If you run a small business online you are always looking for new ideas on how to pick up more traffic and more targeted clients.
In this post, I’ve rounded up 7 more tips from content marketers and bloggers who were willing to share their success tips on how you can bring more traffic – targeted traffic – to your business or blog.
What I like about these guys is that they are not sitting on the sidelines watching. They are active in building their own business every day. The tactics they share are the tactics they are using themselves.
Not every marketing tactic is suitable for every small business operation – which is why we keep putting more and more tips out there.
While you can easily find more leads by using Uplead or similar business contact data providers, you can always go the extra mile and get a little creative to stand out from the rest.
Check out these 7 tips from 7 experts and see how you can make use of their expertise to boost your own client base and traffic online.
Using Linkedin Outreach To Gain Leads
Jonathan Harrison, Infaweb.
From testing many methods over the years one of the best ways I have found to generate good, local business-to-business leads with minimal effort is through Linkedin.
It’s simple enough and if you want you can take it a level further. Simply expand your network with local people (people in the city or area you want to work from). Send them a nice message just saying you are expanding your network.
When you go onto your profile there is a section called “people you may know”, use this area to connect with people. It’s amazing how many people will connect back and respond to you.
You quickly build up a profile of people in your location that will see your posts and updates. Then just ensure you put out some decent content.
I found without even putting out any updates or content I was getting leads in.
Top tip – make sure your profile shows what you do, your title is clear and you have padded the profile out with everything you can (excluding any junk).
If you want to take it a level further add a paid advertising campaign on top. Just do it for the same region with adverts about what you do/offer. These two things combines really do send in the leads.
Combine Email List Marketing with New Content
Yoav, Joint Venture Fast Track.
1. Build an email list and email them once every day (yes that’s right – daily). And in your email put a bit of helpful info and a blatant pitch.
2. Write guest posts for your target market. Let’s say you’re a graphic designer and you work with Lawyers. Write guest posts on lawyer blogs that tell them how to brand their practice.
3. Combine those first to tactics for a torrent of new clients.
I know that’s a lot of work, but it will drive a torrent of clients your way.
Quora!
Anna Fox, Hire Bloggers.
Quora has been one of the best and most reliable ways to pick up some leads.
Since people are actually looking for help there, providing advice (without being too promotional) works really great there.
I’d say the first thing to do would be to establish your presence there, but in the long term (after a couple of months), that will be your largest asset!
Reach Out
Gail Gardner, Grow Map.
Reach out personally to your warm connections – such as everyone who has subscribed to your list.
Don’t contact them to sell them anything. Just mention how you know them and ask if they have any questions.
Answer quick questions – and with any luck, they’ll want to know more about what you do. You can offer your services or a specific limited time offer when that seems appropriate.
Be direct, brief, and don’t waste your time. They’ll appreciate your professionalism.
Doing Small Jobs for Free
Paul Manwaring, Internet marketing Hustle
A great way that I have managed to get extra work and clients is by performing a quick free audit on their site.
I am a website design and usability testing expert with over five years of experience testing some of the biggest websites, a lot of them pay large sums for average users to conduct usability tests to see how their users will react to new designs and features, etc.
If I come across a website that I feel is confusing or poorly designed I record a quick 2-3 minute screencast and send them the video in a link via email.
A lot of the time the companies are amazed that I’d go to so much trouble to let them know my thoughts on their website. They could only wish every visitor did this!
At the bottom of my email, I include a signature with a link to my usability testing service.
It’s proved a great way to get my foot in the door with some companies.
Sell what You are Best at
Ann Smarty, SEO Smarty
It takes time to find your narrow niche but it’s what will boost your conversions: You need to get known by being the best at solving some very specific problem.
For example, once upon a time, I got known for being good at guest blogging and I’ve never had to look for clients ever since.
All I need was to create a page with details.
Another example is @Marie_Haynes who got known as Penguin recovery expert (which is trending now!).
Offer to Help Symbiotic Entrepreneurs
David Leonhardt, THGM Writers.
Often there are natural partnerships. For example, a graphic designer and a programmer.
A web designer and an SEO specialist. In many cases, we do writing.
We could reach out to web designers and offer our services for clients that come to them to set up a website but arrive with no content yet prepared. Or the web designer sets up a blog on their site, he/she could recommend great ghost-writers for their blog.
This is not something I have done yet, because your question just triggered the idea. It is an approach I plan to take in the future.
No Fields Found.OK, so what do you think of these tips?
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Hey, maybe you could write it for us!
Some great ideas come out of this brainstorm David, thanks for including me. Nice use of icon and colour in the article too, help break it up.
keep up the good work
Thanks for the feedback, and my pleasure, Paul.