traffic lesson 2: blogs and forums

1) Blogging for traffic

I wonder why so many people just setup their blogs and then forget about the most important things for actually getting traffic to their blogs. You�ve already got a comprehensive video tutorial from me that shows you in details how to start a blog on your website.

I�ve noticed that a lot of people installed their blogs, posted one message and then take weeks before they post another message. Hey, that was me too when I first started a blog two years ago, jumping on the blogging for traffic bandwagon. I�ve been simply too lazy to post regularily, but after seeing the benefits and how easy it was to add and manage website content with a blog, I became a blogging fan.

In terms of website traffic, the big advantage of posting new website content to a blog over building traditional HTML pages is the notification system through pings. Everytime you publish a new blog post, the feed directories are notified that you have new content and usually link to your new post. This way, internet users can find your content much faster than if you would add it on a HTML page.

I want to encourage you to start a blog and post regularily. You�ll quickly see an increase of traffic.

The second very important thing many people forget is to submit their blogs to the most important blog and RSS feed directories. Why is this so important ? Well, some of these directories are authority sites and once your blog submission is approved, they provide a permanent link back to your blog.

Only by doing the submission like shown in the blogging video tutorial, I�ve been able to get my blogs indexed in Google within 2 days and also a Google PR of 3 for my blogs� homepages. And it only takes 15-30 minutes ONCE to complete this entire submission process, so I can�t really understand why many people skip this part.

If you haven�t submitted your blog to the most important directories yet, visit the blog submission page now and do it.

2) Getting traffic from forums

Another technique for generating targeted traffic to your websites is to participate in discussions on popular forums and discussion boards. There�s not really much to say about this technique, the most important thing is that YOU actually commit some time to regularily visit forums in your niche and participate in the discussions.

Of course, first you need to find forums related to your market niche. I recommend that you start with a few forums (5 - 10) only. You should create a new folder in your favorites list and then bookmark the forums that you find worthwhile.

How do you find forums related to your niche ?

When I built my first forums list for a niche market, I tried to search Google for “keywords + forum” or “keywords + forums” but realized that for most niches I wouldn�t get the desired results. So I started looking for forum directories and found a couple of good ones. I suggest you start your search at the following directories:

BigBoards.com: lists only the most popular forums with many members and high traffic.

FindYourForum.com: has many categories and subcategories and lists smaller boards, too.

Forumguide.info
GandalfDir.com
ForumsInfo.com
TrendsToday.com

IPBdirectory.com: lists only forums powered by the invision power board script.
phpBBdirectory.com: phpBB forums only
vBulletinDirectory: only forums powered by vBulletin.

Forum-Directories.com: directory of forum directories.

When you select your forums, don�t just pick those which are directly related to your niche but also those where people hang out who are probably interested in your niche topic.

For example: to find forums where I can get traffic for a dental care related website, I would first search for dental care discussion boards, then some general health care forums and also forums related to parenting & mums (caring about childrens� teeth), nutrition and beauty (cosmetic dentistry).

Alright, you�ve found some good forums and added them to your favorites list. Now, how do you actually get traffic from them ?

First of all, you need to sign up to become a member of each forum and be able to post new threads and replies to other peoples� threads.

Then you should create a signature in your profile that will be included below every message that you post to the forum. Your signature in forums has basically the same function as the resource box in your article promotions: invite people to visit your site.

Therefore, you need to include a link back to your site and give people a reason for visiting, such as a gift or more useful information.

Finally, get your signature out there. Don�t be shy. Don�t think you only need to post expert answers to other peoples� questions. Simply participate in the discussions like a normal forum user, too. Ask questions, add short comments to other peoples� replies.

Commit at least two or three hours per week to go through the forums you have bookmarked and add your 2 cents. If you have trouble continuously committing time to forums, you could select a certain day of the week and make posting to forums the priority on your to-do list for that day.