The Great Web Traffic Debate - PART 1
Ever since the beginning of Trafficology.com we've all argued the chicken-and-egg debate of: should I drive more traffic to my site or do I need to improve my conversion rate first.
The debate is ageless and, in short, the conundrum is: If I don't have any traffic then I can't run a split-test to improve my conversion. But if drive traffic to a site that doesn't convert buyers into customers then I've wasted all my money and now I can't afford to create more traffic.
Yep - it's a real brain teaser.
But here are two facts that will help shed a little light on the subject…
FACT #1: Most website convert so poorly that a simple split-test will not produce the amount of improvement you really need.
FACT #2: You don't need to re-invent the wheel. You don't need to start from scratch. There are plenty of sites that already successfully convert traffic in to sales.
When you consider these two points the solution becomes very clear.
(1) If you don't have any traffic nor any sales, then you need to start by finding a successful site in a niche similar to your own and "model" what they do. No, don't copy or plagiarize. Just use their site and style as an example to create your own site.
(2) Then start driving traffic to your newly-redesigned website.
(3) Finally…split-test, split-test and split-test even more.
You see, the answer is not "either/or". The real solution is to do both, together. Traffic creation and traffic conversion work together, hand-in-hand…they are two-sides to the same coin. You don't start by focusing on traffic generation or traffic conversion. You need to start by driving traffic to a site that is already proven to convert and use all your traffic to continually improve your conversion rate even more. That is how you become successful and grow to dominate your niche.
Now there's a lot more to learn, so keep watching this blog. Later this month I'm going to share with you a little-known and seldom used trick for short-cutting this whole process and finding out exactly what headline, subhead, bullet points and call to action convert best…almost over night.
Enjoy!
– Dearl
If you can't wait to learn more web traffic creation and website conversion tactics then Claim Your 2-Free Months of Trafficology right now at http://www.Trafficology.com
increase conversion, traffic generation, website conversion tactics, website promotion, website traffic creation
Comments
August 15, 2007
Valerie said:
Good article and good advice to model a site after a simalar one that is succsessful, but how do I know if another website is doing well, attracting traffic, and making lots of sales? Is it the Google rank that tells me this? I'm sure there are other ways to find out. Got some suggestions?
August 16, 2007
Liz said:
Hi Valerie,
One of the ways you can see if a website or blog is getting traffic is by looking at their Alexa ranking.
Go to Alexa.com and click on "Traffic Rankings", then type in the URL of the website you want to see rankings for.
Keep in mind the smaller the Alexa ranking is, the better. You can also install the Alexa toolbar so every time you visit a site you can see what their Alexa ranking is.
There are many other ways to see how popular a website is, how many incoming links it has, etc. but the Alexa ranking is a good place to start.
One way to find out which websites are popular and selling well is by browsing the Clickbank marketplace (http://www.clickbank.com/marketplace.htm) and seeing which products are most popular in each category.