What is targeted traffic?



Targeted traffic is basically website visitors who are interested in the topic of your website. So, when they read one of your articles and then click through to your website, they will likely be receptive to and interested in what you're offering at your site.

First and foremost, the way to get targeted traffic through article marketing is to write articles on the topic of your website.

Obviously, if your website is about designer handbags, it wouldn't be appropriate to write articles about something unrelated, like water skiing. If your website is about designer handbags, then all of your articles should relate to some aspect of that topic.

That way, when someone reads your article, they will likely be interested in clicking the link in your resource box that leads back to your website...and once at your website you'll be more likely to make a sale.

Writing on the topic of your website is one basic way to get targeted traffic from article marketing, but let's get more specific--how do you know what types of topics your readers are interested in?

Here are 3 ways to generate 'on target' article topics that will draw targeted readers to your site:

1) What questions do your customers frequently ask you?

Customer questions give great insight into what types of information your target readers would be interested in. All of your articles should be educational, so paying attention to customer questions is a great way to find inspiration for article topics. If one person asks you a question, then it's likely that other people are wondering the same thing.

Consider the questions that a newbie to your field might have and then write articles to answer those questions. Consider questions that more advanced readers might have, and write articles to address their quest for more knowledge.

2) Research the search terms used to reach your website.

Most likely you are using some sort of statistics tracking tool to help you keep track of your website's success. If you aren't, then this is one big reason why you should:

Via your stats tracking tool, you can research what search terms readers typed into whatever search enging they used to reach your site.

The search terms folks are using to reach your site may surprise you!

If you see the same search term coming up again and again in your statistical reports, that is an opportunity to fine tune your article topics to take advantage of those searches.

Many times the types of things that people type into search engines are very specific, so those search terms can be the basis for some great article topics.

3) What are people from your target market typing into the search engines to reach sites like yours?

This is a little different than researching the search terms used to reach your website. Sometimes your target readers are typing in search terms looking for information, and your site and your articles are not showing up in the result listings because you haven't created any content that suits that search.

The solution is to find out what specific searches your target readers are typing into Google and then write articles around those search topics.

How do you find out what information your target readers are looking for?

Just use a keyword suggestion tool such as the free one at http://freekeywords.wordtracker.com/

Type in your keywords or any words that you think have to do with your website, and then see what shows up in the results. You will see the exact phrases that real people have typed in related to the topic of your website--how cool is that?!

If you find a search term that sounds like it could be a great foundation for an article, then use the search term topic as a starting point.

Try to use phrasing similar to the search term in your article title. If it sounds natural, you can use similar phrasing of the search term in your article as well. For that article, those are your keywords, and you can mindfully write on that topic while still ensuring that your wording sounds natural, easy to understand, and not contrived.

These are 3 ways to generate article topics that will draw targeted traffic to your article and to your site.

They're simple, quick, and free, and they help you step into the shoes of your readers so that you can provide the information your target market is searching for!