As long as you have a fantastic product (or service), capable customer service, great positioning within your marketplace, and a price people are willing to pay for your offer, you shouldn’t have trouble becoming a profitable small business…

But even then it’s not always the case.

Imagine you offer all these great features but no one knows where you’re located or how to differentiate you from the sea of competition? Imagine all the work you can place into every aspect of your business yet still fall flat because you’re not driving individuals to the offer.

Hundreds of websites are created every minute and although the chances of someone creating a competing business site would be somewhat low in the percentages – it’s still being done – and every day that passes is another chance for them to be the major brand in the marketplace.

So this brings us to the question of traffic generation.

Traffic generation isn’t as difficult as some may lead on to believe – depending on the strategy and platform – but it can be convoluted and certain methods will require a higher amount of dedication.

Traffic generation methods: How?

What I’d like to do is give a brief overview of the ones I would personally recommend for small businesses owners on a budget (that still want to make a big impression in the marketplace):

PPC

Although Pay-Per-Click comes with a monetary investment, it’s often the first suggestion I make to small businesses. I recommend it because they are able to immediately make an investment, begin running ads, and see results. PPC can be difficult to operate on your own if you’re not experienced which is why it’s worthwhile to work with experienced PPC services like SearchBloom. Often, more actionable data will be reported than an amateur can possibly use.

Content Marketing

Content Marketing (CM) is what I’d say is the best for mid-tier returns that any small business can pump resources into. Content for the blog, video, podcasts, webinars, and other forms of content can be easily created in-house based around FAQ’s, industry insights, promotional events, and even from the creative minds of your employees. Think of it as this: each new piece of (good) content published becomes another point of contact for those searching for your business and its offers.

Social Media Marketing

Forget the print and go with social media platforms. Social media is free to use (Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Pinterest, and more) which already makes it a great way to drive interested parties to your website. Couple social media with your efforts in content marketing and you will have a stream of new posts and discussions started that will engage interested parties which can be leveraged to promote products. Just don’t overdo it and simply spam the networks – use it as a platform where you’re TRULY engaging with people.

Referral/Affiliate Marketing

A kickback for others referring to your website (such as exchanging links with a relevant website), paying a percentage to those that send individuals to the site and complete a sale, or paying for qualified leads are all fantastic traffic generation methods. By giving a “piece of the pie” to devoted brand followers you are effectively turning them into sales people. Shareasale, Amazon Associates, and CJ are great ways to get started which offer a wealth of information and inexpensive services to have your brand selling through these means.

Thank You Letters/Cards/Call Follow-Ups

A low-fi method that goes heavily underused is the simple addition of a thank you letter or card within the packaging or sent after the purchase has been ordered. These thank you messages keep your brand in mind so next time they think of the product/service – your business comes to mind – it’s very easy and everyone should do it (just make sure to make it look nice and point them to the website). In fact… toss in a coupon code while you’re at it!

You may feel lost at times when learning and implementing new traffic generating strategies but remember that it ultimately goes toward improving your bottom line. Not every visitor will become a customer but in those instances a strategy works and does show a positive ROI – you’ll know to continue to invest in the effort.

Give ‘em all a try, see what works for your business, and keep learning (and taking action!)