Top Ten FREE Traction Building Ideas for a New Web Site
By: Andrew
D. Ive
The dot com era proved that just building it isn't enough.
The chicken and the egg issue exists -you need customers to
get customers... and attempting to launch a web site, is that
issue on steroids. So, how to get traction?
Here are Ten FREE Traction building Ideas we are trying:
1) Email Your Friends:
Find everyone you know that relates to your target market
and introduce them to your website via email... as you know
them, leverage every piece of emotional capital you have with
them to encourage them to take a look at your new site and
join.
2) Ask Your Friends to Refer Others:
If you send an email to people who are your target market,
clearly articulate why it is valuable to 'THEM' (not just
you) to join your site... and then ask and make it easy for
them to refer people they know. Here's an example of an email
I wrote that asks for a referral -
"Please forward to anyone that may be interested...
entrepreneurs, advisors, people with Blogs, press contacts
etc! Even forwarding to four or five contacts will make a
big difference for us!
Happy New Year and thanks!
++
I've just discovered a new web service bringing potential
business advisors together with entrepreneurs and early stage
businesses. For Advisors - It's a great way to discover new
deal flow and get involved in a hot new company. For Entrepreneurs
- a great way to take your business to the next level in 2007!
The site is called Advisor Garage - http://www.AdvisorGarage.com
and was recently featured in Business Week!
Please sign up and forward this email to great advisors and
entrepreneurs.
++
After three or four weeks of steps 1 & 2 we found that
we had begun to get a few people onboard... So now what?
3) Write a Press Release and get it OUT there...
I can almost hear a few folks swallowing and already considering
looking for the next blog... it really isn't that tough and
it isn't expensive. In fact, its FREE! Don't believe me? Consider
signing up to PR Leap (http://www.prleap.com/learn_more).
Not only do they have some good articles which explain for
dummies (like me!) how to write a press release but they also
offer a free submission service to multiple channels such
as Google News, Google Search, Yahoo! Search, Topix.net, Technorati,
MSN, Ask News, Moreover, NewsNow and others. According to
their website - PR Leap is the best way to send your news
release(s) to all major search engines, newswires, and websites.
And basic accounts are free!
So what happened with us? Well we signed up, created a one
page press release (took about 30 minutes), submitted it and
it was approved earlier today. It will appear tomorrow. If
you are interested, the link to the press release is: http://www.prleap.com/pr/61185/
The basic plan (read... Free) comes with stats, so I'll let
you know in a few days if the press release was actually read
by anyone and if it was picked up by any sites, bloggers,
press etc. Let's see how good PR Leap and our press release
writing skills are!
4) A Personalized Toolbar:
A great startup called Conduit (http://www.Conduit.com) offers
people the opportunity to create their own, personalized toolbar
for FREE. Conduit has a wizard embedded within their website
which takes you through the setup process step-by-step. It
took about twenty minutes and once you're done, they create
a link to your toolbar download site which you can then share
through an email signature or through a click through download
on your new networking site. There are a number of cool ways
to tailor the toolbar... your branded search, create links
to particular pages on your own site, add weather, a radio
and so on to make sure its a value download for your customers.
5) Design Your Site with the Customer In Mind and Make
Inviting Others Easy
If, like us, your marketing budget is measured by the quarters
rattling around in your pocket, then do your site a favor
and design it so the 'Invite Others' button is never far away.
No matter what page the users happen to be on. Bold it, make
it big, underline it if you have to but referrals from happy
customers are always easier to get than attracting new customers.
6) Friends & Contacts Revisisted:
Do any of your friends know anyone in the press or people
who have blogs ? Well you won't know until you ask... ASK!
7) Join Linked In (http://www.linkedin.com)
If you haven't already, consider joining linked in. Yes, its
another networking site, and you could consider them the compeitition
(In your dreams!)... but after joining you can search through
the directory and find people that may either a) be interested
in joining your site or b) encouraging others to do so. If
you aren't a member already, take a look
8) Groups & Forums:
Are there Yahoo (http://groups.yahoo.com) or Google Groups
(http://groups.google.com) or other online forums that include
the types of people you want to attract to your new networking
site? If so, join them but beware... most groups want members
to contribute to the discussions and no groups appreciate
spam. So find the best forums for your target customers, join
and spend some time getting to know what subjects are being
discussed. Give it a week or two then jump in and add some
value... and make sure that your post includes your email
and perhaps the web address. If it is valuable, then members
may check out your new site...
One last thing, if there aren't any good groups with your
target customers... consider creating your own... and make
it it feeds your new networking site. Here's one I started
and yes... I know it only has a few members... but its more
links in the internet for your website which appears in your
google or Alexa results: http://groups.google.com/group/Harvard_Entrepreneurs_Startups?lnk=oa&hl=en
9) Write to your Existing Members:
Do you have a few members? If so, email them occassionally
(Not every day!) and remind them of the value of your site...
perhaps highlight a particularly useful tool or feature of
your website. Maybe reach out to some of the individual members
and ask them if you can write about them joining the site,
a person feature if you will. At the bottom of each of these
emails... give them a few sentences (above for example) to
send on to others they know. Stress how much you would appreciate
their help and how important they are to you and your young
business.
10) Drum roll... .badda badda badda... Create a Blog!
Here's hoping that a blog is the tenth and most valuable means
of getting the message out there about a new networking site.
(Wordpress.com is FREE)
Good Luck!
Andrew
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© 2007, Andrew D. Ive, Advisor Garage. Advisor Garage
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www.AdvisorGarage.com
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