website. With people accessing internet on multiple sources like mobile phones, desktops and tablets, having a responsive design is not something brands can choose to ignore. A responsive design enables users to access the website on any device, with the best possible user experience. Additionally, with increasing popularity of smartphone, ignoring responsive design can prove to be fatal to a brand as it means that a brand will lose out on many opportunities of connecting and engaging with its target audience. Over the last few months, google has also made it a point to point out mobile friendly websites to its users and coming on board with responsive design must be the prime concerns for brands across all categories.
2. Your website must have good navigation and simple navigation
Improving the load speed of the website, creation of intuitive navigation tools like recommended articles etc, and making the overall design better are some things that brand mangers will have to place special emphasis on, a continuous basis. Try to stay away from flashy images, uploading file formats that are uncommon or multiple pop-up ads that might disrupt the user experience.
3. Content is important and it is important that it remains relevant at all times
It might be tempting for brand mangers to use all the keywords and phrases in the website content, even if they are not relevant and increase the search relevance, this is something that you must not do. The problem is that though this might get him to website, it might not be what they are exactly looking for and this might increase the bounce rate. This in turn can reduce the search ranking of the website. Content mangers must therefore focus on writing relevant content that would be interesting, engaging and relevant. When brands focus on writing content that is unique and interesting, then it will atomically improve the user experience and brand value in an effective and systematic fashion.
Building organic traffic is not a simple task. It is not something that can happen over night and requires constant work and effort. So while building traffic through organic means might not be an easy task, it has benefits, especially in the long run. So while the gratification provided by Facebook promoted ads and Google AdWords might be extremely tempting, it might not be so effective in the long run. This is because once the cash might stop flowing, the effects of it will also stop. On the other hand if brands invest their time in organic traffic, then it will be worth all the effort because this is something that will last for many years. So organic traffic requires implementation of tactics and techniques, some which must be implemented and others which must be ignored.
How to Improve Organic Traffic?
Here are some things that will help improve organic traffic in a substantial manner and build brand empowerment in the digital medium:
1. Invest in SEO tactics so that your target audience can find your website/blog in a simple manner
Search engine optimisation increases the chances of your target audience finding your website. As this is field that requires expert skill and knowledge, it is better to invest in a team that is able to bring your organisation up to date in this field. In addition, SEO has a number of related fields like on-page SEO, off-Page SEP and on-Site SEO that are all important aspect of this field. Pay special attention to things like broken links, descriptions, Tags, URL and titles so that every aspect of search engine optimisation is taken care of, in a comprehensive manner.
2. Write content that is easy for search engines to find
Content marketing is an essential part of the digital strategy of a brand. This is because content will always remain the king and is one of the best ways to attract traffic in an organic manner. The key here is therefore to write content that is based on the needs and requirements of the target audience. For instance, a website that is selling fashion wear should focus on writing content about fashion techniques that will enhance and improve the people’s knowledge about the latest trends and techniques in the fashion industry. The first step in writing content that is SEO optimised is to ensure that is based on solid keyword research. The content must also be promoted across all channels so that it can be easily found on search engine channels including Google.
3. Link building is another way to build organic traffic
Link building is an important strategy in search engine optimisation. This is because SEO really likes quality links and does not like those people who place irrelevant links on their website. Having relevant and quality links is therefore extremely important especially if you want to do SEO right. Backlinks, Outbound links, reciprocal links, are some ways in which brands can build a link and it is important that links are placed in only good and quality website. Further, Google has also launched a new algorithm called penguin that flag all websites that use spam techniques to increase their views. One of the best ways to get links to is to invest in guest posting or blog commenting. This is because good content attracts good content and in turn result in organic traffic.
4. Regular content is important and that is what keeps your audience engaged and interested
Many bloggers might spend a lot of time and effort in building a website but forget to do the same in a continuous manner. When bloggers don’t maintain their writing frequency, then it might affect their search results in a drastic manner. It is important to remember that some time management can help to make your blog vibrant, attractive and engaging; and the first step in this process is by posting articles on a regular basis. At the same time, never divert from your field as irrelevant articles can do a lot of damage and affect your readership base in a negative manner.
5. Don’t forget to promote your website on social media channels
Social media is today a very powerful tool and it has the power to reach almost all the corners of the globe. It is therefore important that brand mangers promote their website on social media platforms. including Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Instagram and in the process create a niche audience on these platforms. When people begin sharing your content on these channels, Google makes a note of them and helps you to further the reach in an effective manner. Always focus on writing content that has a high viral frequency and can be shared and bookmarked in a simple manner; so that your audience can reach you at any time.
In conclusion, the road to organic traffic might be difficult and filled with immense challenges, but the rewards are many especially in the long run.
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