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Internet Marketing Coach
The Importance of Retaining Visitors
March 17th, 2008 | 26 comments
How many traffic generation techniques have you used, but quickly ditched because it didn’t bring in the amount of long-term traffic you had hoped? Let’s just list a few of them that you’ve either tried and abandoned in the past, or currently use:
1: Article Marketing
2: Social Media
3: Forums
4: Guest-Posting on Blogs
5: SEM/PPC
…and the list goes on and on and on, like the Energizer bunny 
I busted my butt for a few years before I realized something and this one realization is what brought my income from barely feeding my family to doing extremely well online. What was this magical realization?
You CAN’T run a successful online business off of one-time visitors!!
You simply MUST find a way to get those visitors back multiple times!
Of course you’re never going to get 100% of your traffic to come back 100% of the time, but just a couple percent can and will make a huge impact on your business!
All of the techniques above work and although there will be times where you’ll receive bursts of traffic, most will not return loads of returning visitors. unless you turn them into return visitors!!
So How Do You Do It?
There are many ways to do it, but 2 really stick out:
- Building a List
- Blogging
Building a List - How many times have you heard the phrase “The Money’s in the List?” More times than you care to count, I’d imagine!
Getting your visitors name and email provides a GREAT way to get them back to your site and if you do it correctly, they’ll be happy to do so!
To do this you need to be knowledgeable in your niche. If you’re not knowledgeable you’re not going to be able to provide them with anything useful and if you can’t provide anything useful they’ll just unsubscribe.
BUT, don’t let that get you down! Just about all of us have knowledge in something, which is above average for those in that niche. If you’re knowledgeable in gaming, build a list of gamers. If you’re knowledgeable in gardening build a list of gardeners etc. etc.
Lee McIntyre created an excellent video and posted it to his blog titled: “Why you need to Build a List Starting Today, that really explains the benefits of email marketing to a T. Anyone interested in starting their own list really should take a look at it!
Blogging - With the RSS capabilities of blogs and their ability to quickly and easily upload content, they are much like newsletters. Visitors can subscribe to your feed and be updated when you have something to say. If you have something to offer they will come back again and again. Blogs are powerful content platforms and an excellent way to brand your name and develop a strong presence in your niche! However, many people start blogs on topics in which they are not knowledgeable. If you’re not knowledgeable about the niche yourself, why should others keep up with you? There are some exceptions if you do it properly and really excel, but most people are better off blogging about niches they are familiar with.
Combining Blogging with Email Marketing!! - This is where the real power comes in and if you can pull it off you’ll do much better and save alot of time by combining the two as opposed to running your blog and newsletter as two separate entities.
I recently begun doing this with great success! Using your blog as a discussion platform for your newsletter provides interaction between you and your list members, while at the same time reducing those big, long emails that everyone hates! Write a nice, long, informative blog post that teaches your viewers something then directing your list to it! You’re now creating a presence in the blogosphere, building organic traffic from the Search Engines, providing a “social” atmosphere and PROVIDING VALUE all at the same time!
Whether you build a list, blog or do something else, you simply MUST turn your visitors into followers! If you don’t do this you’ll continue to have a very long, up-hill battle!
Popularity: 19% [?]
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17th March, 2008 at 8:13 pm
You’ve got some great points in here, but not only do you point out whats wrong, you tell us how to fix it. Thanks! I’ve been using an autoresponder campaign on my website for some time now and it really does get people to come back and buy things more often than without it. I’m working on getting a blog set up on my site as well, and this post has only made me even more excited!
Thanks,
Ryan
17th March, 2008 at 8:20 pm
Hi Ryan,
I’m glad you enjoyed the article. Autoresponders certainly do work. I didn’t start getting serious with mine until very late in the game, but it’s proven to be the smartest move I’ve made so far!
17th March, 2008 at 8:27 pm
Hi Josh,
I have to agree that using Autoresponders is probably one of the best ideas to get people back to your sites.
17th March, 2008 at 8:35 pm
Autoresponders are great, and I love the way that you’ve been using yours to flag important posts. I have to admit I am terrible about checking my RSS feeder, and its nice to get the e-mail.
I read long ago that it takes seen exposures to get someone to buy, so having them come back again and again is essential.
17th March, 2008 at 8:38 pm
Josh,
I concur. Using both methods has skyrocketed (really) my online income. For a long time I neglected doing both but once I saw that Jon Leger does it with success, I started doing it.
Cheers mate
Craig
17th March, 2008 at 8:38 pm
@ Courtney - I started sending my lists to this blog after watching Jonathan Leger do it with great success! I saw first hand how good his list converts after a promo he did for “AMD.” It really makes sense and the combo is very powerful if done correctly.
@ Craig - Sorry, missed you first time around. Looks like Jon has impacted both of our incomes
17th March, 2008 at 9:05 pm
Agreed that this is a great way to manage your lists. Separating the two (keeping a blog and a list) leads to more creative writing than I think I have time for right now.
Good article as usual Josh.
- Ryan
17th March, 2008 at 9:16 pm
@ Ryan - I think that’s what prevents many bloggers from starting a list. They look at is as double content that needs to be created, when, if done correctly, it’s not that at all
Glad you liked it.
17th March, 2008 at 9:28 pm
Josh
Once again extremely useful information. I have been at this for almost a year now and have a list of over 600. I would sure love to know how to make this list more responsive. If I give something away I get 15% click through rate. But when I sell something it is miserable. (less than 1%).
17th March, 2008 at 9:33 pm
@ Ambrose - It’s always easy for people to tell others how to do it, but I know hearing about it and making it happen are two different things. Although this may sound bad, the best advice I can give you is to watch how others do it. Jonathan Leger (as I stated above) is one prime example of how to do it correctly.
My list is also doing very well, but I learned from Jon.
When it comes down to it, it’s all about providing value. Don’t sell, sell, sell. Provide alot of free, quality content and when you come across products you really like recommend them.
17th March, 2008 at 9:43 pm
Hi Josh,
Good information…I am actually pretty new to internet marketing so this information is helpful. I can really see the benefit of sending the list to the blog.
By the way, I have been on Jonathan Ledger’s list for some time and he is the one that introduced me to your list. A beneficial recommendation!
17th March, 2008 at 9:57 pm
@ Stephanie - Don’t be like me and wait 2 years before you start your list
Glad to have you as a subscriber!
18th March, 2008 at 12:57 am
Hi Josh,
Good topic and i agree that building a list is very valuable, i am primarily and adsesne guy and just started a blogspot blog that is in its infancy (getting ready to move to wordpress) but it is very true that people like to retun when they feel they are getting something from you. I do however have a fear of running out of material to post.
18th March, 2008 at 1:20 am
Good points I think.
My main problem is getting new visitors. I seem to retain them fairly well (but I’m more of a blogger than an internet marketer).
18th March, 2008 at 2:55 am
Josh,
Using an autoresponder and managing your list should be a requirement if you are selling anything on the internet. Thanks for offering us suggestions on how to fix some of the problems we may run into as we sell on the internet as well. Your insight and truthfulness will help many people.
Respectfully,
Joe Bartolotta
The Upfront Mortgage Broker
18th March, 2008 at 5:23 am
Joshua,
That makes perfect sense. I have put off building a lost for so long because like you, I spend a lot of time reading and responding to comments on my blog posts. I don’t know if anyone has ever written a book on the blogging and list building combo. Maybe something for you to consider for an upcoming product. I’m not sure what the best approach is.
18th March, 2008 at 5:38 am
Hi Josh,
Joshua’s post has stimulated a thought.
I think there is something of a cultural difference between the blogosphere and the internet marketing world. I think the blogosphere is pretty allergic to hype and this is a bigger part of the internet marketing scene (however unwelcome).
What do you think? If you think this a valid point it may affect how about we go about building a list for instance.
18th March, 2008 at 3:08 pm
@ Adsense - Adsense is a good money-maker. I do pretty well with it myself, but it shouldn’t be the only source of online income!! My business is diversified. I sell products, promote products, run google adverts etc. so if one fails I’m still good to go
@ Evan - As long as your retaining the visitors you get, you need very little new traffic, so there shouldn’t be a problem there. They will just keep building and building.
@ Joe - Glad I could help.
@ Rusty - That’s certainly an idea and one I may adopt doen the road, thanks.
@ Evan - You’re definitely right!! The average blogger is against any kind of hype and the typical sales page will turn them away, while the true Internet Marketer bases his/her decision off of the product itself.
I don’t really consider myself a blogger, more than an Internet marketer, but I do understand where the average blogger is coming from.
I don’t like too much hype, but I would never base my opinion of a product off of the sales page. It’s all about what you learn with the product and I believe the bloggers who keep up with me appreciate my honesty in that arena, so it seems to work with both.
18th March, 2008 at 4:20 pm
I can see that you are doing both blogging and list building successfully. I don’t feel comfortable building a list from my blog’s readers yet but I am thinking of experimenting first with a free autoresponder, a single web page and traffic exchange.
19th March, 2008 at 2:14 pm
@ Internet - A good majority of my list subscribers aren’t blog readers or even bloggers at all.
You may want to consider building a list through article marketing etc.
20th March, 2008 at 11:29 pm
Hey Josh,
I’ve been a bit inactive of late but our recent conversations away from the blog have been all about this topic.
I think it’s very important to stress, as you have here, that keeping subscribers is all about offering value. Free gifts are always welcomed and prevents people from feeling “trapped” and sold to. Most folks new to listbuilding have to understand the trust factor, which needs to be established before the selling gets underway. I think you exemplify this kind of marketing attitude and it’s a big factor in your success.
Love the new blog look and thanks for the ebook plug in your valuable ad space
Mo
21st March, 2008 at 3:57 pm
[...] The Importance of Retaining Visitors [...]
24th March, 2008 at 9:07 pm
Hey Mo,
I’ve been pretty inactive at other blogs lately as well, so I know what you mean.
You’re right about giving and building trust. I always try to consider whether or not my next post will really help people or not before publishing it.
Free reports are a great way to teach people specialty topics while building your own army of trusted customers.
10th April, 2008 at 7:34 pm
If you give your visitors what they want they will come back. Be it great merchandise, or great information, A list doen’t hurt in case they missed how great your information was the first time around. And as Mo said it doesn’t hurt to give them something free once in a while. Jeff
10th April, 2008 at 7:40 pm
@ Jeff - That’s true, but unfortunately that’s not always the case.
Giving away a free report (for instance) and capturing their email is a great way to “gather” alot of prospects for future promotions and free info give aways.
Mailing lists work!! I promise you that
2nd June, 2008 at 5:36 pm
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