Shelly's Pybop
Give Your Web Content a Workout – Every Day
Please help me welcome newest Pybop contributor, Hilary Achauer!
Exercise isn’t something you do once. Staying in shape requires consistency and determination. It’s the same with your Web site.
A Web site isn’t like a sign or a billboard, with a static unchanging message. It’s a living thing—one that needs consistent care and attention.
You can optimize your site to the hilt, but the best way to attract attention and draw in your target audience is by loading up your site with useful Web content and then reaching out both online and off—again and again.
A fitness and health-focused client of mine recently asked me to help them increase traffic to their site. I put together this quick list to get them started.
- Reach out. Make a list of the top websites, blogs, and influencers in your industry. Then comment on their blogs, follow and reply to them on Twitter, or just send them an email.
- Don’t forget real-life networking. I recently ran a 15K, and every few miles there were encouraging messages written in chalk on the course by members of a local running club. (The messages included their Web site, of course.) The club members were stationed near the finish line wearing silly wigs and cheering us on, all while holding signs with their club’s Web site. You can bet I looked up that running club when I got home.
- Give it away. Make your website a place for useful, interesting information. Write how-to articles, include links to useful resources, or write first person or inspirational stories. Use your knowledge to give people a reason to come back to your site.
- Keep it up. Keeping your content fresh and interesting, especially when you don’t see immediate results, is challenging. Building an audience takes time, consistency, and persistence—much like staying in shape.
Once you start reaching out to your target audience and building up your site with useful, relevant content, you will see results, both in your site traffic and your revenue.
Hilary Achauer is a contributor to the Pybop Team.
Photo by Gary Allard and licensed with permission.
Posted by Hilary Achauer on Jul 19, 2010. Filed under Web Writing and Editing
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And let’s not forget having guest contributors or writing a guest post on someone else’s blog. Great post Hilary!
Comment by Anne McColl on Jul 19, 2010
Exactly! Thanks, Anne. (And I LOVE your Web site. So well done.)
Comment by Hilary Achauer on Jul 21, 2010
The other side of the workout is to WRITE each day. The more you write, the better you be come as a writer. And the habit of writing daily can also keep you focused on what’s NEW. In a world of social media, readers love to focus on what’s new…now, and now, and now.
Great post!
Nick
Comment by Nick Usborne on Aug 02, 2010