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When running a small business, your website can be your most important sales tool. It’s the welcome mat into your business. Many people think a brochure or business card is sufficient, but in today’s marketplace, the first thing many people do when making a buying decision is search online. Your #1 focus should be to make sure that potential customers can find you and that your website is helpful. Here are seven ways that can help increase traffic to your small business website:

1. Update Your Website. When was the last time you gave your website a facelift? Keep your website professional-looking by making sure all the links work. Your homepage should include clear information on the pain points for your target audience and how you can assist in solving them. Use a contact form, but be sure your email and phone number are posted. (People do not like website’s that look anonymous.)
2. Register Multiple Domains. One great way that could drive traffic to your website is to register multiple domain names, and then redirect them to your main website. For example, let’s say you are a bakery. You might register bobscakefactory.com as your main website and then you could register sweettreatcupcakery.com and bestbakeryintexas.com too. Then you could redirect the traffic from these secondary domain names using 301 redirects to your main website bobscakefactory.com. Domain name redirection could boost web traffic and increase brand awareness.
3. Refresh Your Keywords. Depending on the industry, keywords people use to search for your products and services online can change every six to eight weeks. Try to stay on top of the keywords people are using to search for your products and services online. Select the top seven you want to be known for and make sure you use them in strategic places on your website. Just be careful not to overdo it. You could easily turn off your target audience or search engines by stuffing your website with needless keywords.
4. Blog Regularly. You may want to keep your website constantly updated with helpful content. Blogging is a gateway to demonstrate your expertise. One of the best sources of topic ideas is having a list of pain-points for potential customers on your website, and highlighting solutions in blog posts. Create content that specifically addresses their needs. Blogging is not just about writing; you can also produce artwork, how-to videos and podcasts. Many professional blogs are updated two to three times per week. Producing fresh content weekly can help you stay at the top of your customers’ minds. Quality content can be key to driving traffic to your website.
5. Optimize Your Website.SEO is the process of affecting the visibility of a website in search engines via “organic” or earned search. Having proper tags, whether it’s title tags, header tags, meta tags or blog post tags, have been demonstrated to increase traffic and boost engagement.
6. Leverage Social Media.Choose the top social network where your target customers are hanging out online. Use social media to connect and share your blog content. Use a 4:1 ratio of promoting other people’s content over your own. Remember that social media is about mutual interaction. No one wants to be sold to, so don’t just promote your business, share other people’s content to help build connections and become a trusted resource.
7. Know Your Numbers. Reviewing your website’s Google Analytics report monthly can help you determine where your best referral traffic comes from and help you measure your social media efforts. Examine your “bounce rate.” Do people leave your site quickly after they arrive? If so, why aren’t they staying? You can do a lot to draw traffic to your website, but if they come and leave quickly, you’ve wasted your time. Take note of your most popular content, that is shared the most, and give your audience more of it.

Treat your website like the hub of your entire business. Use social media marketing strategically to help drive traffic back to your website. Leverage your blog content to ask and answer questions to build your online reputation as a thought leader. Staying focused on your customers by providing helpful content can help you drive lots of traffic to your small business website.

Note: This post was sponsored by Verisign.  This post reflects the views and opinions of Melinda Emerson and does not necessarily reflect the views or opinions of Verisign.

About our sponsor

Verisign, a global leader in domain names and internet security, enables internet navigation for many of the world’s most recognized domain names and provides protection for websites and enterprises around the world. To learn more about what it means to be Powered by Verisign, please visit Verisign.com.