Now that we’re clear on the objectives. Sales, right? Let’s creatively solve the problem using the Internet and marketing.

How Do I Get More Web Visitors?

I always like to start simple.

In this case, the most basic definition of a Web visitor is: a click from somewhere. We want as many clicks as we can get. These clicks can come from emails, blogs, websites, search engines, social media, or paid online ads. And roughly, our experience shows that this is the order in which these clicks perform the best at generating sales leads.

If you want to increase your Web traffic you need to get your website link(s) in one or more of these marketing medium.

The second step is to develop tactics that motivate people to click on those web links (generating traffic) to your website. I like to break this process down into three processes:

• Quality and relevant content hosting the link (i.e., the email message, blog post, social media message, or paid ad)
• Sense of urgency to drive the click
• Compelling offer or promise (i.e., Ad text, link text, or creative)

This is the process we are thinking through with the Web traffic strategy and tactics we develop for you.

What Do Web Visitors Want from Me?

Getting Web traffic is only half the equation. You need to get them to convert into leads (i.e., phone calls or Web form submits).

This is where most folks skip a step and run headfirst into optimizing landing pages. While important, there is a critical step that precedes the landing page.

When I get that click from the Web visitor…

• What are they expecting?
• What will they want from me?
• What will convince them they are in the right place?

Carefully review the sources of your Web clicks, the text in your referring links or ads, and build out a few personas reflecting the type of people that will be clicking. Then look at your current landing page(s) or begin designing them fresh with these people in mind. Make sure that the majority of clicks you get can find “themselves” on the landing pages you present.

Meeting your Web visitors expectations is a critical first step in converting Web traffic into sales leads.

How To Turn Web Visits into Sales Leads

You’ve driven their clicks. You’ve met their expectations. Don’t forget to ask and capture.

Turning more visitors into captured leads is one of the most complex parts of the lead generation equation. The challenge is designing influence and for this we turn to the six pillars Cialdini taught about in his seminal book Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion.

• Reciprocation – Hooking the visitor into some sense of obligation for the value you have given thus far.
• Commitment and Consistency – Hitting expectations and delivering consistently on the little promises you make in your copy
• Social Proof – Giving the visitor a sense that they are one of many making a good decision to engage with you
• Liking - Showing some personality that will draw that visitor into the most powerful conversion factor–they like you!
• Authority - Designing a professional and validated impression that points to you as the authority in solving their problem
• Scarcity – Probably the most important–convincing them that they must do this deal today or it’s gone.

Obviously, this doesn’t always fit into a single landing page package. However, this is the framework we are consistently processing through to yield results–sales leads.

You’ve seen some of the basic elements of our Internet Marketing process. Contact us to talk specifically about increasing your sales lead flow?

Here are my 5 secrets to increase back links from your next article marketing campaign:

1. Keyword Rich Headlines: Back links to your website, blog, micro-sites, or landing pages are entirely contingent on the effective distribution and syndication of your article. That means your article has to attract attention and communicate value.

Publishers must believe in a fraction of a second, while scanning an article directory or article search, that your article will deliver value to their readers, traffic to their site, and revenue through their advertisers. This belief has to be communicated in your article’s headline.

Write your headline with a specific keyword in mind, a call to action, and long tail value. Every article headline should not only be emotionally compelling, but engineered for search optimization.

2. Keyword Rich Copy: Now that you have made it past the initial cut and a publisher is reading your article you need to pop with inherent value.

To a serious publisher that means high-value, high-returning keywords. Most publishers are syndicating your articles for search engine optimization, text link revenue, or affiliate ad revenue. That means your article need to be packed with keywords that sell.

The easiest way to fill your head and writing with valuable keywords is to spend a little time in a keyword analysis tool like WordTracker or Google’s Keyword Analysis Tool. Search your niche and find suggested terms that are paying the highest eCPM. These are the glasses that your publisher (article client) is looking through when reviewing your articles.

3. Call to Action Resource Box: Most resource boxes look like journalistic bylines. These “golden” little boxes are not designed to when you Pulitzer Prizes or even attribution. They are to pitch and sell your product or service.

No publisher or even reader cares who wrote the article. They want to know where to get more advice or (hopefully) buy the secret potion.

4. High Quality Anchor Text: Getting the most out of your anchor text is your prime objective in article marketing. Think about what you are trying to achieve, your perfect customer, and what they are looking for–then capture it.

Your anchor text is like a flashing, neon arrow pointing you site. Make it compelling and accurate.

Do not squander your precious link text on: your name, your website URL, company name or other non-descriptive text. Every anchor text should be a keyword or action you are going to deliver with every customer’s click. This approach will guide search results and consumers into your product or service for the buy.

5. Deep Links Too: Neglecting the development of deep link backs is the number one mistake I see in site development and article marketing. Don’t forget to develop the whole site–not just the home page.

In your resource box, on every article be sure to include not only the home URL, but also a relevant deep link to your site. This can be a landing page, resources page, or the original article.

Most article directories have a quality reputation and credibility with Google, Yahoo!, and MSN leverage this to expand the indexing of your entire site. The more you index the more likely you are to return in organic search and the more credible your site becomes.

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Bill Rice is an expert at Internet marketing and copywriting. His interactive marketing agency, RICEinteractive helps businesses increase their online sales lead generation.