Simple Keys To Increasing Blog Traffic

April 9, 2010 by Matthew Stone
Filed under Internet Marketing SEO

Competing for new readers is a never ending battle faced by business blog operators. So how do successful bloggers continue to compete? Delivering value in a positive manner – using humor when possible – is a simple formula for success. Unfortunately, this turns out to be a difficult challenge for many blog owners.

Giving readers a solid reason to return to the business blog or website is the central tactic to earn repeat traffic. However the website must first attract the reader to the site to begin with. Low Cost SEO options are available to help, but once the reader finds the site, what should the blog owner do to capture reader interest and to encourage her/him to return?

Value and content are imperative to deliver for each post, article or webpage. Frequently updated information and copy attracts readers for future visits to the site. It is also somewhat important to remember that blogging is at least to a small degree, a form of entertainment. Most entrepreneurs are inundated by dry, boring business material, so a blog post or article that can at least make the content more interesting is a site that will be remembered. When readers remember a given site, the chances are better that they will return to it in the future.

Leading your blog with the ‘Daily Dilbert’ might not be useful or necessary, but note the many email campaigns and daily blogs that lead with a joke or funny story. Humor not only makes the page or email less threatening, but invites the visitor to continue reading. In the end though, value and content are king. So here are three inclusions to make the business blog valuable to a busy reader and inviting for that reader to return to the site: Value – clearly stating the goals and objectives Move the Ball – daily steps to incremental advancement Support – cheerleading and acknowledging obstacles

Value: Unique bits of value or customer testimonials are useful to illustrate the value delivered by the company. If used appropriately, humor can help in story-telling as well. Keep in mind that customers don’t necessarily have a great deal of time to spend on your page, so keep the piece relatively short – usually in the neighborhood of 500 to 600 words or so.

Using the post to discuss one single point of value is also effective. Readers in a rush to get to the point appreciate brevity and also appreciate knowing the point of value early in the text. Bold statements such a “improve profit margins in retail by 20%” with a certain product or methodology inspires the reader to continue and to look for that point of value within the copy.

“Moving the Ball:” This old football metaphor refers to the importance of making incremental progress if even by small amounts. Under the best of economic conditions, enterprise operators are continuously challenged to make more sales and improve efficiencies so progress is difficult. Showing a reader how to achieve small bits of progress is an attractive reason for a reader to return to the site. Claims of thousands of dollars in income each day using a new internet technique tend to turn these readers off though, so claims of progress should seem reasonable to a well-seasoned entrepreneur.

Support: This can seem trite, but “cheerleading” or motivating your potential customers is important. For new entrepreneurs, business can be depressing when things don’t go as planned. As you don’t know your individual readers’ situation, offering supporting advice is useful. Supporting advice can take the form of advising the reader how to make best use of the company product or service and then setting a positive expectation for the reader if she/he takes certain actions. This adds value to the page makes the reader more inclined to return.

Specifically inviting the reader to return is also important. Frequently posting valuable information and respecting the reader’s time also encourage return visits.

Being mindful of these simple inclusions for each page or post can establish the organization’s blog site as an authority site – which both readers and internet search engines love. The web page and blog can be turned into effective business sales engines by first attracting readers to the site and then by encouraging repeat visits. Over time, many of these readers can be converted into paying customers.

Consultant Matthew Stone delivers Low Cost SEO assistance to businesses across the country. Specializing in link building, blogging and article marketing, SEO Consultants Denver helps companies of all sizes improve sales and income utilizing internet search engines.

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