How To Promote Your Content To Get Free Traffic

We often hear that content is king.

‘If you write it, they will come.’

As long as you are producing better, more worthwhile content than your competitors, then you will attract more interest.

The truth is, that’s only half the story. Content that satisfies your client base’s needs is essential to online success, but it’s only half the battle.

The other half is getting people to your content. It’s a crowded market out there, and free traffic isn’t always easy to come by, but that doesn’t make it impossible.

Keep reading to learn how to direct free traffic to your content.

Get Your SEO Right

Search Engine Optimization is the fuel that powers your web presence.

It’s the way your site communicates with the search engine algorithms that dictate page rankings.

There are three components that need to be addressed when optimizing your site:

1. Technical Optimization
2. On-Site Optimization
3. Off-Site Optimization

Technical Optimization

Technical optimization refers to the actual build of the site. Search engine algorithms are constantly assessing a page’s value when ranking search results. The better your page adheres to best practices, the better your likelihood of ranking.

On-Site Optimization

On-site optimization concerns the factors that go into crafting an optimized article.

First and foremost, your article needs to be of interest to your target market.

Secondly, you need to let the search engines recognize its value. You can tackle both of those by conducting keyword searches.

Keyword research allows you to find that overlap between what your market is searching for and what search engines are ranking.

The more naturally you can incorporate these keywords into your article, the better it will both serve your audience and be recognized by search engines.

Off-Site Optimization

This is the meat-and-potatoes of driving traffic to your site.

One of the biggest indicators of your site’s value is referrals. The more you can get other, legitimate, sites to link back to your site, the more of an authority you appear.

Below are some great, and, more importantly, free traffic strategies to drive that traffic.

Guest Posts

No matter how specific your niche is, you will have other sites sharing similarly-themed content. Instead of viewing them as competitors, use them as a resource.

Reach out to them and offer to write them a guest post.

This is an excellent way of introducing yourself to a brand new audience while also building those valuable backlinks that will help your site.

Social Media

The Holy Grail of garnering free traffic is going viral. If you can create content that catches on, you can find yourself generating an untold number of impressions.

But even if you don’t go viral, social media is a great way to nurture an audience while allowing for the opportunity for your content to grow organically.

Every time someone reposts or links back to your site, you’re adding to the legitimacy of your site. Few things have more value online than a recommendation from a third party.

Engaging your audience in an organic way also allows you to get that free traffic without having to concern yourself with the ever-changing advertising rules on the various platforms.

 

Use Directories

Long has passed since the YellowPages was the sole resource for locating businesses.

Now there are a considerable number of online listings that you can take advantage of.

Getting your business listed creates another set of links that direct back to your site. These are excellent tools for expanding your online presence.

However, there are two important considerations when utilizing online listings. The first is that not all listings are created equal.

When registering your business, keep in mind the search engines do consider the value of the site giving backlinks, and know that they may actually punish sites that get links from disreputable sites.

Second, you’re going to also want to mind your NAPs. This refers to your Name, Addresses, and Phone Numbers. Essentially, you want your information to be identical on every listing.

Using different variations on the same information dilutes your presence in the eyes of search engines. Keeping everything uniform bolsters your presence, increasing your SEO.

Answer Questions

Quora and Reddit have proven themselves to be excellent places to generate free traffic.

These forums cover an incredible array of topics, so finding your niche is certainly possible. Look in these places for questions that you can answer and link back to your site.

It’s an incredible opportunity to demonstrate your authority while finding a new audience and generating those valued backlinks.

Remember: these are communities. Creating a presence that distracts and interferes won’t be tolerated. You can create real damage to your brand this way.

That’s why it’s so helpful to answer questions. You’re creating value by directly benefiting your target audience.

Study the Data

As you implement the above strategies, study the resulting data.

You can garner a ton of insight from the results. There are a few things you’re going to want to keep an eye on.

What content resonates: certain topics are going to be more valuable to your audience. Look for the trends that resonate and increase your focus in these areas.

Where do the referrals come from: maybe your social game is on point. Maybe the sites you guest post reflect your ideal audience. Figure out where your clicks are coming from and redouble your efforts in these areas.

What’s your bounce rate: if you’re drawing a large audience from a particular source, but the audience isn’t spending any real-time on your site, drop it. Clicks only have value insomuch that they benefit from your site. An audience that doesn’t stay isn’t an audience.

Final Thoughts on Free Traffic

Finding your audience is as important as providing them with quality content.

By using the above strategies you can reach a large number of potential customers. You can also spread your presence around to a number of different, valuable platforms, creating an increasing number of important backlinks.

If you want to get started on an SEO marketing strategy, give us a call. We have the know-how to help you reach an engaged audience.