Pull and Push Traffic

I was talking with a successful online marketer the other day and the subject of website traffic naturally came up. In our discussions, I asked him what the number 1 mistake he felt most online entrepreneurs make when it comes to attracting traffic. That’s where he became passionate!

“The problem with traffic generation is that most people try to ‘pull’ traffic to their websites and they neglect the importance of ‘pushing’ traffic to their sites”. His point was well taken since there is a big difference in passive marketing and active marketing. Passive marketing attempts to pull traffic. Active marketing tends to push traffic to your site. And we all know how much easier it is to push a heavy load than it is to pull it.

I thought it might be helpful to include some of the most effective ‘active techniques’ for your consideration as you prepare your promotional strategies:

1. Article marketing is one of the most effective ways to drive traffic to your site - we’ve talked about this several times on this site, but it’s still worth including as our #1 strategy for active promotion that sends traffic to your site - pushing them forward. Submitting articles to the most widely read article marketing sites is an excellent idea.
2. Paid advertising or pay-per-click (PPC) is another way to drive traffic. It requires some skills, but it’s the still the best way to instantly generate targeted traffic and get the first metrics of your website.
3. Syndicate your website content so that it really becomes viral and will be distributed to many different communities and networks.
4. Stay active in your own community by actively participating in relevant forums, blog carnivals, e-zines, and other types of online content that will help expose your name as an authority, and your website as a valuable resource.
5. Network, network, network - talk with other people in your niche market, communicate with your customers, encourage interaction with your visitors and customers by engaging them in interactive strategies.
6. Give away an eBook that points back to your products and services - this is a great way to drive repeat visits to your site.
7. E-zine ads are another active idea - although they may cost a little more money. But you could test this strategy with a relevant e-zine or two and see if the traffic follows. Then you’ll know if it’s a worthwhile investment for the future.
8. Engage, offer, and/or participate in teleseminars in your niche market. Or you can even consider offering an e-course or teleseminar to your niche market.

Successfulonline marketing entails the combination of both active and passive strategies. Both methods have strengths and weaknesses and the combined effect of both methods is powerful. They are both critical to your business. And no matter what you do, always stay focused on the value and importance of relationship-building and customer loyalty in everything you do. Don’t just look at the short-term marketing value of a strategy - always consider the long-term benefits as well.

Repeat visitors and loyal customers are a major key to success. If you provide them with unique, valuable information and fresh content, they’ll return over and over again. When they become loyal customers, they are more likely to bring more people with them - increasing your traffic exponentially.