Directing traffic to your website can be done in increments to systematically build on your total monthly volume of visitors. By following one of the most universal principles of inbound marketing you can develop your website to generate traffic from keyword searches that will bring in visitors looking for your business. That principle is: create high-quality content.
It sound cliche, it has definitely been
overstated but the truth is that it’s one of the most effective, most game
changing aspect to a website that can be applied. Three major reasons your
content counts the most is because it directly impacts traffic generation,
conversions and development.
Increase Traffic Generation
Whether you’re starting out or your business has been around for years your content needs to perform in the search results. Some businesses have pages on their site that look like old road signs that barely communicate what they’re offering. Every page on your website should have a purpose and should perform really well at what it is intended to do.
For example, the page that describes your service should be extremely helpful to a reader in explaining what they are getting when they purchase services or products from your company. There should be a flow that takes them to a more developed level of understanding with calls to action and ways to move forward in the sales funnel.
Your blog posts are optimized for specific keyword topics in which you can be more detailed about describing the specifics in order to comprehensively cover the topic and rank for those keywords. It takes some of the guesswork out of optimizing your website because when you focus on being hyper detailed on a specific topic you are satisfying the search intent behind the search phrase.
Google ranks websites according to how well
search intent is satisfied. By organizing your website with central pillar
pages and supporting blog posts that provide the extra details, you’re
effectively optimizing your website to appear for related searches. It becomes
very clear that your site is organized to answer keyword related issues in a
comprehensive manner-which is a major part of improving the frequency of appearances
in the top position.
Improve Conversions
Although it’s not an actual ranking factor, the
trend for publishing content has been to make it longer. Long-form content is
one of the characteristics of top performing pages. The average word count of
your typical blog post has risen in response to the improved ability of search
engines in assessing the quality of a websites content as well as the effect it
has on the
conversion rates of your website. Crazy egg was
able to increase conversions by 30% using longer content.
The rise in word count is not simply just the number of words that is creating
value, but the amount of information that is being delivered.
Blog posts that can teach a skill, strategy or
bring readers to a high level of understanding about a specific subject possess
high value. A reader is much more likely to share a piece of content that they
thoroughly enjoyed over something they found mediocre. What’s more is that
trust is instilled in the reader about your company which leads to more
confidence in your expertise in the industry.
Evergreen posts that are considered high value
articles can come in the form of comprehensive guides, interviews, case
studies, or infographics. They are hyper informative by nature with the purpose
of giving value to the reader to form a long term relationship. This type of
blog posting results in visitors spending a longer time on the site, higher
click-through rates and ultimately more conversions.
Develop Brand Recognition
Develop your brand through the content you
produce both on site and through other forms of advertising. Guest posting,
commenting, and even answering questions on forums will contribute to creating
a brand identity.
When your content is published on a popular blog
or website it should reflect who your company is through the quality of
content. Your articles should communicate to readers what your company can do
for them by demonstrating your knowledge and expertise in whatever topic you’re
writing about. The backlink you receive from the websites your published on
will definitely add to your ranking ability and provide a small trickle of
referral traffic if your article impressed readers enough.
If done correctly, commenting on blog posts will
contribute to branding your business. Pick the most popular, most authoritative
blogs in your industry to place your comment. Read the article and make an
insightful, well written comment. Think of it as an advertisement for your
company that reflects who you are as a business. Be professional and put your
best foot forward.
Keyword related forums and sites like Quora will
allow you the opportunity to show expertise in your field. When people are
looking for solutions, be the person to provide them with a highly detailed
response that will actually solve their issue. Quora is a high-traffic site
that can provide stream of referral traffic for years to come so take the time
to provide your best solution that represents your brand.
Content creation is one of the most talked about aspects in promoting your website and driving as many visitors as possible for good reason. It has the most impact on your business in every category. Producing great content is not an option in driving traffic to your website-it’s a requirement. Improve the quality of your content and you will see improvement in your traffic, conversions and ranking.
Christian Carere is an SEO specialist and the founder of Digital Ducats Inc. Christian works with small businesses to increase the volume of traffic and generate new leads.
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