Earned Traffic

What Is It?

Earned traffic refers to visitors who come to your website or platform as a result of your brand’s reputation, content quality, or word-of-mouth marketing. It’s like having a crowd show up to your party because they heard it’s the place to be, not because you handed out flyers!

Why It Matters

Understanding and leveraging earned traffic is crucial because it helps you:

• Build sustainable, long-term growth

• Establish credibility and trust with your audience

• Reduce dependence on paid advertising

• Improve your overall return on investment (ROI)

• Create a loyal community around your brand

👆 By the way, an interesting fact: Studies show that 92% of consumers trust earned media, such as word-of-mouth and recommendations from friends and family, above all other forms of advertising!

Sources of Earned Traffic

Let’s break down the main sources of earned traffic:

1. Search Engine Optimization (SEO) 🔍

   • Organic search results from Google, Bing, etc.

   • Driven by high-quality, relevant content and good technical SEO

2. Social Media Shares 📲

   • When your content gets shared organically on platforms like Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn

   • Not to be confused with paid social media advertising

3. Word-of-Mouth Marketing 🗣️

   • Recommendations from satisfied customers or industry influencers

   • Often the most valuable form of earned traffic

4. PR and Media Mentions 📰

   • When your brand gets featured in news articles, blog posts, or other media outlets

   • Can lead to significant traffic spikes and improved brand recognition

5. User-Generated Content 👥

   • Reviews, testimonials, or content created by your users about your brand

   • Builds trust and encourages others to check out your offerings

6. Referral Traffic 🔗

   • When other websites link to your content

   • Indicates that others find your content valuable enough to share

How to Boost Your Earned Traffic

1. Create High-Quality Content: Consistently produce valuable, shareable content

2. Optimize for SEO: Ensure your website and content are search-engine friendly

3. Engage on Social Media: Build a community around your brand

4. Encourage User Reviews: Make it easy for satisfied customers to share their experiences

5. Build Relationships: Network with influencers and journalists in your industry

6. Provide Exceptional Customer Service: Happy customers are more likely to recommend you

Pro tip: Use tools like Google Analytics to track your referral sources and see which earned traffic strategies are working best for you.

Measuring Earned Traffic Success 📊

Key metrics to watch:

• Organic Search Traffic: Visitors from search engines

• Referral Traffic: Visitors from other websites

• Social Media Traffic: Visitors from social platforms

• Engagement Metrics: Time on site, pages per session, bounce rate

• Brand Mentions: How often your brand is discussed online

• Backlinks: Number and quality of websites linking to you

Real-World Example

Let’s say you run a blog about sustainable living:

• You write a comprehensive guide on “50 Easy Ways to Reduce Your Carbon Footprint”

• The post ranks #1 on Google for “reduce carbon footprint”

• An environmental influencer shares it on Twitter

• A major news site links to your article in their climate change coverage

Results:

• 10,000 monthly organic search visitors

• 5,000 referral visitors from the news site

• 2,000 social media visitors from the influencer share

• 500 new email subscribers

• 50 new customers for your eco-friendly product line

That’s the power of earned traffic in action! 🌟

Earned vs. Paid Traffic: A Comparison