Our clients and prospects always ask us how they can drive more traffic to their website. There are a number of ways to do so, including pay-per-click advertising, SEO (Search Engine Optimization), and e-mail newsletters, to name a few.
Another great method that has had great success with all types of websites is participating in other website forums. Doing so helps to drive relevant and more qualified traffic to your site.
Forums have become a great source of information for just about every conceivable topic. In the forum, people will ask topic specific questions and the forum members will all chime in and provide advice, information, and links to pages that provide the answer.
Forums get traffic from not only their existing members but also from search engines. Many times I will do a search on a problem that I am trying to solve and will find that my question has already been posted to and answered in a forum.
So, what we recommend is that you find a popular forum that is relevant to your industry, register, and begin answering questions and participating in discussions. Weave this activity into your weekly or daily routine, and consider a part of your sales and marketing efforts.
By doing so you will:
- Build your credibility
- Establish trust
- Demonstrate expertise in your field
. . . among a demographic that is already interested in what it is you are doing.
Make sure that you add your company tagline and a link to your website in your signature and it is likely that the people who are searching for information about what you do and the products or services that you provide will click on the link to your website. And because they are already interested in what it is that you do, they are much more likely to sign-up for your newsletter, contact you directly with a question, or purchase your products or services.
Moreover, having links to your site in a popular forum will help your search engine ranking.
If you have any questions or need some ideas for your specific business situation, feel free to give me a call at 301-956-5400, post your question to the NBI Forum, or send me an e-mail.
— Ryan Chapin
President, Nuts & Bolts Interactive, Inc.