How do you promote a website

Expectations

A common misconception among business owners is the belief that, “Now that I have a website, it’s only a matter of time before I’ll dominate Google and leads will start flooding in.” 😄

Well, not quite. In reality, if your website is brand new, you’re likely to see zero visitors – unless you’ve already handed out some business cards with your website on them.

Having a website and driving traffic to it are two completely different strategies, and neither comes easily!

Reality

The reality is, you’ll need to invest in various forms of marketing – and possibly some budget, before you even start seeing visitors to your site. And it doesn’t stop there; driving traffic is just the beginning. There’s much more involved when it comes to converting those visitors, which we’ll cover in another topic.

So, how do you promote a website? Here are some simplified methods.

1. Search Engine Optimisation (SEO)

SEO is one of the oldest and arguably the most effective long-term strategies, especially if you want to avoid spending a lot of money over time. If you’re familiar with SEO, you’ve probably heard the phrase, “SEO is dead,” but that’s far from the truth.

Let’s break it down. Imagine you want your website to rank in the top 10 search results for “Web Designers in UK.” That phrase is called a keyword, and over 100,000 people search for it every month.

Now, with so many people searching for the same keyword, what are the chances your website will rank in the top 10 on Google? Almost zero, right?

However, you might have a better chance of ranking for a more specific keyword. For example, consider “Website Designers for WordPress in Leicester.” This keyword is much more niche, attracting only about 30 to 100 searches per month. But because it’s so specific, your chances of ranking for it are significantly higher!

In a nutshell, this is SEO in the most simplest terms 🙂

There are both free and paid tools available that can provide insights into keywords. All you need to do is write about them on your blog! We would recommend using SERanking

Please note: SEO involves several factors you need to be aware of, one of which is having a fast website with excellent performance. Unfortunately, this is often overlooked by freelancers and agencies. Be sure to check out our article to avoid making these mistakes!

2. Content Marketing

Ever heard the phrase “content is king”? It’s true, and today, it’s one of the most effective forms of marketing. If you produce valuable and original content, it will be noticed, and people are more likely to visit your site.

While AI can assist in content creation, it doesn’t generate unique material; it rewords existing information from the internet. As a result, it’s not original.

With the rise of AI, search engines have begun to favour websites that offer high-quality content rather than recycled material. Using AI as a writing tool can be helpful, but over-relying on it won’t yield great results. So what can you do in terms of content marketing?

1. Create quick and to the point blog posts of a topic you are aware of
2. Make a video explaining your understanding further – leverage YouTube
3. Make a free guide / e-book that you can give out to people in exchange of email address. We will cover more on this below. 

The bottom line is, it is suppose to be helpful and valuable.

3. Social Media Marketing

Social media is one of the most underestimated tools available. I often see people post low-quality content just once or twice a month and then declare it a waste of time. If you are one of them, well you need to read ahead.

Social media is more competitive now than ever, unlike 2012 you cannot paste some hashtags and expect followers / likes. The game is much more different now. Let me explain. Firstly, all social media platforms now have a complex algorithm. That does not only see what you have posted, but even checks how often you post.

Just like content marketing, your social media posts must be as engaging and valuable.

4. Email Marketing

The best example here would be newsletters. I’m certain you must have seen it on all websites. So, what exactly is email marketing?

Email marketing is a simple way to send out regular updates to people who are interested in your content. Consider it like a blog but instead it comes in an email in the form of short content or an alert. 

Why is this any better than blogging? 

In today’s busy world, it’s easy to forget things that once interested us. That’s why email marketing is so effective; it delivers content directly to your inbox in a simple and convenient format, making it easy to stay updated on new content.

There are additional benefits, too. By sending valuable content via email, you’re warming up cold leads, turning them into prospects for the future – potentially leading to sales of your services or products.

5. Pay Per Click (PPC)

PPC just means paying for some form of ads where each click costs. Yes, you pay money to bring people to your website. This is typically done on Google Ads, Facebook, TikTok and more.

How effective is PPC?

It really depends on what you are trying to promote. When selling good, you will find that paying for ads could bring some decent results, as it does not cost the end user as much. However, when it comes to high quality services where each service starts from £1,000. Well, this could be a hit a miss as it really depends on the work you do, testimonials, transparency and familiarity. 

The bottom line, people do not buy easy – when it comes to paying more. They tend to lean on referrals more. Therefore, your offer must be compelling, or you can win trust by giving away something really valuable for free.

Remember when we talked about newsletters and creating e-books? This is where you can combine quality content with social media ads. In exchange for valuable content, you can request their email, sign them up for regular newsletters, and hopefully convert them into paying customers down the line.

Conclusion

Depending on your industry, creating valuable content is likely the best approach right now. The downside is that it takes time, but it’s absolutely worth it. By combining social media with content creation, you’ll build a strong brand identity and loyal followers, making it much easier to sell your products or services.