How to generate traffic to a new website without spending money

So you got a new shining website. That’s great but now you need to use it to attract traffic. Here’s how to generate traffic to a new website without spending money.

In this post, I will share effective strategies for driving traffic to a new website or one that hasn’t yet engaged in marketing efforts. These methods have proven successful for both large-scale websites and smaller client projects. The best part? They require no monetary investment and can generate traffic within the initial weeks. However, consistency is key to their success.

Let’s delve into each method:

1. Google My Business
2. Social groups
3. Relevant forums
4. SEO
5. Lectures
6. Whatsapp groups
7. Email

Google Business Profile

Google My Business, also known as Google Business Profile (GBP), is essential for local businesses aiming to appear on Google Maps and local search results. It provides a platform similar to a Facebook business page. For instance, if you own a restaurant in downtown Manhattan, registering with GMB ensures visibility when users search for relevant local businesses. Completing all sections of your profile, including adding compelling descriptions and high-quality images, is crucial. Additionally, actively collecting and responding to reviews enhances credibility and customer trust.

Here is an example screenshot:

Another thing, the business profile appears prominently and graphically when searching for your business. Here is a screenshot:

It is highly recommended if you have a business with a physical address – register it on GBP.

A few more tips for GBP subscribers:

• After you have entered the Google Business Profile, pay attention to complete all the different sections and parts that need to be filled out. Do not leave blank fields, even if they are not mandatory.
• The description of the business is critical: when local results appears and your business among them, if your description is good enough, it significantly increases the chance that people will click your business profile and from there, on to your website or directly to your phone.
• Add photos. They will appear in the local search and if the photos are good, there’s a good change people will click to your website.
• Collect reviews and respond to all of them.
  A lot of good reviews is impressive and instills confidence in your customers.
  When people enter the reviews and see that you are answering, it also gives the feeling of a business that cares about its customers.

Social groups

Sign up for groups that are relevant to your business or in the same niche, where you can answer questions and provide value.
There are groups in every field, I mainly recommend Facebook and LinkedIn (Linkedin is more for businesses that provide services to businesses – “B2B”).

Once you’ve signed up for such groups, start looking for posts with questions that you can answer and add value to.
When you answer – be as specific as possible, give value and offer to contact you for free help.
Do not add a link to your site yet.

After a few days of answering and giving free value, when you have seen that there are positive responses and people are starting to realize you and your help, you can gently start inviting to the site.

The best would be to write a relevant article to the group on the site and then share it.

The more active you are in groups, the more questions you answer and the more value you provide – the more people will want to know you and read about you.
The traffic to the website will increase as a result of sharing the posts and also because people will be interested in you and what you do.

Relevant forums

Forums used to be much stronger before the social networks got into our lives. The good news is that there are still good active forums. The most popular one I can think of is Quara where people consult on almost any subject.

The trick is to find a thread that is relevant to your business and act exactly as in the previous section – register for the forum, search for relevant questions and give as much value as possible for free.

Help the forum

Once you answer enough questions, people in the relevant forum will notice your help sooner or later, they start seeing your name and your answers and will probably start looking you up, just to see who is this person. 

That’s where you can start putting links to relevant articles on your website that will also add value or answer questions you’ve seen being asked in this specific forum.

A link to a post on your website that answers a question in a forum can sometimes bring a lot of traffic, plus it’s good for SEO.

SEO

Promoting your website organically is perhaps the best investment you will make.
If you’ve done everything properly, your site will appear on the first result page on Google in the organic (non-sponsored) results for a variety of relevant phrases.
The result is fresh, relevant traffic and new leads every day for free.

For those who don’t know how to start doing organic promotion, I recommend taking a 1 on 1 SEO training with me.

The idea is to choose phrases that best describe your business, check that there are indeed searches on Google for those phrases, and then for each phrase create a page with excellent content that “answers” the phrase you chose.

The content you write on your website pages should be excellent and provide additional value to visitors.

How do you write good content? Here’s a little tip: write the phrase you want on Google and open all 10 organic results on the 1st page in separate tabs.
Check the content on all the pages you’ve opened and check what the “competitors” are doing.

Now think about how you can give more value in your content.

Lectures

Participating in lectures, whether locally or online, establishes you as an expert in your field. Leverage speaking opportunities to showcase your expertise, network with industry peers, and promote your website through introductions and links in lecture announcements.

Whatsapp groups

Create WhatsApp groups to provide value in your field through periodic meetings or tutorials. Encourage group members to spread the word and share your website link within their networks. Consistently distribute new content to the group and solicit feedback to maintain engagement.

Email marketing and mailing lists

Build an email list by offering valuable resources or incentives. Periodically send newsletters containing industry updates, tips, and links to new website content. Email marketing fosters ongoing engagement and drives traffic by directing subscribers to your website.

Summary