Traffic. Everyone wants more of it. There is never enough to go around it seems.
One marketer says to use Facebook. The other says to use Pinterest. The other says to use Google AdWords. Another one says to use Instagram.
So many options, so little time.
I always ask my clients what’s the purpose for their wanting more traffic. Their answer is usually something like “so I can get more people on my list.”
“So your goal is to have a big list?” I always ask this because I can’t assume that people view their list the way I view my list.
“No. My goal is to have more people who will buy my products and services.”
That’s definitely a justifiable reason for wanting more people. But here’s the issue with that: More doesn’t mean better. Not to mention, more traffic doesn’t necessarily mean more customers.
More traffic could really just mean, more traffic.
The Value of Your Most Ignored Customer
Before I show my clients the numerous ways to get traffic to their site, I make them do something else. It’s something that they may not like doing. Hell, they may not even feel it’s necessary. Most look at me like I’m silly. But I assure you, rather than hunting for new traffic first, I always advise them to do something else. Before I tell you what that something else is, let me tell you a story.
When I was getting my teacher’s certification, I read that the main reason why two year old toddlers throw tantrums is because they know what they want but they don’t know how to articulate it yet. So out of frustration, they throw themselves on the ground and scream and cry because—well—it worked when they were smaller. They know that screaming and crying gets your attention. Customers are no different.
When customers stop buying from you, it doesn’t mean that you’re bad or that you’re an awful businesswoman. It means that they’re not interested. Right now. Basically what you’re offering right now doesn’t appeal to them enough to want to spend more money with you. You can mitigate this in many ways such as surveying them and creating more awesome offers. This works for many reasons. For one, these people already trust you. And for two, these people are already used to giving you money.
If they’ve purchased from you in the last 12 months, there’s a pretty good chance they’ll buy from you again. As long as they find the offer useful and it’s packaged in a way that suits their learning style.
Instead of looking for new customers, take stock of your current customers (or people who have bought something from you in the last 12 months) and try to sell them some additional solutions. This may actually prove to be a higher ROI than trying to get new customers. That’s the point of having a list in the first place.
Right?
So before running off trying to generate more traffic, why not take a look at your past customers and clients. See if you can offer them a solution they’re willing to pay for. I promise you, doing this is much cheaper (money-wise and time-wise) than trying to employ the latest traffic-getting craze.
