We're already halfway through 2023, and today, I want to share what I've been doing this year to grow my website traffic. This list includes some experiments that have proven successful already, while the results of others are still up in the air (don’t worry - I will share which is which!). While my business goals are primarily selling Showit website templates, selling my course for designers, or even growing this podcast, I believe that ALL of these tactics can be applied in any business niche to help grow your website traffic. Whether you're a newcomer to these methods or are already using them, I hope you'll find some insights that will be helpful in growing YOUR traffic this year!
Before we dive in though, I HAVE to share my new website template with you. The Kacie template just might be my favorite yet - and it’s by far the MOST extensive template I’ve ever launched (to give you a taste, it includes: a podcast page, YouTube page, a course hub page, service page, discovery call, and all kinds of cool features!). Seriously, you have to DM me and let me know what you think about this one!
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1. SEO Focused Blog Posts
While these are in no particular order, this one is kind of my favorite! I create a LOT of content in my business. For the past four years, I’ve put out at least one blog every week by blogging my podcast episodes. I’ve blogged every episode since the beginning of the show. Early ones were very short and then we got more lengthy and strategic, which I’ll talk about next (keep scrolling!).
I say that to say, I put out a lot of content so I was already “blogging consistently” to grow my website traffic. But in 2023, something we’ve been focusing on this year particularly is writing “SEO blog posts”. Which basically means: a blog post that we are writing to rank for a specific keyword! So these posts are written very very strategically with the goal of being on page #1 for that specific search.
These blog posts are independent from our podcast blog posts! For the podcast, I don’t write outlines with a specific keyword ranking in mind. When I write podcast blog posts, the goal is more to provide a way to read the content instead of just listening to it.
And hey - I LOVE doing these. Writing SEO Focused blog posts is a fun challenge for me. From researching what to even try to rank for (and making sure there is search volume there!), to looking at competing blog posts, to planning the structure of it all - there is a lot that goes into it. After all that, I still need to make it very normal and readable (I want my blog posts to be written for humans but I want the robots to like it too!).
Right now in my busines, we have a goal to do a few of these a quarter and we even just had one we published last week that is already ranking on the first page for the search. It’s fun seeing it work!
If you don’t do this in your own business, I highly recommend it. This is a great way to truly leverage your content efforts as what you write keeps working for you over time. It’s not “one and done” like so much of the other content we create as business owners! And this pays off - Google is the top place new people find me before purchasing a template. So this is a way to grow my website traffic that DIRECTLY impacts sales!
Read More: 5 Ways To Leverage The Power Of SEO To Build Your Email List
2. Creating longer podcast shownotes that are 100% independent of the audio to grow website traffic
Oh hi! That’s what you are reading right now. Many podcasters use their podcast blog posts as a place to have the same thing as they have on Apple or Spotify so the “blog post” for the episode is virtually a sales pitch to listen with some relevant links. That’s it! And listen, I TOTALLY get why people do this! It’s way easier. It requires a ton of work (and even the help of a team!) to help you write a TRUE blog post for each episode.
However, that’s what WE do and it’s WORTH IT. If you are a podcaster, a content writer can be a great first or second hire. Here’s why:
- It increases time spent on my website and gives people a reason to go there. Even people who listen to the audio for the episode may want to see the episode in written format so that they don’t have to take notes and/or they can reference it later.
- It’s a great way to leverage your content. I make ONE content piece, the audio, and now we have more places to find the same content because my podcast and blog are independent of each other. Someone can read the blog and never listen and still get a win.
- It helps you rank on Google compared to shorter show notes. Those short show notes that are repurposed from Apple or Spotify are likely less than 500 words and will probably never get a chance to rank on Google.
3. Posting guest interviews from my podcast to Youtube
I told you I would be honest if the jury is still out on some of these tactics and that’s Youtube for me. However, I do believe at this point in my business it is worth it to try! You have to decide what season of business you are in to see if it is the right platform for you (with any of these tactics to grow your website traffic).
Both increasing my website traffic AND leveraging my content better this year were important to me, which is why it made sense for me to try. Initially, I was planning on uploading all of my podcast episodes to YouTube. However, I quickly changed my mind and decided to limit it to only interviews. I find myself more comfortable not being on camera and just talking to the mic and looking at my notes for solo episodes. I felt that doing it every time would be a hassle, especially since I would have to get ready for it every single time.
As for podcast interviews, I was already recording my podcast interviews on video (I use and love Riverside - click here for 20% off!), so it actually hasn’t been that much more work for me. Yes, it’s a few extra steps for my team which took a little bit of time to set up, but now it runs really smoothly! Plus, now that I've started a YouTube channel, I get three pieces of content instead of one. I get to upload the audio to the podcast, publish a new blog post, and share the video version on YouTube.
Ultimately, only time will tell if YouTube will be a profitable platform for me. I don’t really feel like I’ve made “sales” from it yet. With that said, I do know that it's a long game since videos posted years ago can still trend and get lots of views, so I'm still exploring and learning what will work and what won't. Stay tuned!
Read More: How To Confidently Film Yourself (Like A Pro!) And Create Magnetic Video Marketing Content
4. Saying yes to webinars, summits, and collaborations
Have you been considering participating in online summits or webinars to increase your visibility and brand awareness? These can be a great way to get in front of a new audience and bring traffic to your website, but I believe it's important to evaluate whether it makes sense for you and your business goals (like I said before about Youtube!).
For example, during my previous maternity leave, I decided to say no to these kinds of opportunities because it didn't fit with my season of life or business needs. However, this year I was interested in doing more of it very strategically (I still say no a lot - but I am saying yes a lot more!).
Read More: Celebrating My Business Anniversary: The Biggest Lessons & Highlights From My 7 Years In Business
In Q1 of 2023 alone, I:
- Was a speaker at the Creative Educator Conference
- Participated in my first ever summit
- Hosted a webinar for Dubsado (watch the replay here!)
- Plus - I recorded NINE podcast interviews for other people’s shows
That seems like a lot for one quarter!
With that said, I know some of you are wondering: is participating in summits and other joint ventures worth it?
These visibility efforts brought significant traffic increases for me but ultimately I think it depends on your goals and the particular summit or webinar you're interested in. Before you say yes to anything, make sure to ask questions about what you're getting out of it and really think about whether you're comfortable with the requirements.
For example, the summit I participated in was for designers and while is WAS worth it, it was also a lot of work. I had to create and record a 45-minute presentation of new content, which means: making the slides, writing the outline, and preparing two freebies for different audiences (one for VIPs and one for free participants). I also spent a significant amount of time sending emails to my email list and even hiring my copyright to write content for it. It was a lot of work BUT I believe it made the next launch of Booked Out Designer stronger and definitely got me in front of more ideal people!
5. Focusing on Pinterest to Grow My Website Traffic
You likely already know that Pinterest is an amazing way to get more people to your website, especially if what you do has a strong visual element to it… like me with website templates!
This year, I’m taking a slightly different approach and turning it into more of a fun personal project and pinning more lifestyle content on top of business content. I’ve had some of my pins go slightly viral (this post about Colin’s nursery has done really well on Pinterest!) and then my goal is to have that lifestyle content result in affiliate income for me through Like to Know it.
Read More: How To Turn Your Pinterest Traffic Into Paying Clients With Vanessa Kynes
Why try ranking for things that you don’t want to sell?
You may here me talking about ranking on Pinterest for pregnancy tips and Colin’s nursery and wonder if that really makes sense for my business. First, I just want to say that if you do this, make sure to link to an actual blog post and not just your home page. When someone clicks a photo of a nursery, they are hoping to find where you bought the furniture, the paint color, etc. One of the reasons I love doing this is so THAT I can help people the way I feel like bloggers helped me when I was researching things!
Next, it’s a great way to make affiliate income. People WANT the links, and it doesn’t take that much extra work to create an affiliate link for what you’ve already bought. For me - it’s FUN to do things like this! Not everything has to be “all business”.
Read More: My Top 3 Hacks For Making It EASY To Make Affiliate Income
Growing your website traffic in 2023
Here’s a quick recap of how I am growing my website traffic in 2023:
- SEO Focused blog post
- Longer shownotes that are 100% independent of the audio
- Posting guest interviews to YouTube
- Doing some summits and collaboration webinars
- Creating viral Pins that link to important blogs
Did you love this episode? Are you in the Breakthrough Brand All Access Facebook Group yet? It’s free to join, and it’s where we take conversations like this one about growing your website traffic and go even deeper. Pop in and ask questions, share insights, and even peek behind the scenes of my own business and what I’m trying lately. I would LOVE for you to join!
Links Mentioned:
Check Out My Newest Showit Template: Kacie!
Join my FREE Breakthrough Brand All Access Facebook Group
Shop All of My Showit Website Templates
Steal These 5 Secrets for Using Dubsado to Book More Clients
Connect with Elizabeth on Instagram
Join me inside Booked Out Designer
Check out my new Youtube channel
