Maintaining a website can be daunting- and I’m sure many entrepreneurs know this. I have to consistently write a blog, share it on social media, and use other means to get my point across. It’s definitely a fun experience each time, but it’s a lot of work, especially when trying to get a lot of web traffic.

But I also think about my main goal of writing & sharing a blog, and that’s to drive readers (like you!) to go to my website. I always have to think of improving the quality and quantity of my web traffic so that I can get the right clients to click through.

Maybe this is something you’ve considered, but don’t know what type of web traffic to focus on. Here are 5 main types of web traffic that you will need to keep in mind so that your website gets the right views.

1. Organic Web Traffic

This type of web traffic comes from a search engine results page (SERP). When a person “googles” using keywords to find information that you have, you will appear on their search results. When they click on your website or landing page, this will count as an organic result.

For example, let’s use the long tail keyword “lead generation specialist Florida.” When someone is in the market for a lead generation expert, and they use that specific keyword, millions of websites will pop up. But the most important ones are on the first three pages – if the user will reach the third page. Most of the time, users do not go beyond the first page.

That is why strategic keyword planning is extremely important to be able to rank high and appear on the first page. But if you happen to find yourself on the second or third page of a search result, it’s not a completely bad thing! It will take a while to reach the first page – why not aim for the third page first? You can do this by:

• Building on your domain authority – keep publishing blog posts that establish you as an authoritative voice in the industry
• Creating a backlink profile – guest post to link back to your website, encourage other content producers to link back to you if they find your ideas worth citing
• Waiting patiently – If you’re new to digital marketing, you’ll soon find out that you might not rank high any time soon. Just be patient and continue to be consistent.

2. Direct Traffic

As the name suggests, direct traffic refers to the people who go directly to your website. Simple as that!

Think of it as readers typing in your website name instead of searching for you. For example, you know my website exists, so you just type in roxanneoates.com instead of searching for “lead generation specialist Florida”. 

But how do users find your website and type it on the search bar instead of searching for keywords you’re ranking for? This goes back to consistent brand building, both online and offline. This involves telling people about your website or even creating other types of content on social media. Try using video, infographics and other types of content on various platforms – and don’t forget to add your website or landing page!

3. Referral Traffic

Referral Traffic sounds a little complicated, but I promise you it’s not. It simply means that traffic comes from external links. This type of traffic does not come from Google or from links within your website (also known as internal links). They usually come from other websites – especially those who find your content to be credible enough to be cited.

This is a valuable source of traffic as it helps you maintain online authority – something that Google rewards to reputable websites. And one way to get good referral traffic is to build relationships with other entrepreneurs or authoritative individuals that trust you to be a credible source.

An example of relationship-building for good referral links is to use influencer marketing. While they’re endorsing or promoting your services, they can mention your website on their blog, landing page, or video description. This way, you have a consistent referral. 

4. Social Traffic

Social traffic is what it is – links that come from platforms like Facebook and LinkedIn add to this type of web traffic. If you want to focus on this route, you need to do a lot of experimenting – post at different times of the day, find out which CTA would encourage followers to click through your website, or pin your most relevant blog post at the top of your profile.

While there’s no one fool-proof strategy to increase social traffic, you can start with these tips:

1. Completely fill out your social media profiles – Type in your correct business name and other details. Use relevant keywords in your description so you get found faster.
2. Engage with your audience – This goes without saying, but some businesses simply post content but do not interact with their audience. This is an important step in social media management as each comment is an opportunity to send relevant links to individuals who are looking at you to provide solutions.
3. Post shareable content – How can you get engagement without posting content? Make sure that when you’re creating content, your goal is to make it shareable. Be sure to add links, hashtags and other relevant content that encourage your audience to click the share button.

5. Paid Web Traffic

Finally, paid traffic is self-explanatory. It’s the complete opposite of organic traffic – you acquire views and visits through advertising: web banners, Google Ads and other PPC campaigns.

My personal favorite type of paid ad is Facebook Ads – simply because a majority of my readers come from social media, so it’s so much easier to find leads. Other than that, this is the biggest social media platform and it has the data we need to create targeted marketing campaigns. Personally, it’s easier for me to find the right people using Facebook Ads versus other methods. 

So, among these types of web traffic, which one will you focus on more?

Each has their own strengths and weaknesses, and it’s up to you to choose which will bring more visitors to your website.

If you’re using Facebook Ads (or you want to get started) I have a free masterclass where I show you how to find your perfect clients using Facebook Ads.  This 60-minute masterclass is packed with information (I’m not a fluff type of person) to show you the exact steps that I use in my agency to create successful marketing campaigns for clients.  

Remember, a little traffic goes a long way.