WordPress Traffic Automation Blueprint – Part 5 (Optimization)

Welcome to Part Five of our WordPress Website Traffic Blueprint article series, where we show you how to turn your site into an automated web traffic generation machine using the WordPress CMS platform.

So far, we have covered the following in this article series:

In Part One of this article series, we explained why using an expertly configured WordPress website is the key to generating automated web traffic …

(With an expertly configured WordPress website, all you have to do is add great content on a regular basis to begin bringing web traffic!)

In Part Two, we looked at the setup phase of the automation system. We helped you understand the best way to start if you don’t have a web presence yet, how to set things up if you already have a website, and what to do if your existing site has been built with WordPress.

(In Part two we show you how to set up WordPress on your domain)

In Part 3, we focus on important configuration decisions. We explained how to configure all the settings (hosting, WordPress and external) that affect your site’s ability to generate traffic automatically …

(In Part 3 we show you how to configure all the settings (hosting, internal and external) that affect your website’s ability to generate traffic automatically)

In Part Four, we discussed ways to automate your traffic using a number of plugins.

(Publish content once and automate your content distribution to all other marketing channels!)

In this section of the WordPress web traffic automation blueprint article series, we look at ways to optimize traffic to your website with a number of different tools and strategies.

WordPress Web Traffic Blueprint – Traffic Optimization Systems

In addition to getting your WordPress website or blog expertly configured, the key to generating consistent traffic of high quality is having a clearly-defined business vision, great digital planning, and good systems and process in place.

(Optimized traffic is the product of a business vision, planning, and systems)

Let’s briefly review the systems that will help you grow and manage new traffic.

These include:

• Marketing Systems – How you drive new traffic to your website.
• Technical Systems – How you ensure that your web presence remains operating efficiently for receiving new traffic.
• Business Systems – The systems and processes used to manage and respond to new traffic.

(Use systems to grow, automate, optimize, and manage your web traffic)

Let’s review the above systems briefly:

Marketing Systems

Your marketing systems consist of the processes and strategies used to drive traffic to your website. Your marketing systems can be tested by asking questions such as:

• What channels will you use to drive new traffic (e.g. blogging, video marketing, etc)?
• What resources and portion of your budget will you assign to these marketing channels?
• How will you create and optimize your content, sales funnels, and marketing campaigns?
• How will you measure the results of your online campaigns?

During the setup and configuration phase, you would 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 intelligence. If you’re tracking your marketing campaigns correctly, this should yield some actionable data, such as the keyword phrases people are searching online to find your site, which you can use to create content targeted specifically to your audience.

Technical Systems

Your technical systems keep your online presence optimized for receiving traffic. There’s no point sending traffic to your website if your site is constantly down or your pages take a very long time to load.

Your systems include handling areas like webhosting, website maintenance and support, installing and updating software (e.g. plugins), customization, integration, troubleshooting, etc.

Your technical systems can be tested by asking questions such as:

• Who will look after my server?
• Who looks after my website and keeps my site maintained and up-to-date?
• Who will fix errors, troubleshoot problems, provide technical support and advice, etc. if you experience difficulties?

Many potential issues can be minimized if your website planning and setup and configuration phases have been done correctly. Like all technology, however, you can expect problems. You will need the right technical systems in place to handle these.

Business Systems

Your business systems help you manage and respond to traffic. This includes:

• Communication systems
• Managing human and financial resources
• Handling leads and sales enquiries
• Order fulfillment
• Customer training/service
• etc.

If you intend to outsource key aspects of your digital marketing and technical services, then make sure you have good systems in place to manage all outsourcing processes.

WordPress Web Traffic Blueprint – Traffic Loops

With clear business objectives and great systems in place, all you need to do is to focus on growing a “traffic loop”.

Let’s go through an example of implementing, optimizing, and automating a traffic loop. Take a look at the processes illustrated below …

(WordPress can help you implement, automate, and optimize a traffic loop)

Increase Reach And Visibility

The first step of the process is to increase visibility for your business.

Tips

• Your expertly configured WordPress site will allow you to automatically syndicate your content to places like Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, etc. The easiest way to increase your reach and visibility online, therefore, is to simply publish more content.
• As mentioned earlier, investing in some paid advertising (e.g. Google AdWords) can help you generate some initial actionable data such as the keyword phrases people are searching online to find your site, which you can use to create web content targeted specifically to your audience.
• Repurpose your content to leverage different media formats.
• Continue learning about ways to increase web traffic using methods like Facebook ads, podcasts, forum ads, etc.

Tools And Strategies

We’ve covered a number of useful plugins, tools, and methods in previous sections of this article series.

Also, if you haven’t already, see other posts on this site to learn more about plugins that allow you to easily add the following to your WordPress website or blog:

• Share your posts online,
• Run contests, offer downloads or discounts for shares/likes,
• Display user generated content, feeds, etc.
• Publish and distribute content online in different media formats (e.g. videos, PDF guides, infographics, etc.)

Build Authority And Credibility

Getting more content published is great, but to make this more effective, your content needs to build authority and credibility with users.

Publishing higher quality content not only helps to establish your credibility, it also improves your chances of getting it shared around and hence more traffic.

Useful Tips

• Focus on creating and publishing content that adds value to your audience and that showcases your expertise. This includes content that educates and informs readers, training content, user reviews, adding testimonials, etc.
• Consider publishing instructional PDF guides or special reports that can be sold or distributed online (e.g. sell on on the Amazon Kindle store.

Plugins, Tools, And Strategies

If you need endless ideas for posting content on your website, we recommend subscribing to our FREE email training series here:

Also, ask us about WordPress plugins that let you easily add the following to your website:

• Legal Pages
• Testimonials
• Customer Support (e.g. Helpdesk, Live Chat, etc.)
• Ratings
• User Reviews
• Badges/Certificates Of Trust

Grow Influence And Engagement

At some point, you may want to consider developing “traffic on tap.” You can do this by growing a list or starting an online group.

With “Traffic On Demand,” most of your traffic will come from an audience of customers or subscribers – people who already like you and trust you. Your influence and reputation can be used to generate new traffic with a single post or email broadcast.

Useful Tips

• Encourage visitors to leave comments and start discussions on your site.
• Add an email training course and encourage people to subscribe.
• Add a free or paid membership site.
• Create or join an online group on LinkedIn.

Tools, Plugins, & Strategies

There are many solutions and plugins that can help grow your online influence and improve user engagement. For example:

• List-Building Tools (e.g. Aweber, MailChimp, 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, video galleries, etc.

Identify Needs And Provide Solutions

If you take advantage of incoming traffic to listen to what problems your visitors are trying to solve, you can have an endless funnel of ideas for developing new products and services, all of which can provide you with new opportunities to generate additional web traffic.

Useful Tips & Ideas

• Consider creating an e-learning course.
• Publish a special report that you can sell or distribute online.
• Add e-commerce to your business.

Plugins, Tools, And Strategies

If you plan to provide products and services online (as opposed to just providing information), contact us to learn more about plugins that let you easily add the following to your website:

• Membership Sites (e.g. Wishlist Member, S2 Member, etc.)
• e-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 interpreting data gathered from existing traffic, you can discover new traffic opportunities.

You should already have installed an analytics program (e.g. Google Analytics) on your site. Make sure you also learn how to interpret the data.

WordPress Web Traffic System – Summary

Once you implement the above strategies, all you have to do is rinse and repeat, fine-tuning and refining your methods as you go to grow your traffic and get better your results.

In summary:

• Start with an expertly configured WordPress site backed by good marketing, technical and business systems,
• Implement a content marketing strategy (consider also investing in some paid advertising to drive traffic and generate useful data) to increase your reach and visibility online,
• Add plugins, list-building strategies, and other solutions if required to build authority and credibility, and also to improve engagement with users,
• 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 article has given you a blueprint that will help you drive more traffic automatically to your WordPress website and grow your business online.

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