Imran Sadiq Gill Keirin: The Comprehensive Guide to Getting Website Traffic in Today's World - A General Overview

 

By Yousef M Julaidan

I think it is important to have the big picture in mind before starting to devise a plan to generate traffic to any website. Why? Because not all websites are the same. One traffic generating method can only work with certain types of websites and another method can only work with other types of websites.

For example, the methods used to generate traffic to an e-commerce website might not be as effective in generating traffic to an information nonprofit website. Generating website traffic can be classified into two big groups based on the cost incurred. One is paid even though as cheap as few cents per visitor and the other one is free! As good as it might sound; generating free traffic is harder than and not as effective as paid traffic generation.

This is pretty natural because in general, the companies that specialize in the service of generating traffic to websites have breakthrough technologies and experienced teams of specialists with the only purpose of generating quality targeted traffic for their customers. I'm not trying to degrade free traffic as it is important to reduce costs, but in general paid traffic still supersedes free traffic in terms of quality and quantity. Paid traffic isn't affordable by all advertisers, but still it offers a lot of peace of mind and results. Here is a list of the most prominent paid traffic generation methods:

1. Pay per click (PPC):- Known by all yet most hated for sucking cents and dollars out of advertisers pockets without as much satisfying results. Google being the king of PPC has been making life harder and harder for PPC advertisers by imposing more and more criteria to determine which ads get higher positions in PPC ads. Believe it or not, if your website isn't optimized enough for Google, your ad will not get better positions even if your bid is higher than others! This proves the point that even though PPC is disappointing many advertisers, there is actually a logic that you have to figure out to get better results from your PPCs.

There are techniques to get better results from your PPC campaigns using low and pocket friendly bids, which is going to be a topic of another article that I'm going to write about.

2. Paid SEO services: - SEO is a short for Search Engine Optimization. In short it is about optimizing the
design and the coding of a website so it can get better free ranking in search engines. This is referred to as organic ranking. Even though the end result is free better ranking, still SEO companies charge tons of money to make a website search engine optimized. I will address SEO in more detail in future articles.

3. Paid targeted 100% opt-in e-mail blasts: - There are advertising companies that have huge lists of 100% opt-in subscribers. 100% opt-in means that every one of their subscribers has agreed to receive promotional e-mails from them on the topics of their choice and this is how it is targeted. This method has proven its effectiveness, but there are a lot of fake companies out there that claim 100% opt-in, but actually have much lower opt-in percentages or even not at all. This is important because you don't want to pay for a campaign that ends up in the junk or spam folder of the users e-mail. Be careful and deal with the reputable ones only.

4. Banners and image based advertising: - this form has lost its effectiveness over the years, but still is used by many advertisers. Find the ones that work like PPCs, which means you don't get charged for impressions...only clicks.

5. Guaranteed visitors schemes: - These are companies that promise you a number of targeted traffic for a fee. Usually they will tell you that they get the traffic from expired domains and traffic redirected from other sites. Trust me, for the most part, these are scams so beware. It could work well for those who have gambling or sex related websites because they can't use PPCs to promote their websites.

6. Video advertising: - A new and growing advertising trend that Google is pursuing heavily. Yes I know that you can post videos in YouTube for free, but I'm talking about a new wave of video advertising that is very similar to PPC. It will be more popular soon so watch for it. Now for the fun and most pleasing part....free traffic! Getting results from free traffic requires much more work and time compared to paid traffic. Even though these methods generate free traffic, I see a lot of courses and e-books sold for hundreds and even thousands of dollars to teach people these methods.

So much for the free part! Luckily, you will be able to get an overview of these free traffic methods for free today. I'm not going to explain each in detail, but will be the topics of some of my future articles:-

1. Article marketing: - You write good articles, post them in article directories with links pointing to your website. People read the article, like what they read and visit your website. I will address it more in future articles.

2. Website directories: - these are directories that organize websites in categories which makes it easier for people to find what they are looking for. Even though all will let you submit your link for free, a lot of them offer a "premium" listing for a fee which is worth paying if they have high search engine ranking.

3. Video sites like YouTube, Yahoo and MSN videos: - don't underestimate its power! Find at least 10 more video sites and submit your videos to them. But how can you advertise your website with video? Get a screen capture video maker. There are free ones online and sold. My advice is to buy one for the quality of videos as free ones produce low quality videos. Make a small presentation about your website on your own screen, capture it on video and upload it to video sites...that's it! It will be helpful if you use a basic video editing software like windows movie maker to add your URL on the bottom of the video.

4. Forums and blogs: - This works in two ways. Either you own a blog or forum and generate your own community using quality content and funnel this traffic to your website. The other is to post comments with links pointing to your website in high ranking blogs and forums.

5. RSS feeds: - you can set up an RSS feed linking to the topics and issues in your website and syndicate it. More on this on future articles.

6. Groups and newsletters: - Can be found in all major search engines and internet service providers like Google, Yahoo, AOL and MSN. Establish relations and spread the word about your websites. Avoid spamming and misbehaving!

7. Online free classifieds: - There are so many. The only problem is that your ads in these classifieds need re-updating every 1 or 2 days which is very time consuming.

8. Social bookmarking: - These are sites where people leave sort of brief descriptions about their websites, blogs, forums etc. and a link to visit.

9. Social media/interaction websites or what is called web 2.0:- My Space, Face book, twitter and Squidoo are all examples of this new internet trend. Basically they are all about an online gathering point where people express themselves and share knowledge, experiences, hobbies, passions, pictures, videos, music and much more. Why not use it to get traffic to your website?

10. Going viral: - Don't ever think that this is not important because this is number 10. It can be the most powerful traffic generating tool if you know how to use it. An example would be giving away a free report with lots of information and your website links inside. Give it to as many people as you can and in turn they give it away. This can continue forever and never stop. That's why they call it viral and is very powerful! If you ask me which methods are the best and should be used to get traffic, I would say all of them. The only problem is that we have limited resources and I mean time and money. I suggest using a mix of free and paid traffic. The mix to be determined according to what type of website is promoted and traffic objectives.

Watch out for more detailed articles on the subject.

Yousef is an expert writer in business and money making topics and issues. His insights combined with his clear and informative style of writing has attracted a lot of attention lately. To subscribe to his free and valuable newsletter send a blank email to=> ibm-newsletter@aweber.com

Also check out Yousef's website [http://www.internet-business-and-money.com]

Imran Sadiq Gill: Improving Website Traffic - What Does It Really Mean?

In the world of online marketing, an enormous amount of attention is given to the subject of "improving" website traffic. This emphasis seems to be put in the right place, considering the central role traffic plays in any online marketing campaign. But despite the popularity of the subject, it would be difficult to find two Internet marketers that share the exact same idea of what it actually means to "improve" website traffic.

Every marketer has a solid feeling for what it means. But by failing to ask, in detail, what it actually means to improve traffic, too many online marketers miss out on the benefits that come form a deeper understanding of effective website-traffic improvement. Effective and lasting traffic improvement is made up of multiple layers.

And by looking at what it means to "improve" website traffic at each layer, an overall view of traffic-improvement becomes much clearer.

At its most basic, "improving" website traffic means bringing more traffic to a site. At this level, it's a question of numbers and not much more. Bringing more people to a website is an essential foundation of traffic-improvement; but even though it's central to every online marketing campaign, it should not be seen as a final goal.

At a slightly higher level, improving website traffic means making the flow of traffic to a site as regular as possible: Getting new traffic is good. But regularly getting new traffic is even better. Traffic like this shows signs of sustainability and it's the type of traffic that a business can start to be built upon.

At the next level, improving website traffic means making the regular traffic of a site as targeted as possible. This targeting has a positive effect on traffic because it raises the overall quality of the traffic. Targeted traffic is made up of people that are genuinely interested in what is being offered. They are potential customers that are likely to respond to offers. And because of this, they improve traffic by improving its responsiveness. Ten highly-targeted leads are always more profitable than a hundred luke-warm leads.

At its highest level, improving website traffic means consistently reaching traffic at the right stage in the buying cycle. The buying cycle has three main stages: browsing, gathering information, and ready-to-purchase. In the browsing stage, people are looking to see what's available. In the information-gathering stage, they are weighing the pros and cons of particular options. And in the ready-to-purchase stage, they have already decided what to buy and are looking for the best deal.

It's important to draw traffic that is at the information-gathering stage because this is the stage where choices are being made. If traffic is reached earlier in the cycle at the browsing stage, it's difficult to make enough of an impression for the site to be remembered later on. If traffic is reached later, at the ready-to-purchase stage, it's too late - potential customers have already decided what to buy. Reaching traffic at the right stage in the buying stage is a very effective traffic-improving step that is often overlooked. Yet it has the potential to greatly increase the performance of a site.

By being aware of what it means to "improve" website traffic at each of the four levels mentioned above, serious online marketers will give themselves a clearer idea of what it really means to improve overall website traffic. They'll be able to easily judge where they are in the traffic-improving process. And, more importantly, they'll be able to see in which direction they should head to reach the next level. The long term effects can only be positive.

Eli Pedelty is a website traffic specialist that turns websites into a profitable aspect of overall business.

If you’d think you could benefit from a detailed explanation of five proven methods for increasing website traffic, sign-up for his free 5-day course, Direct Methods for Increasing Web Site Traffic, at EliPedelty.com - Improve Website Traffic [http://www.elipedelty.com].

Imran Sadiq Gill: Targeted Website Traffic - Without it Your Site Will Certainly Die

By JP McDonald

Targeted website traffic - you hear that term a lot these days. Most people know what it means and understand the concept. Some people actually strive for it. Some people don't.

In plain English, with targeted website traffic, your site has a chance to make some real money and there's a slight chance you might be able to make a living of the internet. But, without targeted website traffic, your site is doomed to die a slow, painful death until it quietly fades away into the dust like so many thousands of other websites.

If you do a search on any of the major search engines for the term 'traffic' you will get mostly websites regarding automobile traffic, traffic reports, road conditions, road closures, motor additives, etc.

If you do a search on any of the major search engines for the term 'website traffic' you will get mostly websites regarding traffic exchanges, stat counters, web searches, page optimization, how to build a website, etc.

If you do a search on any of the major search engines for the term 'targeted website traffic' you will finally get the picture of what this article is all about - making money on the internet. That's why you are here, that's why you have a website, that's why you are reading this article in the first place.

Targeted Website Traffic is King

Without sufficient targeted website traffic to your website nothing will happen - no sales, no rankings, no notoriety, nothing. You need this type of traffic in order to generate sales, provide leads, gather email addresses and create advertising exposure.

So many good things happen when one can actually tap into the targeted website traffic market that it's difficult to name them all. Here are a few examples of what I'm talking about:

* Sales

First and foremost, sales is what you are after. Only targeted traffic will get you the sales you need to stay in business on the internet.

* Links

More targeted traffic leads come from links to similar websites than any other source. These can be either direct links to your website, AdSense links, press releases, blogs, or any other form of advertising that gets your website in front of other people's eyes.

* Free Advertising

As the search engines pick up on your increasing number of visitors, especially if they come from related linking websites, your rankings will hopefully rise and your PageRank wil improve. Having your site on the first three pages of any major search engine is optimum exposure for your site and will bring in customers 'off the street', as it were. This is free advertising.

* More Links

Another benefit to your rise in the search engine rankings, and your rising PageRank, will be your ability to inundated with link requests from every other website imaginable. Remember, stick with only those that relate to your own site. Again, free advertising.

It's one thing to get your website noticed by the search engines but it's quite another to get your website noticed by the buying public. Just because you have great links, great positioning in the major search engines, and great links will not produce sales.

So, how can you become successful where most of the others have failed? What is the magic key to making all these sales that everyone is talking about? I'm glad you asked:

The Magic Key

Are you ready? Are you sitting down? Do you have a paper and pen ready to take notes? Well, then, calm down, take a deep breath, and just remember this one simple fact of internet life: The website makes the sales, not you, not your links, not your search engine presence, not even your friends or comrades whom you sent to check out your 'wonderful little website.' Unless your site screams out to the world, 'BUY MY PRODUCT!!', you will not make enough money to buy one month's worth of internet cable service.

You can buy, grab, obtain, link, and get all the targeted website traffic in the world but it will not sell a single product and/or service unless your website is compelling enough to do the selling for you. Design is one thing, content is another and, remember, content is everything. It makes the search engine robots and spiders visit your site on a daily basis, it makes visitors want to buy, bookmark, or return for a future purchase, and it makes one think, 'Hmm...maybe I really do need this product and/or service.'

Just keep thinking to yourself, 'Design and content, design and content...', over and over. Plus, once your website is complete, it isn't. A proper website is always refining itself and a webmaster knows this. The search engine robots and spider love new content so a little change here or a little change there will make a huge splash with them as they cruise your site on a daily basis.

Targeted Website Traffic Can Make or Break a Website

While having a great design and excellent content on your website is the best possible thing that you can have on the internet, it will still sit there and gather dust until you get the traffic flowing. Unless your website is the only site on the internet that sells a particular product or service, you will be lost in a crowd of thousands or possibly millions.

Remember the term, 'Targeted Website Traffic', and keep this in mind:

* Is it really targeted?

Are the visitors you get to your website actually looking for what your site has to offer? If you buy your traffic from a service, how can you be sure that you get what you pay for?

* Will they buy?

There are no guarantees when it comes to how people make their decisions. All you can do is make your product or service as irresistible as possible. People, in general, are picky and they always want the best for less.

Buying Targeted Website Traffic From a Service

If you are new to this concept and have no idea which companies are reputable and trustworthy, then you will have to experiment, learn from others, hear about it by word of mouth, blogs, forums, etc. Check out each company you come across that offers the traffic you want and compare them against each other. What should you look for when comparing traffic service companies?

* Do they offer a guarantee?

If they do not offer a 100% guarantee then keep looking until you find only those traffic services that do.

* Do they have contact and privacy pages?
All reputable companies have these in place. Review them to your satisfaction before placing any orders.

* Do they have your category available?

Targeted website traffic must fit your site to a 'T' meaning that if you sell widgets then there must be a category for selling widgets, plain and simple. If there categories are not specific to what your website sells, move on until you find one that does.

* Purchase 10,000 targeted visitors, get 10 sales.

This is a general rule. If you do not get at least a 1% return on your investment then one of these things is wrong: either your traffic is not targeted to what you are selling or your website is not strong enough in its' message to sell the product and/or service.

* Does your page counter move?

Every site should have a page counter on their main index page, either visible or not. If that counter does not show the traffic that you purchased then you are not receiving real people but, instead, computer-generated hits. Have you ever made a sale to a computer-generated hit?

Whenever you try a traffic service, buy the minimum to see what happens. If the traffic campaign fails, and you are sure it is not because of your website's design or content, then try another service. Keep searching until you find one that works well for you and stick with it.

James McDonald is an executive at Dreamry, Inc. which has been successfully marketing and promoting websites since 2002.

Imran Sadiq Gill: How to Buy Quality Website Traffic

 

By Lisa Longport

No online business can be successful without adequate traffic to the website. Those who purchase traffic for their website should ensure that actual sales take place. Unless there is profitable selling no one can run the online business successfully. If there is no business in spite of tens of thousands of visitors, the traffic is of no use to the online businessman. Many online marketers waste their time and money for buying unproductive website traffic.

The main drawback of this type of purchased traffic is that they are untargeted. In order to achieve a satisfactory conversion rate the business website should be subjected to demographically targeted traffic.

When there are only 2 or 3 transactions out of thousands of visitors to the website it is not a worthy investment. When the traffic is generated from a demographically targeted source a conversion rate of not less than 5% is feasible. Those who buy traffic for their website must ensure to track the visits so that they will come to know whether the traffic supplier has provided the committed number of traffic. The online businessman should insist for a money back guarantee from the traffic provider so that there will be no loss in case he failed to provide the committed number of traffic.

How to get traffic to the website?

In spite of an amazing website and well written blogs, one cannot earn anything out of the website unless the potential buyers visit the website and buy the products. Just like the shop in the market place the online shop also cannot generate any income unless somebody visits the site and makes a purchase. The four different methods that are normally adopted by online businessmen to generate traffic to the website are -

• Search Engine Optimization
• Using social media websites
• Placing ads on other websites
• Buying guaranteed website traffic

Out of the above four methods, the first two methods are rather free, provided the online businessman undertakes himself the task of SEO. However, these two methods require a very long time to gain momentum. The third method of placing ads on other websites is certainly not a free method. But, the advantage is that once the ads start to get clicked, there will be regular flow of traffic to the website and consequently real business will commence. The fourth method of buying guaranteed visitors to the website is the most effective method to generate profit from the online business. In this method the basic requirement is that the online businessman should find out a reputed and reliable seller of website traffic who will ensure that the website gets sufficient number of potential visitors so as to run the business profitably. The owner of the website has to pay for the traffic and hence it is not a free method. But, the result will come much faster when compared to SEO and social networks. The website will receive the exact number of visits for which the site owner has paid.

Analyze the pros and cons

Now there are various methods to buy website traffic. One can buy instant search traffic that will be either search-safe or non search-safe. The various PPC advertising networks offer targeted traffic with respect to country, category and age. Another method is buying the traffic either from media blasts or from banner ads on 3rd party website. Buying website traffic is a common practice nowadays since it is a fast method to achieve high volumes of business. Those who plan to buy website traffic must make it a point to consider various aspects prior to investing money in traffic purchase.

Research and investigate

It is all the more important for those who want to buy website traffic for their internet business to conduct various researches and investigations.

1. Know about the supplier

As part of the homework for buying website traffic one has to research the companies that are offering website traffic. One can go through the reviews about the company and refer to various forums. Searches in terms of "complaints", "scams", etc. can provide useful information. The website owner must have his own judgment also about the reliability of the company from which he wants to buy the website traffic.

2. Know about the deal in detail

Before entering into an agreement with the supplier the website owner must study the various aspects of the deal. The agreement must be clear about the cost, quantity, lead time, refund and other related aspects.

3. Ensure to have analytics

Even if the traffic provider does not provide suitable analytic tools to track the traffic received by the website, the website owner should track the visits with the help of third party tracking software like Google Analytics. The software will track and report the visits, the referral source and the visitor's demographics.

4. Specify the guaranteed traffic, minimum and maximum

The traffic provider should specify in the agreement whether or not he is going to provide guaranteed traffic. They must also make it clear whether the targeted traffic will be based on specific demographics. The agreement must be transparent with regard to minimum and maximum restrictions, type of the traffic and how the traffic will be generated by the traffic provider.

5. Beware of the fact that conversion is not guaranteed

The online businessman must be well aware of the fact that though the traffic provider guarantees to provide traffic to the visit there is no guarantee for sales and conversion. It is very important that one should deal with a reliable and reputed firm for buying website traffic so that there will not be any bogus visitors or fraudulent clicks.

6. Find out how the traffic is directed

The website owner who wants to buy traffic from a traffic provider should ensure that there is no mystery regarding how the traffic is directed into his website. While purchasing website traffic the online businessman must strictly avoid the traffic providers who make use of the service of paid individuals who pretend as customers and click on the website, automated traffic services, domains that are expired and also domain redirects.

7. Say "no" to untargeted traffic

In all probability, the untargeted visitor is unlikely to be interested in the products offered by the website so that he is not going to be a customer. The traffic provider should assure to provide traffic according to the requirements and demographics of the online businessman who wants to buy the traffic for his website. Only the targeted visitor will be a potential customer for the website.

8. Traffic provider must reveal the ad format he uses

The website owner should know in clear terms whether he pays for a fixed ad space, pop-up ad space, text/image ad space, animated ad space or any other type of ad space. It must be an affordable ad space with competitive pay-per-click or pay-per-view.

9. Do not buy traffic in haste

The website owner must be sure about the suitability of buying traffic for his business. Because of the particular line of business, the website may be unable to get targeted visitors. In such cases, the businessman should abstain from wasting his time and money for buying website traffic.

Lisa Longport is a contributing writer for: http://www.purchase-traffic.com, a website traffic provider.