The key to generating a good income from any kind of site is driving as much targeted traffic to it as possible. Paying for ads will bring a steady stream of visitors in less time, but the cost can be an issue. However one of the best free sources of traffic is social media and it’s possible to use a wide range of different sources.
Everybody uses social media these days, and even if you only have a few followers on Facebook or Twitter, posting links to your sites for your followers to see can provide results. However, the real power of social media comes when you reach a large audience, well beyond your own followers.
Social traffic can be used for just about any kind of startup, but it is particularly suitable for viral news and viral video sites which are monetized with Adsense.
>> Browse our automated news sites here
People love to share content on Facebook, and if you tap into the right audiences, you can get some great results.
Firstly, apply to join Facebook groups that are related to your niche, and then when you get accepted, contribute to the group, providing useful comments and content that doesn’t include any links to your own sites. The idea is to build up trust within the group so that when you do post your links, they won’t just get deleted by an admin straight away. It’s not hard to find viral content on Facebook that people love to share, so for every link to your own site that you post, try and post at least five pieces of content that are not yours. It’s a good idea to create separate Facebook accounts just for promotional purposes, but try and make the accounts look real by adding friends and posting non-promotional content.
Twitter is an open platform, apart from the small number of people who have private profiles, so you can get away with posting more promotional links there. One of the best ways to be successful on Twitter is to hijack stories that are currently trending and getting lots of searches. Look out for trending hashtags each day and make posts that include URLs from your site along with the popular hashtags. Try to include a call to action as well, to entice people to click. Plus, in order to pick up a few extra clicks, you can also add a link to your site from your profile bio.
Instagram is a very visual platform, but that doesn’t mean to say that you can’t use it to generate traffic for just about any kind of site. Firstly, follow people who are following popular accounts that are related to your niche. You should find that roughly a third of the people who you follow will follow you back. Then make sure that you regularly post interesting images and ‘like’ other peoples images which are relevant to your site. The way that you can get traffic is by adding a link in your bio, and occasionally posting an image containing some text describing something that you’ve linked to in your bio. If your content is interesting enough to the people that you have targeted, then you will find that they respond to it.
Like Instagram, Pinterest is also a very visual platform, although the main difference with it is that you can use Pinterest Groups to reach a whole new audience. Before you apply to join any groups, make sure that you have over five hundred followers. You do this by following other similar accounts, and you will find that many of them will follow you back. When you have enough followers, apply to join groups that relate to your niche, and once you’re accepted post interesting images. As with Facebook, make sure that you add value to the group, and only occasionally post an image with a link to your site so that you don’t get banned by the admins.
Like Pinterest, the best method to use for LinkedIn is to join relevant groups and connect with as many people as possible. Again you want to be posting interesting content relating to your niche on a regular basis and also make sure that you add a link as one of your websites on your profile page. LinkedIn is more popular with professional people, so depending on your site, it may or may not be a suitable method of promotion for you.
If you have an automated viral news or video site, it’s also possible to set up your posts so that they automatically get posted to your social media accounts. This is not only a great time-saver but it means that youre profiles are constatly updated with fresh content driving traffic to your sites to generate revenue.
>> Browse our automated news sites here
Tips for Social Media Success
Whichever platform you use, the key to success is to post your traffic generating links in moderation. If you post fifty links in a Facebook group the moment that you are approved for it, you’ll probably find yourself banned in no time at all. Try to act like an average social media user would act and you will have far greater success.
• Post genuinely interesting content.
• Make sure your profiles are complete.
• Make useful comments and try to help people whenever you can.
• Wait before posting links to your site once you have been accepted into a group.
• And don’t post too many links to your sites at once.