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How to Use Keyword Buys to Double Your Website’s Traffic
There are two ways to generate traffic to your web site from search engines: the hard way and the harder way. The harder way is organizing your web content to show up high on the results page when your prospective supporter types in a phrase that identifies them as being interested in your organization’s work. The hard way is to create an ad that will show up on the first page (and every page) of search results for those keywords. You only pay when someone clicks on one of those ads, and you can pay as little as pennies for each click. Just go to Google.com and enter the key word or phrase of your organization’s mission, whether it’s “cure cancer” or “save the redwoods” and see what content comes up. Off to the right side of the page will be some four-line ads that are placed there by those organizations willing to pay for your visit to their site. It works. Notice that on the “cure cancer” search there are 2,410,000 pages that you can search through. The effort to get yours in the top 10, and keep it there, is Herculean. Even on the “save redwoods” search there are 35,000 pages. However, two commercial entities, Sonoma County Tourism Bureau and a campground, have created ads and bid on the keyword “redwoods” and their ad comes up on the first page, every time. You can set up an account at google.com in minutes, establish a budget (it can be as little as $5 per day) and charge it to your credit card. Select the keywords, create the ad, and link it to the page on your site that will “close the deal” – get them to sign up for your e-newsletter, make a donation, sign a petition – whatever will get them to give you at least their e-mail address and permission to contact them again. In this article, here are the basics to get you started. We’ll explore them more fully in the coming months. Keywords: It’s like word association in reverse. What words do people use when they think of the issue you represent? (Remember, they don’t know you exist right now, so forget your name.) If you’re the Save the Redwoods League then you probably want to include “redwoods” “tall trees” “red woods” “sequoia” etc. Use terms that the public uses, not “Sequoia sempervirens,” the genus and species in Latin. The Ad: Your space is limited. Don’t build brand identity or get clever, make a clear call to action. “Save one giant redwood today” beats “We are the nation’s oldest organization helping to preserve the Sequoia” You can easily create two or three and Google will alternate until a trend is established, then serve the winner more often than the rest. The landing page: Here’s where you make it or lose it. Bring the visitor to a page that clearly guides them through the action you promised in the ad. Keep it simple and straightforward. May 2004 | ||
