In the world of marketing, organic (non-paid) website traffic is the ultimate goal. This is because organic traffic is free and often brings people to your site that are ready to convert. This reduces the cost per lead and can help increase your book of business.
But businesses can’t just rely on organic traffic. Combining paid methods will help you boost your website traffic and can be accomplished for less than you might think. Let’s look at five of the most common paid ways to boost website traffic: paid search, social media advertising, content syndication, SEO strategies, and hosting events or webinars.
Paid Search (PPC)
Paid search, or pay-per-click (PPC) advertising, is one of the most common types of online advertising. With search engine giants like Google, Yahoo!, and Bing, businesses want to make sure that their name is on the top of results by paying for that placement. There are various types of PPC campaigns and ad types. For example, Google AdWords is Google’s own advertising product. It allows businesses to pay for certain search words to make sure they come up as one of the first results. You can set the amount you want to pay and only pay per click that you get.
Social Media Advertising
While social media profiles are free to create, you may want to put some money behind your posts to increase traction. Each platform offers its unique ways to advertise (read more about Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter!) and each way has its pros and cons.
Because of the ever-shifting algorithms of these social media platforms, paid advertising on social is becoming more valuable and is seen as less of a sales technique and more normalized. Wondering if you should invest in social media advertising? Check out one of our past Marketing Tips on the subject to find out if it’s right for you.
Content Syndication
Content syndication is the process of writing a piece of content, including blog articles, videos, or other web-based content, and sending it out to third parties for republishing. If you are looking for ways to channel your inner content marketer, content syndication might be right up your alley. By pushing your article out to larger audiences and driving them back to your site, you will gain more website traffic and exposure.
Content syndication comes in both free and paid forms. Technologies like Outbrain and Taboola allow you to start content campaigns and will publish your content on major news and content marketing sites.
Professional SEO Help
Hiring an SEO expert is a bit of a precarious strategy, but if you are serious about amping up your SEO it may be a good option. There are countless professionals available that will help you sort out keywords, headlines, meta tags, alt tags, and more. While they can be a little on the pricey side, they may be worth it if you work with someone who knows what they’re doing.
Hosting Community Events (or Webinars)
As a financial advisor, you are probably a pro at hosting events for clients and prospects. This marketing strategy has been around for ages because it’s easy to measure your return on investment and is a chance to show off your brand. Costs to consider when hosting an event include presentation materials, venue, food, drinks and transportation. Check out our post on how to take your event from ordinary to extraordinary.
If hosting an event in front of a crowd has your palms sweating, consider hosting a webinar for your clients and prospects. Webinars are like live events in that they disseminate information, but they are different because they are online and individuals can tune in on their own time and in the comfort of their own homes. Expenses you need to consider when hosting a webinar include marketing materials (if you are hiring a professional designer or writer, for example), cameras and broadcasting equipment, time of employees, and hosting platforms (such as Join Me or Livestream).
These are a few of the most salient ways we see advisors paying to increase their website traffic. Have you tried any paid strategies and had success? We would love to hear! Email [email protected] or find us on Twitter @FMGSuite to share.
