WordPress Traffic Automation Blueprint – Part 5 (Optimization)

Welcome to Part 5 of our Website Traffic Blueprint article series, where we explain how to grow your business online automatically using the WordPress CMS platform.

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

In Part One of this series, we explain why using an expertly configured WordPress website or blog is the key to automating traffic to your website …

(With an expertly configured WordPress website or blog, all you have to do is post new content on a regular basis to automatically start generating more web traffic!)

In Part 2, we focused on the setup phase of the traffic automation blueprint. 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 site, and what to do if your existing site was built with WordPress.

(In Part 2 we show you where to set up a WordPress web site on your domain)

In Part Three, we look at configuring the system. We configured web hosting settings, internal settings, and external settings that can affect your site’s ability to generate traffic automatically …

(In Part Three you will configure hosting settings, internal settings, and external settings that can affect your site’s traffic-getting ability)

In Part 4, you learned how to set up various plugins that can help get traffic automatically to your site simply by publishing content.

(Publish once to WordPress and automate your content distribution to all other services!)

In Part Five of the WordPress web traffic automation blueprint article series, we look at ways to optimize the traffic system using various tools and strategies.

WordPress Traffic System – Systems

In addition to having an expertly configured WordPress website or blog, generating consistent traffic of high quality comes from having a clearly-defined business vision, sound digital planning, and excellent systems in place.

(Automating traffic is the product of having a clear business vision, planning, and excellent systems)

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

These systems include:

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

(Systems help you grow, automate, optimize, 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. You can test your marketing systems by asking questions such as:

• What is your content marketing strategy/online marketing strategy?
• What resources and portion of your budget will you allocate to these channels?
• Who will create your content, sales funnels, and marketing campaigns?
• How will you test 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 actionable data, such as the keywords people are searching online to find your website, which you can use to create content targeted specifically to your audience’s needs.

Technical Systems

Your technical systems and processes keep your web presence operating efficiently for receiving new traffic. There’s no point sending traffic to your website if your site is down or your pages take a very long time to load.

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

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

• Who looks after my webhosting?
• Who is looking after my website and keeping my site, plugins, themes, etc. maintained and up-to-date?
• Who will fix errors, troubleshoot problems, provide technical support and advice, etc. should issues arise?

Many potential issues can be minimized if your website planning and setup and configuration phases have been completed correctly. Like all technology, however, you should expect to face new problems. Your technical systems need to be robust enough to handle these.

Business Systems

You need good operational systems in place to help you manage the influx of traffic. This includes:

• Communication systems
• Resources management – human, financial
• Handling leads and sales enquiries
• Order fulfillment
• Customer service/training
• etc.

If you intend to outsource your digital marketing and technical maintenance, then you will need excellent systems in place to manage all outsourcing.

WordPress Web Traffic Automation Blueprint – Traffic Loops

With clear business objectives and great systems in place, all you need to focus your efforts on is developing, optimizing and automating a “traffic loop”.

Let’s go through an example of how to implement, optimize, and automate a traffic loop. Take a look at the illustration below …

(Implementing and optimizing your traffic loop)

Increase Reach And Visibility

The first step of the process is to expose your business to as many members of your target audience as your time and resources will allow.

Useful Tips

• Your expertly configured WordPress site allows you to instantly notify and publicize your content to social media accounts 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. Facebook ads) can help generate some initial data, which you can use to create web content targeted specifically to your audience’s needs.
• Repurpose your content to leverage different media formats.
• Continue learning about ways to get traffic using methods like Pinterest advertising, banner ads, email ads, etc.

Tools & Strategies

We’ve already covered a number of excellent tools, plugins, and methods in earlier sections of this article series.

Also, if you haven’t already, ask us about plugins that allow you to easily add the following to your website:

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

Build Authority & Credibility

Getting more of your content out there is great, but for this activity to be really effective, your content needs to build authority and credibility with your audience.

Publishing authoritative content improves your chances of getting it shared around and hence more visitors.

Traffic Ideas

• Create and publish content that adds value to your audience and that showcases your expertise. This includes content that informs and educates readers, training content, case studies, adding testimonials, etc.
• Consider publishing a training guide that you can sell or distribute online.

Plugins, Tools, And Strategies

If you need great content ideas for your web site, then subscribe to our FREE email training series here:

Also, if you haven’t already, ask us about plugins that allow you to easily add the following to your site:

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

Grow Influence And Engagement

At some point, you may want to consider developing “traffic on tap.” You can achieve this by growing a list or starting your own online community or social network.

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 broadcast you send out.

Tips

• Encourage users to leave comments and start discussions on your site.
• Add an autoresponder newsletter and encourage people to subscribe.
• Add a free or paid membership site.
• Start or join an online group on Facebook/LinkedIn.

Tools & Methods

There are many solutions and WordPress plugins that are easy to implement and can help increase your online influence and improve user engagement. For example:

• Autoresponders/Email Newsletters (e.g. Aweber, MailChimp, etc.)
• Contact Forms, Live Chat
• Forums and Social Communities (e.g. bbPress, BuddyPress)
• Polls & Surveys
• Webinars (e.g. Webinar JEO)
• Comment sharing
• Add media, image galleries, etc.

Identify Needs/Problems & Provide Solutions To These

If you take advantage of incoming traffic to listen to what problems your users are trying to solve, you should have no problem developing new solutions, all of which provide new opportunities for generating new streams of traffic.

Useful Tips

• Consider creating a free or paid online training course.
• Consider publishing an instructional e-book that can be sold or distributed online.
• Add e-commerce to your business.

Plugins, Tools, And Strategies

If you plan to provide solutions online (as opposed to just providing information), then some of the more useful plugins you may want to consider adding to your website or blog include:

• 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. Learning to gather and interpret data from existing traffic gives you the opportunity to discover new ways to create additional traffic.

You should already have installed an analytics program (e.g. Google Analytics) on your website. Make sure you understand the metrics and features and can interpret the data.

WordPress Traffic Automation System – Summary

Once you implement the above strategies, all you have to do 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 good 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 solutions as required to help build authority, trust, and credibility, and also to increase 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, now you have a blueprint that will help you drive more visitors automatically to your WordPress website and build a more successful business online.

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