No matter how good your product is, without great advertising, there’s a high chance no one will know anything about it. Furthermore, your new website is practically non-existent until people visit it. And, you guessed it – just putting it up won’t do anything. In fact, you have to promote it as much as you can in order to draw traffic.
Now, if money is not an issue, there are services you can use to promote your site. However, there are free ones too, and you can start using them right away.
Without further ado, here are the best techniques you should consider if you want to promote your website for free.
1. Be smart – Use SEO
There’s not a doubt in our mind that traditional search engine optimization is a fantastic way of drawing organic traffic. However, before you start adding content to your website and dreaming of a higher ranking, you need to figure out the SEO tools that you will need.
The best way to find the right keywords for your niche is by using the Google Keyword Tool Planner. But, make sure you concentrate on long-tailed keywords. Short keywords, especially those that are just based on broad terms, are more difficult to rank for. Also, look for low competition keywords that come with high search frequency. By using those keywords, you can create quality, high-value blog posts around them that will actually bring you some attention.
Furthermore, don’t forget that your SEO strategy also matters. In order to successfully promote your website, you’ll need to add those keywords to the right parts of the text. So, make sure the keyword appears in the title, the headings, the meta description, as well as in the text in general. Also, if you want to add some images to your content, make sure that the keyword appears in the alt tag, as well as in the picture title tag.
2. Use Social Media To Your Advantage
It’s safe to say that a new era of online marketing started when social media appeared. Today, one of the best ways of promoting a website is via social media. All you have to do is create an account and start interacting with your current and potential customers.
By using social media to your advantage, you can connect with your customers, as well as engage with them. That way, you will experience instant results. Moreover, you will be able to connect with the right audience – that’s a great perk of many social media accounts.
Nowadays, it seems that Facebook and Twitter are the dominant social media platforms. However, Instagram and Pinterest will, no doubt, catch up soon and allow access to other promotional techniques.
3. Use The Power Of Search Engines
Search engines, like Bing, Yahoo! and Google, are of the utmost importance if you want to boost your website traffic. Therefore, it’s a sound idea to submit new content to them and have it indexed. That way, your website will soon start getting new visitors.
This service is free if you pick one of the major search engines, but smaller directories have it too. Therefore, make sure you do this if you want to boost your website effectively. After all, your fresh weekly content has to be noticed!
4. Work On Your Signature Branding
Try to make it as compelling as possible. Additionally, make sure you add your signature, as well as your website URL everywhere – email, text messages, and forums. That will actually get people to click on the link and visit your website.
But, remember – you have to make your website mobile-friendly. That’s especially important if you’ve added your URL to text messages and if you’re using some other forms of mobile advertising. Also, if you’re not sure how to use mobile services to promote your website, consider hiring a professional – either an individual or a company. They will know how to implement unique strategies and give you the exposure you’re after.
5. Practice Reciprocity With Link Building
When it comes to search engines, it’s safe to say that they are always a bit suspicious. So, apart from promoting your website, you have to show them that your website can be trusted. A great way of doing so is by using links.
Link exchange, as well as forums, guest blogging, and news articles, are all great ways of promoting your website. However, make sure you don’t link your website to low-quality sites that aren’t ranked well. It won’t help you at all, as search engines only want to see links to high-ranking, authority sites. Therefore, focus on relevant links and try to incorporate high-quality keywords so that you can actually get high-quality links.
Now, remember – inbound links are important, but when it comes to creating them, you ought to be careful. Adding a bunch of them at once could get you banned. So, slow and steady wins the race, as they say. Only the finest inbound links should appear on your website.
6. (High-quality) Content is KING
If you’ve stumbled upon this text, then you must have been searching for website promotion ideas. And, luckily, we are here to provide you with them. However, out of all those ideas, the most important one is creating quality content.
Before you start writing your blog post, think about your readers. Consider if you’re giving them the information they wish to read. If you’re only doing it so that you can add yet another post to your website, then the quality will probably be poor. Therefore, focus on quality content, as that will influence your ranking the most.
Furthermore, opt to write content that will add value. It needs to be compelling and desirable so that you can gain more readers who will want to promote your website or blogs on their sites and social media.
7. Don’t Forget About Google Local Business
Our final tip is to use Google Local Business.
Apart from being the best-known search engine, Google is also a great website supporter. It can offer you a variety of great ideas for website promotion and allow you to register your business information free of charge.
Therefore, you ought to use that to your advantage. With Google Local Business, you’ll be essentially putting your website “on the map”. You will be able to target the local audience by adding pictures, offers, and even mobile ads.
What’s more, you will be a lot more visible than before the registration – literally. Google can display your information right next to the regular search engine results and thus give you more exposure and a more significant online presence. It will even tell people how to get to your location and allow them to call your number from their mobile.
Results Won’t Come Fast, But When They Do
We know that you’re probably still unsure how to promote your website. But, trust us – these seven tips will allow you to focus on the most important aspects. Soon, you will be able to improve your website, as well as promote it successfully across various online channels.
Still, bear in mind that the results won’t come overnight. You have to practice patience and learn, as that’s the only way of promoting your website the right way. Know that it might take weeks, perhaps even months until your traffic gets a significant boost and you rank higher on Google. But, when those results come, you will be thankful you learned how to promote your website entirely on your own – and for free!
Of course, whenever in doubt, opt for a professional online marketing agency. These agencies can help you execute your ideas, and they can certainly show you how to promote your website and get real results.
Brad Larkin is Brand Manager for Promotionalmugs.org.uk, a leading promotional products supplier in the UK, He enjoys sharing business and marketing tips, both online and offline.