Apr 1, 2020
Hey there podcast family, welcome to episode 66 of the Small Business Made Simple Podcast.
Thank you for lending me your ears today – I know you have lots of choices, so I sincerely appreciate me being one of them!
If you’re a first time listener, super super welcome, I am so pleased to have you here. I am your host Jenn Donovan, and, it’s my job, via this podcast, social media and everywhere else actually, to make your business life simpler.
Business can be lonely and hard and complicated and it’s hardly ever easy, but it should be simple or at least simpler, so that’s my commitment you to on the Small Business Made Simple podcast!
One way I help to make your life simpler is by having a group of like-minded business owners all in one stop. To ask questions, get answers and enjoy the journey of business! If you haven’t joined the Like Minded Business Owners Facebook Group, then hope over there after this episode and join! Simply search Like Minded Business Owners in Facebook or come to the show notes for the like. Show notes are at www.socialmediaandmarketing.com.au/66
www.facebook.com/groups/LikeMindedBusinessOwners
This episode has been inspired by some wonderful followers on Instagram including Louise from Floral Harvest – both a beautiful store online and off and a beautiful person running the business.
I reached out to my audience on Instagram and asked, “what do you need to know right now?” – the answer from Louise and others including Sam from Cover drum and Mina from SMR – who answered, “I need more traffic to my website”.
And ta-da – that’s exactly what I’m am going to be giving you some tips and tricks around today on ep 66.
For those listening in real time, it’s the end of March and we are in lock down – or almost. A lot of my clients have either closed their businesses altogether, pivoting their businesses or at the very least reduced their hours of operation.
Website traffic has become the gold we are hunting.
In this episode I am going to give you loads of tips and tricks to get traffic to your website, but there’s a few things we need to clarify first – deal.
Website traffic won’t necessarily equal sales at this exact point in time.
Many people simply don’t have the spare cash or are too afraid to be spending it. But others will – so it’s not all doom and gloom – and it WILL improve.
So, get testing and measuring NOW to see what works, what doesn’t and what you need to change.
Secondly, getting traffic to your website is only half the equation.
You really, really need to look at the customer experience the traffic is going to get when it gets there.
Go through your website as a customer. Click all the buttons, put stuff in the shopping cart, buy it, sign up for your freebies and make sure it all works and it’s seamless, that all your branding and messaging is consistent and it leaves you feeling like your brand is a brand you’d like to come back and do more transactions with.
And maybe dob in a friend or two to do the same – get their feedback – tinker, fix, delight.
Ok, so let’s get into it
How do you get more traffic to your website?
- Check your Google Analytics
Did you just roll your eyes?
I hope not – yes I am going to start here at google analytics.
If you don’t have them set up on your website – do it TODAY.
There’s a perfect strategic reason why I have asked you start here.
Because when I look at mine, my traffic comes 43% direct, 40% social (which goes Facebook, Pinterest, LinkedIn – which I might add is absolutely reflected in where I put my energy into as far as marketing goes), and then organic search.
So, when I am thinking how I get more traffic to my website, my
strategy might go something like this
- Develop an email marketing campaign around x product/offering etc – why because most of my traffic is direct – so I would put a lot of energy into increasing both the size of my list and the use of my list
- Keep being consistent on social media and continue to point traffic from these platforms to my website – obviously developing some sort of strategy around what I am offering or what I am posting that people will want to click on a link to get or read or listen to etc
So, back to analytics – you can see how this is the basis of any campaign to get more traffic. Why reinvent the wheel.
If the people who know, like and trust you are already coming from these points, then that’s a place to start being strategy on.
- Google My Business
I know I have spoke about this a LOT on the podcast. Please if you haven’t signed up for Google My Business as yet – please do it TODAY!
If you have but you haven’t put all your details in, or you aren’t using it like a social media platform (as in posting to it often and consistently) then please do!
This is one of your BEST ways of getting some google love – remembering the more you love google, the more she’ll love you back!
Heads up an optimized and well used Google My Business listing gets 7x more visits than an incomplete one or one that you set up and never post too!
- Engage more online – put more energy into communities
Community is 100% the key to social media, I have absolutely no doubt whatsoever about that. My Facebook Group – Buy From a Bush Business – is one of the biggest success stories so far as building a community goes – there’s over 225,000 people in that group and you only have to scroll a wee bit to see the support and community feel.
Community sells. Sounds bad, but it’s not – it’s reality – why, because we buy from those we know, like and trust and you get to know, like and trust someone who’s hanging out in your community.
Simply having a Facebook Business Page is not enough – it’s often about you and not building a community at all.
Facebook Groups – if you can see strategically how they could work for your business – do that. On my Facebook Business Page, I get anywhere between 11 and 22% engagement on any post I do – but in my group – it’s anywhere between 60-87% - that’s a heck more eyeballs on my content via my group.
I did a podcast all about Facebook Groups – check out episode 17 – www.socialmediaandmarketing.com.au/17 - links in the show notes too at www.socialmediaandmarketing.com.au/podcast
But other than creating your own group – spending time in other groups that have your target market. Share wisdom, share stories, help other members, give, give, give, and then ask.
Don’t be salesy – but sell without selling. Sell by giving your best upfront to solve someone’s problem.
Spending time in online communities and being a part of that community, will help with traffic to your website and subsequently sales.
- Email Marketing
I know I mentioned it above as something I would do, but it’s so important I wanted to run it past you again!
Building a list and nurturing that list with emails that they will want to open, is not only a great resource for getting traffic to your website – but it gets qualified traffic to your website.
These people already know, like and trust you and there’s a fair chance they are going directly to your website to buy.
If you don’t have an email list or if you do but you aren’t using it to drive traffic to your website or to nurture your prospects until they are ready to buy – then you’ll be so pleased to hear that I have a FREE 3 part webinar series coming up on just this subject.
Part 1 will cover spilt into why and how of a database giving tips and tricks and absolute direction on how to create a list and why you need some. Part 2 I will take you through how to develop a lead magnet – that freebie that everyone will want from you and therefore prepared to hand over their email address to you and part 3 will be all about developing a welcome sequence of emails to go with the lead magnet (because it’s more than “here you go!”) and why the welcome sequence if SO important and also about how to create consistent email campaigns to keep top of mind and sell – following your initial welcome sequence.
If you’re super keen to learn all this for FREE – then you can go to www.socialmediaandmarketing.com.au/email, get all the information on times and dates and sign. That’s link again was email – of course, it’s in the show notes too.
Email marketing should be a part of your mix and if your analytics show, like mine, that most traffic is direct, then there’s no better reason to invest in email marketing!
- Post Content to LinkedIn
LinkedIn has become much more than a means of finding another job. The world’s largest professional social network is now a valuable publishing platform in its own right, which means you should be posting content to LinkedIn on a regular basis. Doing so can boost traffic to your site, as well as increase your profile within your industry – especially if you have a moderate to large following.
This can be said for most social media sites – but if you have a great LinkedIn profile that’s up to date and is current with content etc, it does seem to rank higher on google than any other platform.
- Link Internally
We hear a lot about “back links” to our website – which is people linking back to your website – but not a lot about how linking internally can help with rankings.
The strength of your link profile isn’t solely determined by how many sites link back to you – it can also be affected by your internal linking structure. When creating and publishing content, be sure to keep an eye out for opportunities for internal links. This not only helps with SEO, but also results in a better, more useful experience for the user – the cornerstone of increasing traffic to your website.
- Contests/giveaways
A simple way to drive traffic to your website is through contests and giveaways. This can give you a quick boost, while also rewarding your followers. You can host giveaways on social media, through your email list, or both.
Implementing a strategy like this can be simple. Just follow these six steps:
- Decide what platform on which to host your giveaway (can be multiple)
- Choose a prize (free tickets, discount, etc … )
- Select the criteria (website comments, email sign up, etc … )
- Write ad copy
- Create graphics
- Post and promote
The way to use a competition would be to firstly grow your email list and then having those wonderful people on your list then to send content rich emails to that points to your website, or host the competition on your website and as they sign up they are encouraged to explore other, very relatable, pages or sections of your website.
Once the traffic is there – you can’t just let them sign up and go! Give them a reason to stay and explore.
Otherwise, in shorter form, there’s another few ways to get traffic to your website
- What’s in your email signature – a link to your website? Or a “come read my latest blog or see the latest fashions or hottest products this month” link? Or both?
- Launch a PPC – pay per click – campaign
- Google search advertising
- Google Maps Advertising
- Partner with Influencers
- Do work on your SEO for your website – I’m not expert here – you can listen to Episode 39 with Kate Toon – there was lots of gold in there – she’s the Beyoncé of SEO and I’d highly recommend you following her on social etc.
- Start a blog or do it consistently and make them keyword rich or start your own podcast – happy for you to reach and ask anything about starting a podcast! I’ve got you listening and I’m up to episode 66 – so I must be doing something right!
- Get outside your comfort zone and guest blog or be a guest on a podcast that’s right for your audience
- Invite others to guest blog for you – building links in and out!
- Get listed in online directories – if you are already listed – go back and check your information and links etc – make sure they are as up to date as possible!
- Social media ads
- Retargeting ads
- Write irresistible headlines in your copy – emails, captions, social posts etc – episode 23 was all about how to write a good headline – might be worth a listen too! An irresistible headline will increase the likelihood of someone reading and clicking!
That’s all for episode 64 – next week I have a guest on the show, and the wisdom is oozing in that ep.
I’ll be back next Thursday with another great episode to help you simplify your business in 2020.
If you’re enjoying this podcast, can I ask you to do me a favour or two
- Subscribe to this podcast – I have some exclusive content coming up for those who do!
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See you next week on the podcast for episode 65. But in the meantime, let’s hang out on social and get social on social – you’ll find me on Instagram, Facebook and my fav LinkedIn.
But whatever you do,
……..remember small business peeps, as my opening song says, there’s no point in dreaming small!