Module 2 of Dean Holland’s Quick Start Challenge is about how to get traffic to your blog. You can read about Module 1 here: I’ve Just Discovered The Quick Start Challenge!
In the first video Dean starts off by talking about getting people to know, like and trust you. He says to do that you have to establish a working relationship with them by getting them to your blog to read your posts.
Well, that is one way I guess, but not the only way. I know marketers who don’t blog or at least don’t blog regularly and still manage to get people to like know and trust them. I think a lot of people have turned to social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest to do that now. ( more on this later)
But, this challenge promises that if you follow the step-by-step blueprint “in just 28 days you’ll be established online, armed with everything you need to build your own email list and driving floods of traffic. Turning on the tap to your very own income machine starting right now!”
Dean says “This is showing you the exact steps I took to build a solid REAL online business. Not some get rich quick BS, but real tangible steps that create LONG TERM success”.
Take action
So, it’s a case of taking action. As Dean so rightly says people who dismiss it as not possible and do nothing don’t get results.
He starts off talking about 2 main simple free methods to get blog traffic but actually includes 3. I’m not sure if I want to do either of the first two again or if I have the time. I am still blogging regularly on my detox blog, sending out my newsletter and trying to get my traffic back. You know how it is!
Free Traffic Method #1
The first one is setting up a link to your blog in your signature file on forums and spending time posting valuable information. When people see your name cropping up regularly they are more likely to click on your link and visit your blog.
He recommends the Warrior forum as the best place to do this as this is where most internet marketers hang out. I have done that before and it did get me some traffic but it can take a lot of time. One coach I had said he did not recommend it.
Free Traffic Method #2
The second method is blog hopping. Once you set up your blog in Module 1 you are asked to submit it to to be included in the blogroll inside the members area. The idea is that you visit other members blogs and leave a comment. It helps to make the blogs look busy so other readers are more likely to leave a comment.
When you blog hop as a way of getting traffic to your blog one of the things you look for before leaving a comment is whether the blog is getting traffic or not. If readers are leaving comments then that’s a good sign that it gets traffic. There is no point in leaving a comment if no one is going to read it and possibly visit your blog from your link.
I started visiting the blogs in the blog roll and sadly quite a few I have visited seem to be abandoned but I guess that is par for the course. It really takes a lot of commitment to keep up posting regularly as I have found. There are just so many hours in the day.
One of the best ways I have found for increasing blog traffic is by leaving comments on blogs that use the Comment Luv plugin.
Free Traffic Method #3
Social Media
One of the videos in this module touches on getting some traffic by sharing your posts on Facebook & Twitter. Of course you have to do more than that. Facebook is all about making friends, engaging them, commenting as well as posting.
Measuring your traffic
You have to have some way of measuring your traffic to see if all your efforts have been worth while and you can do this through Google Analytics. An easy way to do this is with the free Google Analytics for WordPress Plugin.
It does a lot more besides just analysing traffic and there is a short video on Worpress plugin site that describes it all.
Week 2 Challenge
The challenge for this week is to install the Google Analytics plugin and to start to drive traffic using the methods listed above.
My blog is already hooked up to Google Analytics but I have not used this or any other plugin to do it. I have taken a look at the one Dean suggests and it seems to have added benefits so I am going to install it.
So far this is all very basic stuff and others have said that these free traffic methods take a lot of time and once you stop your traffic dries up. Dean, on the other hand, says that he continues to get traffic from the Warrior Forum from his signature file in posts he made a long time ago.
Once you know how to get traffic to your blog you can start email list building. This is what Module 3 is about. Stay tuned!
This is what we called the complete guide to online marketing. Wow, their is so much to learn and read. It will take me months to digest all this things. Thanks Sandy for sharing this wonderful articles to us.
Hi Sandy,I think one long term benefit of these \’free\’ traffic methods is to build your brand and name recognition.That\’s something that\’s often not mentioned, but as peope see your content over and over, your name sticks in their mind.Cheers,Gordon
Hi Gordon. I guess you’re right. Every little helps. I try to go to the Warrior Forum and often post comments in the WSO threads ( as I have bought a few!) but they don’t show the sig files in that section. Nevertheless you get your name out there and others can look your details up from your username provided of course you have supplied them. So many don’t and miss out on a trick I feel.
Happy & prosperous New Year.
Sandy
I was in the first batch of Dean’s Quick Start Challenge and I should say that for a newbie at that time, I had so much to learn from him. Dean Holland has a way of firing you up so that you are motivated to take action. I guess it’s because of his beginnings that blessed him with a passion for success.
However, Dean isn’t always there to hold our hands. A course is just a course is just a course. It has to end and when that happens, you are on your own. That’s the greater challenge: to carry on BUT as long as you do it, no matter how little but consistently you’ll be good.
Good luck!
Yes, it always helps to have someone cracking the whip driving you on. I like the way he rewards you for taking action although I have to say I am still waiting for my gift for doing the 1st challenge!
Sandy
I have taken bits and pieces from different internet marketers, to augment what I have learned and not replace, I feel there is not a complete course out there. Therefore, you will always find some golden nuggets hidden in other peoples blogs, it maybe the blindly obvious that you haven’t thought of, or some thing that is completely new, or a new slant on an old idea.
I agree Panicos. It’s a bit like cookery books. If you only get one or two good recipes or recipe ideas than you can adapt from each cookery book you buy the money was not wasted on them.
Sandy
Hi Sandy,
I too was in Dean Holland’s Quick Start Challenge. What I liked about it is that it really is a no BS course. The traffic module is a prime example.
What is interesting, however, is that most people are aware of these free technique but they dismiss them because they sound so easy. That is a great mistake.
Applying these techniques on regular basis does wonders for the traffic to one’s site.
I wish you best of luck and I am looking forward to your next article.
Dita
Hi Dita,
It’s true what you say but they do take up a lot of time. I think they are a good starting point for new marketers.
I wish you success in your business.
Sandy
Best of luck with the challenge, Sandy. I enjoyed being part of it myself, and, although what Dean teaches in it is really the basics, it’s very useful and helps build a solid foundation, particularly if you’re just starting out.
All the best for 2013,
Ray
Thanks Ray. I agree it is very basic but very doable for beginners. It’s given me the impetus to get my IM squeeze funnel up and running again.
Sandy
Hi Sandy
I think Blog Hopping is my #1 method of gaining more traffic to my blog, I have built up some great relationships since I started with this as well. If you try visiting 5 blogs every day and leave comments you will see an increase of traffic, once you get into a daily routine you can spend maybe 1 hour doing this.
I do like Forums but like you say they can be time consuming so now I limit myself to 30 minutes when I visit them, I mainly use the Warrior Forum too.
Good luck with the challenge, I will be following your progress 🙂
Have a great day
Pauline
Hi Pauline and thanks for visiting my blog. Time can get away from you very easily once you start visiting blogs and forums. Some blogs are so interesting that you want to spend a lot of time on them which of course is the name of the game. I find I can often get good tips and ideas from other blogs simply by taking notice of what I find interesting on them and the way they have been written.
Sandy
hi Sandy
This is a very helpful and informative post for budding bloggers like me. I’ve always had a knack for writing pertaining to everything and that’s why that passion turned into blogging but always struggled to attract traffic.
By reading your post, I’ve understood some of the initial basics ..
Have to go for Blog Hopping at first since it may help a lot and then for Warrior Forum
Thanks
Hi Mohit,
Glad you found it useful. Good luck with getting your traffic. You will find no end of posts in the Warrior forum with information about both free and paid methods for generating traffic.
Sandy
thanks for the link to this article. I think this is something which I would have to read several times to pick up all the hints
Hi Sandy,
I definitely agree with Pauline, in that Blog Hopping works.
I started out the new year with a commitment to visit and comment on at least two blogs each evening.
I have to admit that it’s becoming quite addicting, I’ve even started reading blogs on my iPad at lunch on my day job.
I’m glad to say it’s really sending a sizable amount of traffic to my blog. I do look for blogs with decent traffic and you can see a bump in my traffic the next day.
It helps if you’re one of the first commentors on the post, I think you get more visibiity that way.
Hi Steven,
I was on a Webinar with Dean Holland recently and he said that he found forum commenting brought him more traffic than blog commenting. I find that commenting on blogs that use the CommentLuv plugin as opposed to other blogs brings in the best amount of traffic as far as blog commenting is concerned. It definitely pays to be one of the first if not the first to comment.
Sandy