Beyond SEO: Alternative Traffic Sources

We all know that SEO offers one of the best methods of getting targeted traffic to your site. But, have you ever thought about other ways to increase or supplement your online traffic.The key to traffic is the source. The intent and quality of the traffic source usually determines how well the traffic will convert.

When it comes to buying traffic, you do get what you pay for.

Here are some traffic sources that you may consider as a supplement to your SEO campaign:

PPC

Pay-per-click is one of the best converting, yet expensive traffic sources. But, let me be clear, not all PPC platforms perform the same.

In my experience, Google Adwords and Bing Ads have proved to be the most effective. I have tried some 2nd tier PPC platforms, but they never worked for me. It may not make sense for all businesses, but it is definitely worth a look.

Direct Navigation

Direct Navigation is also known as Type-in or Domain Redirection traffic. This is another good way to bring intent-driven traffic to your website. The cost for Direct Navigation traffic is typically lower than PPC traffic, but it is pretty effective. Here’s how it basically works.

As you may know, there are millions of unused domain names out there that receive traffic on a daily basis. The owners of these unused domain names, either park them with a parking company or have them managed through a parking service.

Instead of letting the traffic go to waste to a lifeless page, these domain owners monetize their domains by allowing advertisers to receive their redirected domain traffic. Trellian is a well-known company that offers this type of Direct Navigation Traffic.

Display Advertising

Display advertising is also known as Banner Advertising. This is another popular way to get targeted traffic to your site. The way it works is pretty simple and straight forward.ou look for websites that have similar topics as your own website, and inquire about having your advertisement placed on their site.
You and the webmaster of the 3rd party site negotiate a deal, and once the deal is reached, the publisher displays your ad on their site. Some website owners offer direct advertising, while others choose to sell their inventory through an ad network.

Affiliate Marketing

Advertisers and merchants use affiliate marketing to create conversions/sales on their site. Affiliate marketing is technically not a source of traffic, but more of a way to generate straight sales.
The beauty of affiliate marketing is that the advertiser only pays when a visitor leads to a conversion. This means that the advertiser may receive “free” traffic to their website until a sale is made.

Email Marketing

There are 2 ways that you can receive traffic from email marketing. One, if you have your own mailing list and you send out an email blast to get some returning visitors.
Or two, by promoting your offer through someone else’s list. The benefit of promoting through someone else’s list is that a majority of your traffic will be new visitors.

Popup Traffic

Oh, those annoying popups. You hate them and so do a lot of other people who have installed popup blockers. But, guess what, popup traffic providers still exist and for a reason. Popup traffic offers high volume for sites that want traffic, but necessary looking for conversions. When you’re paying a few dollars for thousands of visits, what do you expect?
If you own a website and you haven’t had any success with SEO or have not done SEO yet, I would recommend you give these other traffic sources a try. Remember, SEO is only one of many ways to get visitors to your doorstep.