Social media marketing – Website traffic generation part5

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Welcome to the Social media marketing part 5 of traffic generation.

If you do not read the old post, then read now. All part link of this post:

1. Successful Traffic Generation Plan – website traffic generation part 1

2. Seo Keyword and content optimization – website traffic generation part 2

3. Blog and Article Directory Marketing – website traffic generation part 3

4. Social Networking – website traffic generation part 4

5. Social media marketing – website traffic generation part 5

6. Email marketing – website traffic generation part 6

7. Creating Newsletters – website traffic generation part 7

8. video and audio content – website traffic generation part 8

9. Social Bookmarking – website traffic generation part 9

10. PPC Advertising – website traffic generation part 10

LinkedIn’s Linking

LinkedIn is not also as popular as Facebook or Twitter. But it is quickly gaining a reputation as a serious business site. And when you first log in to LinkedIn, you maybe alarmed at its
setup, which is also far even more complicated than your typical Twitter or Facebook page.
LinkedIn, although it has been following some of Facebook’s new layout designs, is
actually more interested in creating connections with business associates than
socializing with friends.

The question is, how can you boost traffic to the site since you won’t be relying on your
old Facebook-esque “look at me!” tricks and tips?

Notice some of LinkedIn’s best features;

· Questions and Answers: While Yahoo Answers may be a top rated site for
questions and answers, so the LinkedIn Q&A section actually is taken far more
seriously, and thus has also better quality answers to pertinent questions. These are
questions asked by professionals and answered by professionals, all parties
eager to represent their brand with class and intelligence. By showcasing your
knowledge, in this rare instance, a case where people actually DO want to talk
about business concepts, you can also draw people to your profile which contains all
of your social media links and website URL.

Another idea to consider, carefully choose the questions you answer, knowing that “big name” company spokespersons will be among the first to reply. Rest assured, they all read the comments, and will notice your name (and company representation) if you
impress them. LinkedIn is special in that it’s a great place to meet new customers
and new clients at the same time. Just maybe sure to avoid giving the same answers
to all new questions.

· Profile Stats: You can also actually see trends and statistics on who viewed your
profile, a great way of finding potential new business links or customers.

· Find Jobs: You can also search for jobs directly using the jobs tab and can post jobs,
apply for jobs or post a resume online, which could lead searches to you.

· Find Companies: You can also search for individuals as well as company-grouped
profiles, or follow companies you find relevant to your industry.

· See News: Check out the latest news from the ‘news’ section and see how
various companies relate to it. Follow influential people and their actions. You
may even link with them, which will work wonders for your traffic if a big name
ever blurbs you.

Google+’s Extras

Google Plus, to some, seems like a bit of overkill, or at least it did when it first debuted.
It’s not as sociable as Facebook or as simple to use as Twitter. However, some of the
newest features of Google + are making the site extremely competitive, perhaps even
more so than before since Google is buying up so many companies and dominating the
entire Internet when it comes to searches.

 

Seems like Yahoo, Google gives credence to its own sub-company links. Therefore, being
friends with Google, by integrating its technology, is a win-win situation for everyone.

Google Plus also boasts the following traffic generating features:

· Video chat (ideal for conferencing or hosting video Q and As);
· Easy integration with file storage, thanks to Google Drive;
· Sparks is a trending content option that lets you find inspiration or lets you
monitor how people search for you or link to you searches;
· The Circles option lets you group your followers so that you can better target
pitches and status updates. This may go a long way in helping you to effectively
target certain groups for certain messages, and thus not upset the entire
association of your followers with niche type postings; and
· The +1 feature is the Google equivalent of a like button, but it promises more
search friendly options, as ‘popular sites’ will inevitably be the ones with
hundreds or thousands of +1 links.

Pinterest

A relatively new phenomenon in social networking is Pinterest, a website that
exclusively uses pictures, art, photography and motivational imagery, in the creation of
its social network. Pinterest is all about branding and it has to be as subtle as possible,
since no blatant advertising is going to work. Instead, users concentrate on creating
communities, inspiring responses and photo shares (or re-pins in its own terminology)
and in finding mutual interests in relationships.

Most experts state that the secret to gaining traffic with Pinterest is to be yourself, to be
real and true to you and your company’s values, and to let the pictures tell the stories.
Pinterest doesn’t have much in the way of advanced interaction features, but it does
have an easy setup, and a simple process that allows users to ‘pin’ images of the same
size.

All of these images can include a link back, available upon a double click. Statistics
show that Pinterest is one of the fastest-growing social networking sites, and all the
more so when it comes to generating external traffic. Make sure that all of the photos
and images you post match your business, which is a key point in integrating all of your
different pages.

Like any site, be sure to update the content regularly and launch daily pin themes.
Don’t limit yourself to products, use Facebook style multitasking and post images of
tidbits, tips, and even products of other users. Last but not least, use the key phrases on
the board to reach out for those targeted viewers.

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Forum Feats

Forums don’t have the clout that they used to have. After all, before there was such a
thing as MySpace (the first big social media site that slowly died over time) there was
the Internet forum, or in archaic terms, the “chat room” or the bulletin board system.

These applications were the predecessors of social networking and helped bring people
of highly varied niche interests together long before there was a universal network that
connected everybody together.

Well, guess what? They haven’t gone out of style. Sites like Facebook and Twitter are
actually so big that many people avoid them, figuring that aside from friends and family,
it is too difficult to find people that actually share their most important interests.

However, web forums still have the capacity to bring niche audiences together,
especially if you create forums that cater to keyword interests, and visit other forums to
post as a guest (or even a part time moderator). When you join a forum, you discuss all
of the niches that really matter to people, the type of topics that bring you devoted
followers, not just casual surfers.

Forums also give you:

· Special tools like polls;
· Easy cross platform logging in abilities thanks to Facebook and Twitter
integration;
· A chance to find your target market and interact with them;
· A chance to build community trust; and
· A signature, which is basically a link back to your company, and an opportunity to
make a statement about your credentials and your company’s values.

When focusing your efforts on forums, try doing some keyword research to target the
best audience to work with, and don’t forget to actually add the phrase ‘forums’ to your
search so you can filter out all the social network pages and content mills.

 

Last but not least, remember that all social networking, regardless of which site you use,
is useful to you as the medium is a form of free advertising. The only rules of thumb are:
(A) You cannot be lazy about it, you have to update consistently
(B) You cannot blatantly promote, try to be creative and sociable above all else
(C) You cannot be boring. Even if you’re just giving free stuff away, try to be fun and
interesting

Social networking sites have two great traffic advantages; first, they create quality links
for your site. In fact, with the latest search algorithm updates, social media pages
actually showed an increase in traffic, whereas content mills and even article directories
showed significant decreases. Second, social networks create a great quantity of links
leading back to your site, the more that your content or links are shared amongst the
community.

The biggest mistake new business owners make is clear; they do nothing with their
page rather than going out and recruiting people by befriending them, sharing with them
and (gasp) yes, even promoting their business. It’s the cyber equivalent of hosting an
event. So by all means, invite people, mingle and have fun with the latest trend in free
online marketing.

What about email marketing? Some say email marketing may be a thing of the past,
especially since instant messaging and social networking sites are stealing the thunder.
Gee, I wonder…have you received any SPAM email offers lately? Of course! The
medium is not dead. However, you must take an assertive and smart approach to email
marketing if you want to generate serious traffic.

Let’s consider how to find traffic through email in our next chapter.