Welcome to Part Five of our WordPress Web Traffic Blueprint article series, where we explain how to grow your business online automatically using WordPress.
So far, we have covered the following in this article series:
In Part One, we provide an overview of the traffic automation process, and explain why using an expertly configured WordPress site is the key to automating traffic to your website …
(With an expertly configured WordPress website, all you have to do to automatically attract new web traffic is publish fresh content consistently!)
In Part Two, we focus on critical setup decisions. We explain the best way to start if you don’t have a website yet, how to set everything up if you already have a site, and what to do if your website has been built with WordPress.
(In Part two we show you where to set up WordPress on your domain)
In Part 3, we discussed the configuration phase. We configured all the settings (hosting, WordPress and external) that affect your site’s traffic-getting ability …
(In Part 3 you will configure hosting settings, internal settings, and external settings that can affect your website’s ability to generate traffic automatically)
In Part 4, you learned how to set up various plugins that can drive traffic automatically to your site.
(Publish content once, automate the rest!)
In this section of the WordPress web traffic automation blueprint series, we discuss ways to optimize traffic generation with different tools and methods.
WordPress Web Traffic Blueprint – Traffic Optimization Systems
In addition to getting your WordPress website expertly configured, the key to generating targeted traffic consistently is having a well-defined business vision, careful digital planning, and good systems and process in place.
(Optimizing traffic is the product of having a clear business vision, sound planning, and excellent systems)
Let’s briefly review the systems that will help you grow and manage your traffic.
These include:
- Marketing Systems – The processes and strategies used to create new traffic for your business.
- Technical Systems – How you keep your digital presence up and running for receiving new traffic.
- Business Systems – How you manage and respond to new traffic.
(Systems help you grow, automate, and manage your web traffic)
Let’s review the importance of the above systems briefly:
Marketing Systems
Your marketing systems consist of the processes and strategies used to drive new traffic to your business. Your marketing systems can be tested by asking questions such as:
- What is your content marketing/online marketing strategy?
- What resources and portion of your budget will you assign to these marketing channels?
- How will you create your content, sales funnels, and marketing campaigns?
- How will you track conversions and measure the results of your online marketing campaigns?
During the setup and configuration phase, you should have installed an analytics program (e.g. Google Analytics). If you’re just starting out, you may want to consider investing in some paid advertising to help you generate some initial actionable data, such as the keywords people are searching online to find your website, which you can use to create content better targeted to your audience.
Technical Systems
Your technical systems ensure that your online presence remains up and running for receiving new traffic. There’s no point driving traffic to your site if your site is constantly experiencing problems or your pages take too long to load.
Your systems include handling areas like webhosting, site maintenance and support, installing, configuring, and updating new software (e.g. plugins), customization, integration, troubleshooting, etc.
You can test your technical systems by questions such as:
- Who looks after my server?
- Who will look after my website and keep my site, plugins, themes, etc. maintained and up-to-date?
- Who will fix errors, troubleshoot problems, provide technical support and advice, etc. should anything go wrong?
Many potential issues can be minimized if your website planning and setup and configuration phases have been completed correctly. As with all technology, however, you can expect problems. You will need the right technical systems in place to handle these.
Business Systems
Your business systems and processes help you manage and respond to traffic. These include:
- Communication systems
- Resources management – human, financial
- Handling sales inquiries
- Order fulfillment
- Customer service/training
- etc.
If you plan to outsource areas of your digital marketing and technical maintenance, then you will need systems in place to manage all outsourcing.
WordPress Web Traffic Blueprint – Traffic Optimization
With clear business objectives and great systems in place, all you need to do is to focus on growing your “traffic loop”.
Let’s go through an example of implementing, optimizing, and further automating a traffic loop. Take a look at the illustration below …
(Implement and optimize your traffic loop)
Increase Reach And Visibility Online
The first step of the process is to get your business exposed to as many members of your target audience as your time and resources will allow.
Tips
- An expertly configured WordPress site will allow you to instantly notify and publicize your content to traffic-getting sources like Facebook, Twitter, GooglePlus, etc. The easiest way to increase your reach and visibility online, therefore, is to simply publish more content on your site.
- As mentioned earlier, investing in some paid advertising can help generate data, which you can use to create content targeted specifically to your audience’s needs.
- Repurpose your content to leverage the power, appeal, and reach of different media formats.
- Continue learning about ways to increase website traffic using methods like Pinterest ads, banner ads, updates, etc.
Plugins, Tools, & Methods
See previous sections of this article series for a number of useful plugins, tools, and methods we’ve already covered to help you reach more members of your target audience.
Also, contact us to learn more about plugins that let you easily add the following to your site:
- Share your comments and posts online,
- Run contests, offer discounts/downloads for likes/shares,
- Accept user generated content, feeds, etc.
- Publish and distribute content online in different media formats (e.g. videos, PDF guides, slides, etc.)
Build Authority & Credibility
Getting more of your content out there is great, but for this activity to be really effective, your content also needs to build authority and credibility with visitors.
Publishing authoritative content not only helps to establish your credibility, it also improves your chances of getting it shared around and viewed by more people and hence more traffic.
Useful Tips And Ideas
- Focus on creating and publishing content that will add value to potential users and showcase your expertise. This includes content that informs and educates readers, training content, case studies, adding testimonials, etc.
- Consider publishing educational guides or special reports that you can sell or distribute online.
Tools, Plugins, & Methods
We have created an entire course on content creation that you can plug into for free here:
Also, if you haven’t already, learn more about plugins that allow you to easily add the following to your website:
- Legal Pages
- Testimonials
- Customer Support (e.g. Helpdesk, Live Chat, etc.)
- Ratings
- User Reviews
- Badges/Certificates Of Recognition
Grow Influence & Engagement
As your business grows, you may want to consider developing “traffic on demand.” You can achieve this by building a list or starting a group.
With “Traffic On Tap,” all of your traffic comes from an audience of existing customers or subscribers – people who already like you and trust you. Your influence and credibility can be used to generate new traffic with every post you publish, forum post you add, or email you send out.
Tips
- Encourage commenting and discussions on your site.
- Add an autoresponder newsletter and encourage people to subscribe.
- Add a free, paid, or ‘freemium’ membership site.
- Create or join an online group on Facebook.
Tools, Plugins, And Methods
Many solutions and WordPress plugins are available that are easy to implement and can help grow your influence and improve user engagement. For example:
- Autoresponders (e.g. Aweber, GetResponse, etc.)
- Contact Forms, Live Chat
- Forums and Social Communities (e.g. bbPress, BuddyPress)
- Polls and Surveys
- Webinars (e.g. Webinar JEO)
- Comment sharing
- Add media, image galleries, etc.
Identify Needs & Provide Solutions
By taking advantage of incoming traffic to find out what users want, you should have no problem developing new products and services, all of which can provide you with new opportunities to generate additional traffic.
Traffic Ideas
- Consider creating an e-learning program.
- Publish special reports that you can sell or distribute online (e.g. sell on Clickbank.
- Consider adding an e-commerce store to your business.
Tools, Plugins, & Methods
If you plan to provide products and services online (as opposed to just providing information), learn more about plugins that let you easily add the following to your website:
- Membership Site plugins (e.g. Wishlist Member, S2 Member, etc.)
- e-Learning Courses (e.g. Courseware)
- Event Registrations (e.g. EventEspresso)
Analyze Data & Feedback
The final step of the process is the collection and analysis of data. By learning to interpret data gathered from existing traffic, you can discover new ways to generate additional traffic.
Hopefully, by now you have already installed an analytics program (e.g. Google Analytics) on your website. Make sure you can also understand the data.
WordPress Web Traffic Blueprint – Summary
All you have to do once you implement the above strategies is repeat the same process, fine-tuning and refining your methods as you go to grow your traffic and get better your results.
In summary:
- Begin with an expertly configured WordPress site backed by solid marketing, technical and business systems,
- Implement a content marketing strategy (with some paid advertising to drive traffic and generate useful data) to increase your reach and visibility online,
- Add plugins, list-building strategies, and other methods if needed to help build authority and credibility, and also to improve engagement with visitors,
- Promote any new solutions, products or services using your existing channels and strategies to generate additional streams of traffic,
- Analyse your data and your results, automate your processes wherever possible, and begin the cycle again.
Hopefully, this post has given you a blueprint that will help you drive more visitors automatically to your website and improve your business online.
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"This is AMAZING! I had learnt about how to use WordPress previously, but this covers absolutely everything and more!! Incredible value! Thank you!" - Monique, Warrior Forum
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