{"id":846,"date":"2023-03-11T15:50:52","date_gmt":"2023-03-11T15:50:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.bursucretleri.com\/blog\/?p=846"},"modified":"2023-03-23T08:48:45","modified_gmt":"2023-03-23T08:48:45","slug":"web-traffic-strategies-part-2-build-affinity","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.bursucretleri.com\/blog\/web-traffic-strategies-part-2-build-affinity\/","title":{"rendered":"Web Traffic Strategies Part 2: Build Affinity"},"content":{"rendered":"

Web traffic strategies is an ongoing series where I focus on one strategy at a time for building significant traffic to your web property, no matter what niche it may be in.\u00a0 This series is written for those who already understand basic tactics and are committed to taking their site or blog to the next level.<\/em><\/p>\n

To gain serious traffic,\u00a0 people need to have affinity for your web property.\u00a0 Affinity is an element that supercedes all else.\u00a0 Without it you\u2019ll never get organic links, PR, or shares and your only remaining strategy will be push which produces arithmetic returns.\u00a0 This strategy has nothing to do with bringing people to your site once, this is important for getting them to share it with a friend, subscribe and become a fan\/return visitor.<\/p>\n

Affinity through design<\/strong>
\nThe absolute first thing that processes through someone\u2019s mind as they\u2019re viewing your web property is design.\u00a0 Design communicates the personality of the business or people behind your site immediately, before any of the content itself registers.\u00a0 It is a low-road,\u00a0reptilian brain\u00a0connection, but perhaps even more important than the cerebral connection made with content because it happens first.\u00a0 People make snap judgments based on design, they can\u2019t help it \u2013 it is involuntary.<\/p>\n

Design impacts us on a subconscious level, and people develop an immediate affection for design which is reinforced through the content, or a distaste for the design, and then an attempt at redemption is possible through the content itself (people can and do hate designs of sites but love content).<\/p>\n

Your design does not have to appeal to everyone, who it should appeal to is to the niche you\u2019re targeting.\u00a0 For example, if you\u2019re a gardening company, having a clean, organized layout with lush colors makes sense, and those who find you will develop affinity for your company immediately based on that design.\u00a0 If you\u2019re a law firm, you need something more reserved and professional \u2013 people want serious lawyers and their website should reflect that.\u00a0 You should satisfy and appeal to what someone is looking for in order for affinity to be built.\u00a0 You can break expectation if you\u2019re daring, and in certain cases this makes sense \u2013 but do so carefully and with purpose.<\/p>\n

Design really matters for traffic because website owners, bloggers and\u00a0social media power users\u00a0like to send their audience to places they view as attractive and properly reinforce the content on the page.\u00a0 I\u2019m not saying that you can\u2019t get links and traffic with a design that\u2019s a turn-off yet the content is still fantastic, but there\u2019s nothing wrong with getting\u00a0more<\/em>\u00a0links, traffic and attention because your site design vibes with users.<\/p>\n

Affinity through content<\/strong>
\nBy creating content that aligns with known personality archetypes of readers in a niche, you\u2019re naturally going to build affinity with readers because people want to share content that supports their worldview.\u00a0 It is ingrained in us and is natural to share ideas we agree with \u2013 people have been doing it long before the web existed.\u00a0 If you\u2019re passionate about your niche, this is easy to do by following one simple step:\u00a0 write for yourself.<\/p>\n

I\u2019ll give a personal example of how effective this strategy is.\u00a0 Years ago I used to be a music columnist for a popular nightlife .com, and the things that would get the most views (and my editor would ask me to write more of) were my personal rants on the music industry.\u00a0 The reason these were so popular is because I was writing them essentially for myself.\u00a0 At the same time, I knew there was a huge group of people also upset about the same issues and I was writing what I knew I\u2019d want to read in their shoes.\u00a0 I was speaking on their behalf and giving a group of people a voice, but at the same time writing for myself as I too was a member of that group.<\/p>\n

This does not mean you can\u2019t be unique and outside the box \u2013 but careful not to go too far into left field or you may miss the mark of a meatier audience.\u00a0 If you think that is happening to you, consider creating more general content once in awhile to draw in the larger audiences and expose them to your deeper stuff \u2013 there\u2019s nothing wrong with that.\u00a0 They may dig it and stick around for more.<\/p>\n

Affinity through connecting with a like-minded community<\/strong>
\nThis is basic psychology, but people want to go where they will find others just like themselves.\u00a0 This happens naturally over time as you build subscribers, but you need to align yourself with a community of like-minded sites from the beginning.\u00a0 Differentiate like crazy, but be sure you\u2019re still in a niche somewhat so you can at least position yourself within the community.\u00a0\u00a0Hugh MacLeod\u00a0is a great example of someone who has done this in the marketing blog niche \u2013 he\u2019s totally differentiated himself from others, but he\u2019s still close enough to get strong traffic and attention from the community.<\/p>\n

This can be done by things as simple as linking out to other sites, getting featured on other\u2019s blog rolls and related posts sections, doing interviews, being friends with others in social sites, and working to position yourself as a player in the community to the point you are hyper-connected to those with trust.\u00a0 It\u2019s an unspoken affinity but things like seeing certain businesses or bloggers on everyone\u2019s blog roll or bookmarked links sections ensures that you will eventually want to see what they are all about.<\/p>\n

Other thoughts on affinity<\/strong><\/p>\n