You’re a creative person. It says so right on your card. So why is it such a struggle for you to attract visitors to your website and keep them around when they do happen to wander in?
Don’t blame yourself. Instead, do something about it.
These six tips are tailor-made for creative professionals looking to boost traffic and engagement on their websites and blogs.
- Use Content Aggregators to Generate New Ideas
You’re going to need a lot of fodder for your content marketing plan. Start off on the right foot by deploying one or more content aggregators. Content marketing guru Jeff Bullas has a solid list of the best aggregators on the market. Remember that each is a little different; don’t be afraid to try and discard a few before settling on your ideal match.
- Define and Stick to Your Wheelhouse
Next, define and claim a topic domain — call it your wheelhouse — outside which you resolve not to stray too far. The website for noted film producer David Mimran is a case in point: Mimran writes about what he knows, which is to say the film industry, and doesn’t stray too far outside those lines. (Happily, it’s a rich domain.) You can surely do the same in your own lane.
- Engage With Your Audience in Substantive, Sustained Ways
Devise creative ways to engage with your audience on issues of common interest. Such engagement can come in all sorts of forms, from “ask me anything” sessions on Reddit (not for the faint of heart!), to “tweetchats” on Twitter, to question-and-answer videos on your very own YouTube channel — all linking back to your website, of course. Here’s a primer on the art of the tweetchat from Social Media Examiner author Christopher Gimmer.
- Broach Edgy Social Media Platforms
How well do you know your audience?
Hopefully, well enough to know where they’re spending most of their time online. (Hint: it’s not on your website.) If you’re aiming for a younger crowd, meet them halfway on popular but youthful platforms like Snapchat, whose business marketing apparatus has really taken off in recent years.
- Up Your Meme and GIF Game
If a picture is worth a thousand words, a well-placed meme has truly incalculable value. Even if it doesn’t feel “right” or “serious” enough to you, it will behoove you to deploy (judiciously) viral memes and GIFs that your audience can’t help but share.
You’re Your Own Best Advocate
If your budget allows, by all means hire a PR firm or marketing agency to help you tell your own story. You have every right to use every ethical means at your disposal to control the narrative around yourself and your business.
Be careful about ceding too much ground to others, though. Even if you’re not a professional wordsmith, you know better than anyone else how you’d like your story to be told. You’re your own best advocate — and you’d do well to embrace your role as the gatekeeper of your personal brand, before someone else decides they’d do a better job with it.
