Advertising and Generating Traffic

rulian

This is probably something we all share. But I've been trying to advertise my services with various services including Google Adwords. Ive had limited or moderate success but I really want to consistently generate traffic to my website.

How do you guys approach this, what are some tips to use or areas to focus on.
I really dont konw where to go to place ads or places I can list myself.

I have two goals, 1 Generate Traffic, 2 Generate Sales.
Although they seems dependent and related on one another, you can have higher rates of sales with lower rates of traffic if you advertise correctly.

Your Thoughts?

amy_damnit

What is your website about?

URL?

Who is your target audience?

Amy

rulian

My website is rockstarcode.com
its my portfolio and services page to showcase web development
my target audience is small businesses and ad agencies that do not do development inhouse.
I have a network of graphic designers and advertising people who I trade services with and it has served me well.

But I'm also interested in hearing what you guys do to drive traffic to your sites cause i feel I could be doing alot more then just trying to spread it word of mouth and google adwords

amy_damnit

Well, Rulian, you may not like my advice, but you asked for it! And my advice is always is well intentioned! 😉

(I'll tie this into your similar post in the Cafe.)

Good News:
- It looks like you have a lot of talent
- Your website is a good start

Bad News
1.) Playing the "Advertising Game" is brutal. And most people/businesses in never "get it".

Advertising is a PASSIVE, sit-on-your-butt, I'll wait for you - the customer - to hopefully come find me approach to business and life. Cold, I know, but it is true.

If you want to be successful you need to be ACTIVE... You will never get anywhere if you just wait on business to come to you or "find you" on Google!

Even in 2009, more business is done with:
- Paper business cards
- Handshakes
- Word-of-mouth referrals
- Lunch/Dinner
- Repeat business

than any other approach in the history of the human race.

Screw Google, Infomercials, Slick (and slimey) Ad Campaigns, etc.

Want to be successful in business and in life, then...

a.) Focus on human, one-on-one contacts
b.) Focus on LISTENING and UNDERSTANDING your customers and potential customers
c.) Develop a "Brand"
d.) Focus on "professionalism"
e.) Focus on exceeding customer expectations
f.) Focus on doing what you competition is not doing, i.e. fill an unmet need
g.) Make you success happen and stop waiting on it to come to you...

I knew a friend-of-a-friend-of-a-friend in the 1990's who made over $750,000 per year in Minnesota and he never even owned a computer.

How did he do it?! All through word-of-mouth and developing relationships. (Not the advice you'd expect to hear on a "geek" site, but then again, would you rather trust a "geek" or learn to think like a successful businessperson?!)

This is a H-U-G-E topic, but that was your 30-second MBA crash-course! 🙂

2.) Make your "Message" (and site) 110% professional

"Cuteness" is not the way to go to be successful.

Would you give $5,000 or $10,000 or $100,000 or more to someone who says, "It JUST so happens I am current taking Donations to the "I'll Be Programming from Tahiti" Foundation."???

Seriously...

3.) Use your website as a catalyst to "Close the Deal"

Use my earlier advice and GO GET THE BUSINESS, and then as a "Deal Closer" point prospective clients to a more mature looking website and they will say, "Wow, Rulian can do everything he promised us over lunch!"

A website is a "tool" to help increase business, but shouldn't be your only approach.

(Unless you want to be some loser trying to get rich off of Internet clicks...)

4.)Develop your business skills...

Go back to school and get your MBA...

Buy some books on:

Developing a Start-Up Company
Entrepreneurship
Read "How To Win Friends and Influence People" (seriously)
Read any books on Leadership or Management
Harvard Business Review series

(I read a new book every other week. Successful people READ. When was the last time you read a book front to back?)

Okay, my arm hurts! 🙂

In closing, having a SUCCESSFUL BUSINESS or WEBSITE is actually pretty old-school. You just need to learn how to:

Ask the right questions
Look in the right places
Mimic what has already worked for thousands before you

Best of luck, keep your chin up, and I hope some of my ramblings helped?!

Amy
🙂

rulian

You dont have to apologize for anything Amy your advice is very appreciated.
I couldnt agree with you more that the best way to go about business is
the very tried and true method of going out, meeting people and shaking hands.

It is certainly the hurdle that everyone no matter what industry they are in to must handle.
I think my biggest mistake starting out was assuming Good Product = Good Sales.
A good product is certainly easier to sell then a crappy one, but how well a product sells is
95% dependent on how its marketed.

I have red a few books on the subject of entrepreneurship, one of them was "the E Myth"
and it classified every "entrepreneur" as one of three people, the Entrepeneur, the Manager, the Technician. It describes the conflict between these three ego's (the visionary, the businessman, the workforce) since all three think their role is more vital then the others.
I know I definately fall under the "technician" and that is I guess where I am starting from.

Although I agree with you 100% that I do need to learn just better business sense to generate sales and not depend on advertising alone to do the trick, as a web developer I think it is still important to understand how to generate traffic on the web itself. Unless a website spreads virally like facebook by everyone "do you have a facebook..." its hard to generate large traffic sites by making 1 per 1 connection.

Again, it goes back to what you said, campaining, promoting to people and not "users", promoting locally and with actual people is still the bulk of the job. But I'm too inefficient in generating regular traffic to even begin taking it to the next level. But I dont disagree with what you said, well spoken.

amy_damnit

Rulian,

Some extra thoughts...

1.) Buy and read:

"Branding for Dummies" (and possibly "Business Plans for Dummies").

I read the first and own the second and it is a great book for anyone in life.

To be successful you have to first define what your goals are. (What is the "Rulian Brand" anyways?!)

Once you have that down in a written Business Plan, then you can start working on achieving things.

(I can suggest tons of books down the road.)

2.) For your immediate, technical question, read up on "Search Engine Optimization (SEO)". That teaches you have to be #1 in Google.

3.) "Build it and they will come..."

You need enough CONTENT that is new, fresh, and applicable to the masses to make them come to your site.

Right now your site is STATIC and other than "cute" it doesn't do anything for anyone. (No offense.)

Make your site INTERACTIVE and apply to POTENTIAL CUSTOMERS in your DEFINED TARGET AUDIENCE. (see #1)

Use PHP/MySQL to create...

Ask The Expert
Get a Quote
Weekly Articles
Advice
Case Studies
Discuss Current Trends
-etc.

People go to Yahoo, FaceBook, MySpace, ESPN, CNN, etc because there is something new, interesting and pertinent to each visitor to make them return regularly. (That is what it seems you want.)

I digested your website in 5 minutes. Now what?! yawn

Even if I wanted you to build something for me, why should I ever return to your site? (Good question, right?!)

4.) Based on your resume you seem fairly young and still green. That is not to discourage you, but your #1 goal is to get more experience under your belt. (Your resume talks things up, but it is clear you don't have much experience.)

So that makes #3 very important.

If you have 20 years under your belt, that may be all people need to see/know. But who are you?!

You need to earn people's trust and respect and maybe this website can help you get there - along with things from my first post.

What websites do you love?

What features do they have that bring you back?

Well, then implement those things into your site and gameplan.

Oh, wait, I forgot... You don't have a BUSINESS PLAN yet?! LOL

Go buy those two Dummies books tomorrow and come back next week after you finish them and have a notebook full of CONCRETE plans and we can talk some more...

Game on! 😉

Amy

rulian

you mean "Make sh**loads of cash" isnt a business plan?

I'll go take a look at the book because I seriously do want to run a legitimate service.
Now you may have opened up a can of worms cause when I have questions now like "what is a business plan and why do I need one?" imma come right back here :-)

thanks for your help

amy_damnit

rulian;10924614 wrote:
you mean "Make sh**loads of cash" isnt a business plan?

No!!! LOL

I'll go take a look at the book because I seriously do want to run a legitimate service.

Remember what Yoda says, "There is no try. There is do and not do."

Go spent $20-$25 and by the "Dummies Guide To Branding" (ISBN: 0-471-77159-7)

(If you can't make that low-level commitment then you are NOT serious...)

The book is - obviously - about "Branding", but I liked it because it gets you thinking about:

What is my business about?
Why am I doing this?
Who are my customers?
Who is my competition?
How can I differentiate myself?
What is my game-plan?

and so on, which all tie into "Branding".

After you read that, next week guy spend another $25 and by "Business Plans for Dummies" (ISBN: 0-7645-7652-6). I haven't read it yet, and I make no warranties, but for $25, just buy and read the damn book! :rolleyes:

(BTW, "reading a book" means reading the cover, the TOC, about the author, every chapter, the glossary, appendix, and closing notes along with the back cover. Read EVERY SINGLE PAGE. No skimming or thumbing throw things. Otherwise you aren't serious...)

If you want to make $100,000 per year - let alone millions or billions - then you better start playing the part, mister...

Talk is cheap.

Let's see some A-C-T-I-O-N...

BTW, in your "homework assignment, go buy a Comp Book at your local store - Target has them for like $2.00 - and a package of blue ball point pens.

If you are serious, I would EXPECT that you will fill up your Comp Book with notes as you read your books. :glare::glare:

You should have DOZENS of these books filled with hand-written notes, drawings, diagrams, comments, etc. if you are serious. (Are you serious, Rulian?)

Now you may have opened up a can of worms cause when I have questions now like "what is a business plan and why do I need one?" imma come right back here :-)

I will do what I can to at least point you in the right direction.

You do 95% of the work and I can act as a great reference guide.

thanks for your help

Thank me by taking my advice and making this happen.

Good luck and don't let yourself down...

Amy