Increase website traffic - how to get found online

Why you need to be found online
 

A study by TNS showed that 97% of internet users now research online before making a significant purchase. Search traffic click-throughs are the lifeblood of organic traffic, making the search process a crucial part of the customer journey, leading to the 'moment of truth' when they make a purchase.

According to Visa, the first listing on the SERP captures about 30% of all the website visitors who searched for a given search term. The second result gets 15% of the organic search traffic, and the third result, only 10%. So, it pays to be near the top if you want to drive more website traffic to your site.

Search algorithms use a range of signals to compile their results, and those signals are constantly evolving. As a result, understanding the algorithms is a time-intensive pursuit, and it can get complicated. So, a specialist SEO partner is worth looking into if you want to drive traffic to your website.

Working with the search engines

If you're keen on some digital DIY to generate organic traffic, there are several things you can do. Here are some tips:

• Pay attention to basic on-page SEO and develop a strong keyword strategy. When people search, they use keywords. Then, the search engine scans the internet to find relevant websites and content. To be among those websites, you must create content that includes those relevant keywords. So, identify search intent and the target keyword that describes your business. But, also make sure you weave in long-tail keywords that your target audience might enter into Google search engines. Targeting long-tail keywords shows you've extensively covered a topic. In addition, with a lower search volume, these types of keywords help drive more organic traffic to your website, as the competition to rank for them is lower. 
• Increase website traffic by including title tags, heading tags and a meta description to each listing and blog post (the words and explanations you see on search results that tell people what the page is all about). Make sure to add this information to the backend of your website.
• Drive quality traffic with descriptive ALT text for your images, as they can help with providing useful context for readers who use screen readers and also help reaffirm the key topic of your page to search engines.
• If partners, customers or media outlets include links to your website, the search engines will think your site has more authority and give it a higher ranking, leading to an increase in website traffic. So, ask them to add backlinks to your site from their blog post. And don't forget to promote blog posts from your social media platforms. 
• Also, it may pay to consider influencer marketing. You can work with social media influencers to include a promotion in their social media post. For example, a post may consist of product discount codes, links, reviews, or giveaways of your products to their social media followers. This cost-effective social media marketing option is a powerful tool to drive referral traffic to your website. 
• Publish fresh, unique content regularly (whitepapers, a new blog post, product or service updates) valuable to the people searching for information. If your blog content is relevant and engaging, it will help generate more traffic.
• Creating content using video will result in a higher level of engagement and an increase in website traffic. Here's a handy guide for making quality videos from Digital Resources NZ. Add your video, include relevant hashtags and share it on your social media pages.
• Update your details on Google's My Business listing to guide new customers to your store. For example, add your address, contact details, and opening hours to come up on searches and Maps automatically.
• Include customer reviews to increase website traffic. Don't be afraid to ask your customers to post their positive feedback.
• Having a website that loads well on mobile devices is vital for rankings and increasing website traffic. Check to see how mobile-friendly you are with Google's test here or take a look at this guide on responsive web design from Digital Resources NZ.

Improving page performance

Slow loading speeds can harm your search results rankings and web traffic, so make sure your images are optimised to load quickly or be sure to use small file formats and sizes.

If you're not getting the website traffic you want, consider including paid-for advertising tools in your online marketing strategy. For example, Google Ads can determine how much traffic your store is getting, help to improve your content and target new or existing customers.

Paying for more traffic

Google, Facebook, Amazon, Microsoft and LinkedIn, or local sites like TradeMe, MetService and news websites offer businesses the opportunity to display ads in various sizes and formats.

Google Ads offers three marketing channels to help increase web traffic; Search Ads, Google Display Network, and YouTube ads. Animated banner ads work well for getting simple brand messages across. However, while more challenging to produce, video content is a great way to tell a story. Video ads can run as pre-rolls before other content on YouTube or as silent pop-ups on websites. They can also be posted directly to your social media channels.

Like paid search, the Google Display Network (GDN) is an excellent way to drive more traffic to your website. GDN can target users searching for specific information or in a particular location and is a great way to explore the benefits of retargeting ads. For example, advertisers can target people who have already visited their website or clicked on an ad but have not purchased anything. Finally, if the goal is to increase brand awareness, display ads are also a great way to bring quality traffic from a broader audience. Whatever your goal, it's essential to learn how to measure success so your digital marketing can be most effective in driving traffic to your website.

If you've succeeded with paid search and want to keep growing, display and video advertising are good ways to help push your message further and generate traffic.

Next steps

• Develop a digital marketing plan by identifying exactly what you're hoping to achieve, then budget time, money and a person to manage your marketing campaigns. Consider email marketing as part of your strategy to boost brand awareness, nurture existing customer relationships and generate traffic.
• Increase website traffic by using a keyword research tool and include these keywords in your social media posts, landing pages and other blogs.
• Consider engaging a search engine optimisation expert or agency to give you advice and set up paid media to drive relevant traffic to your website.
• Continually test and retest to see what works at driving traffic and what doesn't.