There are countless gurus and blogs offering hundreds of tips, suggestions and solutions. In fact, there are so many different ways to get the information it can be overwhelming. From guides offering various SEO techniques, or ways to 'buy' organic traffic, there's a lot of options available to you. While there are some sources you can find that are free, others are paid, perhaps even membership type services, to help you.
But none of that matters.
As we said, with so many different resources available, there are some great resources out there if you know where to look. There's a whole cottage industry online, and a simple Google search will provide a wealth of options. A great one that I've followed for some time is by a man named Pat Flynn. You may have heard of him but if not, Google his name. What you'll find is that he runs a blog called Smart Passive Income and that he also runs a Podcast among other things. These are all designed to help share techniques and tactics for everyone from the newbie to the experienced and are great resources to start.
Know Your Audience
In order to know how to increase website traffic, you need to understand your audience. Who is trying to find the solutions you have, what do they want to do with that information, and are you offering it in a way that makes sense to them?
These points are as important as anything else you can learn. If you're not sure who may be interested in what you have to say, how do you know what promote, market or what solutions you may offer them? Knowing who your audience helps you focus your attention on their needs and wants, and in the end, everything you offer is ultimately about what's in it for your audience.
Think of it in another way. If you had a degree in math and science, would you walk into a Spanish class or Literature class and lecture on abstract mathematics? It wouldn't make sense to your students, and you'd be wasting their time as well as your own. However, if you were a Professor at an institution known for its science and mathematics, say M.I.T. for example, then speaking about abstract math in the right class would be right on target.
And Hitting Your Target Is What Your Aim Should Be
Another way to think about the importance of knowing your audience is like an archer shooting at a bale of hay. Unless you're the fabled William Tell, who was an archer of unparalleled skill, you probably won't blindfold yourself before using your bow. You'd like to focus on your target; breathe slowly as you pull the bowstring taut, aim your arrow and release the string.
Not knowing your audience is much the same thing as shooting arrows blindfolded. You may get lucky, but more likely than not you'll miss the hay and miss your target. Without knowing your target audience, not only will finding online traffic be difficult, you may miss the bale of hay altogether.
Understanding who your audience goes a long, long way toward helping find a way for you to help them. Is your audience new married couples about to start a life together and to look to buy their first home? Are they college educated, pregnant, like to cook at home or dine out at restaurants? Do they like to play sports or have get-togethers on the weekends? Do you have an idea of their income, and do you know about their fears about paying for their debts? Do they prefer wine, micro-brewed beer or don't drink alcohol? Getting an idea of who your audience is and what makes them tick will assist you to offer tips and will assist you in getting the right type of traffic.
What that means is the more you know about your potential audience, the better solutions you can offer and the closer you are in hitting your targets.
Keyword Research As A Guide For Content
After you get an understanding of who your audience is, you can now go to writing, recording, and filming some great content. At this point, a little keyword research here is critical to helping promote the content you're offering. From using any number of paid services or simply the Google Keyword Planner to find some keywords to help you focus on your audience's needs.
Keyword research will list a number of search terms and ideas. It's a great way to find some topics, some solutions to problems and suggestions for ideas about what type of content to offer.
Being able to focus on your audience, their wants and needs, will help you find the right keywords to target in your content. In addition to understanding your audience, this is a way to understand what they may be searching for already. This research will help you find the right subjects to write about, and help you provide the best solutions for your audience's needs.
For example, on one of the niche sites I run, keyword research has helped me find what the audience is searching for and how they find my blog. This has been invaluable toward generating traffic to the 10 Best Smartphones website and has driven an increase in my organic traffic. I've used these tactics to find relevant issues, interesting topics and solutions that have helped my traffic grow in the short time I've had it running.
Once you see a sizable amount of traffic, you can begin to consider different ways to monetize your site. One way is from placing ads such as Google AdWords or placing individual ads on your site, you can begin to make a small income just from traffic alone. Another way is to consider an affiliate agreement from any number of producers and sites. Here you promote a product and work to drive traffic toward a sale.
While affiliate marketing is a ton of work, it's often more lucrative than placing ads. Ad placement is easier to begin, but it won't be enough to live off. One last way is to create your own product, whether physical or digital, and sell them on your site.
Either way you choose to go, beginning to monetize your website is the first step in generating a passive income.
So to answer the question how to increase website traffic, you first need to know who you're addressing. Who is your audience, what do they want or need and how are you going to make it something they can absorb and implement? You can have a Ph.D. in IT, be a master of SEO techniques, and still not get the online traffic you want.
Why? Because you forget the most important thing, your audience and what they need.
Answer that question first and foremost, and your organic traffic will skyrocket.