Inbound marketing and promoting your business by publishing content is a sure-fire strategy for building your brand.
In fact, vast numbers of businesses rely solely on content, or inbound, marketing to do just that. But the truth is that there are dozens of simple actions any business owner or marketer can take to help increase traffic to their company's website.
Boosting Your Inbound Marketing Efforts With Low-Hanging Fruit
The business world is full of marketing "gooroos" who are eager to sell you on any number of gimmicks to boost your web traffic and who promise you sudden increases in sales if you just buy into their newest program. The truth is that establishing a web presence and building and gaining traction requires time and effort.
That being said, it is also true that there are many small things that you can do right now to boost traffic to your site. Here is a short list of a dozen types of "low-hanging fruit" that you can utilize to improve your website visits without breaking the bank or really having to buy anything at all!
Add Social Sharing Buttons
One easy way to encourage other people to share your content and help increase your traffic is to add social sharing buttons like the ones you see above this post. While this may seem to be obvious to most people, it is amazing how many businesses fail to place these in prominent positions on their web pages.
Improve Your Google+ Profile by Adding a Link to Your Site
In addition to LinkedIn and Twitter, it still helps to have a Google+ profile with a link to your site. Being seen on Google+ not only helps you get traffic from a new audience, it also gives your site more authority in Google’s eyes.
Share Posts on Google+
While not what was hoped for when it launched, Google+ does have people hanging out, so it doesn’t hurt to post your articles there as well. The site also recommends and categorizes content by tags, so make sure you’re applying the right hashtags to your posts.
Share Content to Google+ Communities
The biggest advantage to having your own Google+ page is that there are thousands of communities within Google+ that you can join and where you can share your content. This is a great option if you don’t have many followers on Google+ yet, since members of a community are usually going to be more active than hundreds of followers who never log on.
Add a Link to Your Twitter Profile
Don't overlook this small, but critical feature: On your Twitter profile there’s a space to include a URL. Make sure you use it! In addition, you can include a link to your company newsletter, or some other site or profile page. This way when people see you on Twitter they know where they can get more of your content or learn more about your business.
Include Links on Your LinkedIn Profile or Company Page
Include a link to your company website in your LinkedIn profile. If you are a solo professional and it’s part of your work, include it in your experience listing, as well. Not only does it get you more traffic from people viewing your LinkedIn profile, it adds legitimacy to your site since you have it listed as your business.
Post Your Content to LinkedIn Groups
Make it a point to join relevant LinkedIn groups in your target market. This is a great place to share articles and generate some free traffic. Many people in professional LinkedIn groups are also looking for content to share on their sites, as well, and making your content accessible this way can get you more shares as well. And make sure your articles have your website link in there somewhere!
Create a Facebook Page and Include Links
Facebook offers businesses much more than a personal Facebook page. You can easily create a “brand” Facebook page that links to your site and where you can share your posts. This allows visitors to follow the content that you’re creating, keep up with what your company is doing, and it's a required step for doing Facebook ads. An active Facebook page also helps your search engine rankings, since it’s another indicator of your digital presence when people are looking for you on Google.
Share Images or Graphics on Pinterest
Almost any business can create compelling and shareable visuals to accompany posts or articles. Now go and share them on Pinterest and include relevant hashtags. Pinterest is a massive search engine as well as a habit-forming showcase for people who love anything artsy, visual, or creative. It's east to show off your business with fresh images and graphics. Just don’t forget to link back to your site!
Create a YouTube Channel Post Videos
This is easier than it may seem and it's a simple yet powerful way to supplement your written content. Create YouTube videos of what your company does "behind the scenes" or how to do something your audience is interested in. You can interview great customers or simply show case new products. Be creative and try different things and see what people want to watch.
Share Your Pictures to Flickr and Other Photo Sites
Pinterest is not the only showcase for still images. Pictures you’ve taken or have had made for your business or website can be uploaded to picture sharing sites such as Flickr. It is easy to then link your photos to your website. As an added bonus, photos from image aggregators tend to rank higher in Google searches, so your photos can get search traffic for you, as well.
Create Your Own Infographics and Post Them
Stand out by creating visually appealing infographics illustrating and explaining any number of topics that will reflect your brand and resonate with your preferred audience. Then share them on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and other channels. Be sure the infographics has links back to your site built into them, but make them shareable. You can encourage people to download your infographic to refer back to later, or to share on social media.
Taking Your Inbound Marketing Efforts to the Next Level
Using content and inbound marketing can do wonders for your business. But achieving your marketing objectives with a content marketing strategy takes time. It won't happen with a few blog posts or some other great content. People will need to consume your content for a while before they contact you. Yet, without your content compelling them to contact you, your goals may never be met.
The good news is that you don't have to figure out alone. In fact, one of the best investments you can make with your marketing budget is to partner with a solid firm like BroadVision Marketing. Click on the button below to get your free Marketing Action Plan (MAP) guide so you can make an informed decision, or call BroadVision Marketing at 707-799-1238.
Jaco Grobbelaar is the owner and CMO of BroadVision Marketing. BroadVision Marketing works with business owners to put in place inbound and outbound marketing strategies that consistently secure new clients. The BroadVision Marketing Training Center is located in Petaluma, CA and primarily serves companies in the San Francisco Bay area.
Jaco can be reached at jaco@broadvisionmarketing.com or 707.766.9778 or connect with Jaco on Facebook -www.facebook.com/broadvisionmarketing - and LinkedIn -www.linkedin.com/in/JacoGrobbelaar.