Top 7 Ways to Increase Organic Traffic to Your Website

Are you struggling to get organic traffic to your website? Do you want to increase the visibility of your online presence and attract more customers? If so, then read on – we have a detailed guide to help you increase organic traffic.

People who have recently launched their websites often make common mistakes when driving organic traffic. Understanding a few basic concepts about content creation, keyword usage, and audience targeting will give you an advantage over your competitors. The simple steps in this article will help your website gain more organic traffic while helping you reach your goals. Increasing organic traffic is important to sustain a website as it can provide long-term success.

Increasing organic traffic: the basics

It’s essential to note the difference between organic traffic and link building. Link building is attaching links to a page to drive more traffic through higher rankings on the Google search engine. Businesses often participate in link exchanges in order to improve their organic rankings. This can be a helpful strategy — but not an all-encompassing one. 

Building organic traffic includes link building, SEO (search engine optimization) keyword usage, audience targeting, and the content you choose to write. Increasing your organic traffic should be your primary focus, as it is the most efficient way to reach your potential customers. While other content creators might focus on social media marketing or paid ads, they won’t have much success without letting their content speak for itself. 

7 painless ways to increase organic traffic

Now that we’ve established the importance of organic traffic, let’s look at five simple strategies to increase your website’s organic traffic. Organic traffic is beneficial to your website and SEO strategy, as it’s the best way to validate your site on Google. This action then leads to an increase in perceived authority from your target audience. 

To up your organic traffic game, be sure you’re creating content that is original, relevant, and helpful. Additionally, update your website content frequently to keep viewers interested in reading more of your content.

Assuming you have a firm foothold in your industry, this will showcase your reliability and expertise to your target audience. Another effective strategy is to link to websites with authority in your industry. This practice will help you build credibility and gain additional recognition from your peers.

1. Featured snippet optimization

Google featured snippets are search results that appear in dominant blocks of information at the top of the page. They offer answers to the search query that Google deems most relevant. Optimizing your content for featured snippets gives you the chance to stand out from the crowd and attract more organic traffic.

<Screenshot of featured snippet>

Now that Google is increasing its technology to understand the content of web pages, optimizing for featured snippets is becoming more important. Google’s most recent core algorithm update, the Helpful Content Update, rewards content that is helpful and comprehensive. The advantage of having a rich snippet is that users get a better sense of what your webpage is all about — and ultimately drive more organic traffic to your page.

There are steps you can take to create great featured snippets that Google deems worthy of putting at the top of its search list. When writing content for featured snippets, keep your sentences short and concise — try to limit each. Also, research what content Google supports for rich snippets according to the content you create. Snippet-rich topics include recipes, travel, music, businesses, and organizations. Also, remember your target audience — you’ll want to create your content based on what people are searching for.

2. Write about timely content

Researching what’s trending on the internet and in the news cycle can help you create content that’s timely and relevant. When you stay on top of what people are interested in, it’s easier to write content that’s more likely to go viral — and, in turn, increase your organic traffic. Keeping up with trends will also help you stay ahead of potential competitors and attract more attention to your website.

Remember that strictly writing about viral stuff is not 100% of the job. SEO is also critical. In addition to paying attention to trends, you must choose the right keywords. When you set up your website, use SEO keywords to write your titles and meta descriptions, and continue your keyword usage as you write blog articles. If you’re just starting out, you’ll have better luck with long-tail keywords — that is, keywords with more than three words. These keywords tend to have lower search volume but higher conversion rates. Keyword research and understanding user search intent are the foundation of any successful SEO strategy, so take your time and be creative.

When you pepper SEO keywords throughout the text on your website, Google will be more likely to boost your page. In fact, with enough keyword usage, Google will establish you as a valuable expert in your field or industry. But, be sure to still use keywords naturally — stuffing keywords in your text will end up hurting you.

3. Write “top” lists

Top lists are articles or blogs that present a numbered list of bests/favorites on any number of topics. Writing top lists is a good idea because they make the content easier to read and digest. Too much information that doesn’t connect can be overwhelming to readers, so a nice number list can help them quickly identify what interests them.

Here are some evergreen content ideas for your top lists:

• Travel  
• Recipes
• Music
• Sports
• Gift ideas
• Family activities
• Shopping 
• Hair care and beauty 
• Sports cars 

Remember not to stray too far from your specialty. For example, if you’re a travel blogger, stick to topics like the most beautiful places to visit. If you’re an expert in gardening, list the best flowers and plants for a particular season. Sticking to your “niche” is vital for establishing your website as an authority in the industry. If you write posts about topics outside your niche, you will most likely not succeed in gaining organic traffic. Google loves to see content with a consistent voice, so sticking to one theme is essential.

4. Use odd numbers for top lists   

Many surveys have shown that users prefer odd numbers for top lists. Odd numbers have a clever, quirky vibe and draw the reader in — unlike a square, even number. 

The number seven is the odd number that generates the most clicks, according to the same data. Historically, people have a positive association with the number seven due to its frequent use in religious and mystical contexts. So, if you want to generate even more clicks, you might try structuring your content around the number seven as an advanced strategy.

 5. Link to authority sites

Google likes to see content that’s backed up with facts, so linking to quality sources is a must. Linking to authority sites shows Google that you’re an expert on your topic — which will help boost your ranking.

But, beware of linking too much to other sites. Too many external links can cause Google to flag your account as suspicious and reduce your search rankings. 

So, it’s important to find the sweet spot between linking enough to be authoritative, but not too much as to appear spammy. As your website grows more reputable, you can link to more outside sources and use fewer internal links. However, if your website is relatively new, you may need to rely on more internal links.

6. Embed images and videos

Optics are everything. Graphics, images, and videos make your site more user-friendly, your information easier to digest, and the page more attractive to read.

Use multimedia to upgrade the overall look of your website. Include videos, GIFS, or other images or audio that fit the theme you’ve established, but make sure it offers useful information to your target audience. 

If a person happens to come across your website organically, a nice layout of media and compelling multimedia visuals can help retain their attention. This quality, in turn, will drive up your page in the algorithm. 

7. User-friendly and responsive web design

This is the last and probably most important tip. A user-friendly web design can help people stay longer on your site and be more likely to share it. Designing a practical and accessible interface on your site will also entice your target audience to stay on your website longer than they intended, especially when they stumble upon your site through organic traffic. 

If you have some technical experience or the patience to learn, you can use tools like WordPress to build your website from the bottom up. They have hundreds of helpful templates and add-ons to help you design your site. There are lots of resources and tools to help you learn the best practices for starting your website. 

Alternatively, you might hire a professional to set up your site for you, which will be less time-consuming so you can focus on content creation. The pros will ensure a modern, effective, and easy-to-use finished product that brings you desired results. 

Whether you build your own page or hire a professional, having a functional and attractive website helps make it easier for Google to index it, resulting in your website being a magnet for organic traffic. 

Final notes

When you’re striving to generate more organic traffic to your website, these practices will set you apart from your competitors. While many others are distracted by social media marketing and paid ads, you can use these carefully-curated practices to meet your goals. 

Focus on your target audience and devise your keywords and content based on the needs of that particular demographic. Next, regularly create content that meets the above criterion. Finally, ensure you have a professional-looking interface on your website that functions well and is easily accessible. 

Frequently Asked Questions