There are three golden rules for promoting your website on other platforms:
Own Your Community
If you are building a community to promote your website, then try to own the resources. Do not trust other platforms. A decade ago, Facebook was the hub for websites to create their communities. But with the recent changes, the growth of a business page has drastically decreased on Facebook. So, try to own the resources so that you have control, and you do not lose your community.
Quid Quo Pro
Invest your time and energy on a platform only when you get adequate returns. The biggest advantage of digital platforms is that you can measure the results. So, you can easily tell which platform is getting you traffic, and which platform is just wasting your efforts. Social media platforms demand dedication. You have to post content regularly and engage with users.
So, instead of wasting your time on a social media platform that provides negligible traffic to your website, you can create a blog post that would be a resource for a longer period. Even if you have built a 10,000-person community, it will be of no use if people do not come to your website. So, find a platform that pays you back for the efforts. Find a platform that pays you back in traffic.
Evergreen Content
Content is the key to promoting your website. Similar to your blog posts, social media posts should be evergreen. Find content that will be relevant even 10 years down the line. This will ensure that the post will keep providing you with traffic for a longer period. A single post can serve you for 10 years. All you have to do is create evergreen content. If the relevance of your post dies after a week, then it will become a waste.
The Traffic
We have learned these rules after committing numerous mistakes. You should always look for platforms that are valuable for the effort. Let us see what platforms will help you actually drive traffic to your website.
Pinterest does not offer a feed format. It will show pins after the user searches for a keyword. So, it is beneficial to promote on Pinterest using the right keywords. Pinterest is the source of traffic for numerous new websites. Its user base is strong, and it provides you good reach if you use it wisely. All you have to do is pin your posts and wait for your post to be shared and reach your target audience. But remember: your pin will be noticed and shared only if it is good enough.
How to Create a Pin
If you use Pinterest, you know that pins are usually in portrait format. For pinning your post, you will have to create an attractive image for Pinterest. The image should reflect the gist of the post and grab attention. It should be relevant and vibrant. Furthermore, it should be tall. Yes! The taller your pin, the more chances of catching attention. The ideal size is 300 by 600 pixels. Use text in the image, add colors, and show your message. You can even use infographics to attract viewers.
Your main aim is to get their attention and then convince them to visit the website. So, add an irresistible description with a call to action.
On Pinterest, the size of your community does not matter. If your pin is good enough, it will be shared, and it will send traffic to your website. The key to promotion on Pinterest is to reach the right audience and get your pins shared. So, ask your friends to share the pins in return for sharing their pins. Join community or group boards and try to reach as many people as possible. Select a group board relevant to your niche and then get to work. Networking is the mantra for Pinterest.
YouTube
Videos attract people, videos have higher retention, and videos get traffic to your website. So, YouTube will help you promote using videos. YouTube plays a crucial role in promotion. In the future, you will be creating various YouTube videos. For now, let us learn the basics.
How to Create a YouTube Video
Step-1 Write the Post First
Creating a video related to an existing post will help attract people to your website. Once the post is written, you can take up any element and record a video on it. Later, just ask your viewers to check out the post to learn more about the topic.
Step-2 Answer a Question
Your video should relate to an existing post and should answer a question. It should be helpful and informative. Just share your knowledge and not your opinion. You are at the beginner’s stage. It is not wise to post your opinion at this stage. Once you have built a community on YouTube and people start trusting you, then you can post certain opinion pieces. But at the start, focus on helping them out with questions related to your niche.
Step-3 Watch the Time
YouTube takes your watch time seriously. If you create a 1- to 2-minute video, you will not be able to maintain a good watch time. So, try to set your limit at 10 minutes. But why not make a 2-hour video to increase the watch time? Simple, because people will hesitate to commit to a 2-hour long video. So, offer something valuable at an acceptable duration.
Step-4 Include a Call to Action
Every video should have a purpose. “Click on the link below,” “check out the post,” “share this video” are just a few calls to action that you can use to fulfill the purpose of your videos. Imagine if your video went viral, but it created zero traffic for your website because there was no call to action. So prompt viewers to decide in your favor by including a call to action in your video.
Step-5 Use Short Links
Add short links so that it is visually appealing. You can use a plugin to get pretty links and get your links shortened.
Step-6 Ask Them to Search You
This a call to action that will help you increase your rank on Google. Instead of clicking the link through video, ask your viewers to search for the exact title of your post. With more views, more people will search and click on your posts, and in no time, you will witness your rank improving on Google.
Strategy
Consistency
Stay consistent and try to post every week. YouTube rewards consistent pages and demotes the flaky ones. If you are promoting a passive website and do not want to invest too much time, then just pick one day and create a batch of videos. Go to YouTube and schedule a posting one by one every week. You can even trim the video directly on YouTube.
Bold Headlines
Your headline should be catchy, controversial, and genuine. Frame an irresistible headline and justify it through your content.
Copied Phrases
Google transcribes your YouTube videos and shows the exact segment in the search results. This means if you use a phrase in your video and someone searches for it on Google, your video will appear. So, to optimize your video content for Google’s search engine, you could copy a few phrases.
Just view the existing content related to your topic. Write down the relevant phrases used in popular videos and then use them in your own way. You may contradict the popular video or present the idea differently. Just use the phrases to increase your visibility.
Quality Content
Quality video content means that your content should be relevant and helpful, whether you are shooting with your mobile phone or your expensive camera. Just remember to offer something valuable. On YouTube, better quality content works better than TV-quality video.
You have learned how to promote your websites on other reliable platforms such as YouTube and Pinterest. It will appear time-consuming, but it is in the best interest of your website. In the beginning, you will have to work harder, but as you establish yourself on the platforms, it will become easier.
