Traffic and Links to YOUR Site
by Irena Whitfield

In this series of articles I would like to say a few words about the sorts of traffic or links that every webmaster needs to get to his site to generate customers.

Basically, webmasters and their sites need two sorts of traffic - namely, the direct or instant - it's the traffic that brings targeted visitors that the site or the webmaster by his follow-ups converts to customers and the other is traffic that does not bring customers at once, that sometimes does not even bring visitors directly but it is the same important as the first form.

The first is not necessary to comment but the other is sometimes confused for the first one and it is one of the reasons why some people complain that 'the advertising doesn't work'. This form of linking or traffic is for instance placing polls, forms, contests to your site or banners or links to other sites or partners or the famous FFA pages.

Sometimes this form of traffic does not even bring visitors at all, so they do not seem to work - short term. However, every webmaster should realise that for his long-term presence and success on the Net, his long-term position is vital and it is exactly this form of links or traffic that ensures this. So, it does not bring visitors now but will ensure a continuous, automatic flow long-term if done properly.

It is essential that any webmaster knows exactly at which form of marketing to aim by what and what to expect and how to handle it. When he aims at getting his long-term position or position on the market, it is not good for straight, direct targeted visitors to be turned away by loads of banners and links that the webmaster places on his main page for his long-term purposes.

None of the two forms should be preferred, they are of the same value, cannot be replaced by each other but should be handled differently. The links or banners or forms and polls should not interfere with the main selling item or purpose of the site nor confuse the targeted visitor.

It seems to me that this long-term traffic is the cause why most webmasters give up. They do not realise the importance of this form of traffic and since they do not see immediate visitors, they ceased to market their sites this way or just put loads of links and banners on their main pages and lose even the direct targeted visitors.

That's also why it is so important to be careful about the banner and link exchanges, to consider which help at all, which help the main selling purpose of the site and which prevents it and also, not less important to choose with which sites to link and on which pages to put the links or banners.

All the above should be implemented in the short-term and the long-term marketing plans including activities related and the periods, in which related tasks should be performed and the pages which will be devoted to this not to damage the whole purpose of the web presence.

At every moment, in every activity a webmaster should know what and why he does this or that and what it will bring and when.