Shopify in 21 Days - Lesson 13: Free Traffic Methods

Shopify Free Traffic - Social Media

• Facebook Groups. While you can't advertise directly in most facebook groups by posting regularly you can draw traffic to your own facebook fan page or store. The idea here is to be seen as an expert in your niche.
• Pinterest Boards. Unlike other communities Pinterest does allow you to link directly to your store. Another great thing about Pinterest is your post will be indexed and can be found in Google search. Like other communities you'll get better results if follow other boards and interact with the community. Photos are also very important on Pinterest, make sure you have an eye catching photo to go with each pin. 
• Instagram Accounts. Instagram is a great traffic source but it must be built up over time by creating content and reaching out to similar accounts. The best way to do this is create a schedule of posting that you can stick to for the long term. At the same time make sure you are following other post in your same niche using hashtags and interacting with them.
• Reddit Subreddits. While Reddit doesn't allow for free advertisements they do allow you to mention products you like or products that solve a problem. It probably helps to participate in the subreddit and earn some trust before you start dropping links. You can also search for questions you can answer with a link to your product. Just don't resurrect a three year old post to add your link.

Shopify Free Traffic - Google Ranking Factors

• Domain Authority. To increase your domain authority you need quality backlinks coming into your domain. The unfortunate truth is that people will rarely link to sales page, that means you need original content pages. Fortunately, Shopify offers a blog option where you can create related content. Links to your blog will boost the overall authority of your site.
• Product Page Optimization. The product pages are where all of your sales will come from so it's important that they be optimized for conversion and click through rates. To do this follow the following steps:
• Add Modifiers to Product Page Titles.  Modifiers will help your title stand out from all the generic titles and will help you in the long tail searches. Common modifiers are words like: best, cheapest, discount, review, top, etc. You can also add promotional words like: free shipping, 25% off, daily deals, etc. The idea is to increase the click through rate which helps you gain new customers and can help you boost your organic ranking.
• Long Product Descriptions. Studies show that long descriptions rank better in Google than short or so call thin pages. It is recommended that product pages have 1,000 words to rank better in Google. Of course, if you have hundreds of products it may not be realistic to have 1,000 words for each. Instead you can apply this strategy to your flagship products.
• URL Structure. Shorter URLs tend to rank better in Google than long ones, unfortunately there doesn't seem to be an easy way to change URL structure in Shopify. 

Actionable Steps

1. Create a free traffic plan. Ask yourself, which free traffic strategies will I use in my business? Which social media platforms align with my product and business model? What type of content can I can create? How much do I want rely on free traffic versus other types of advertising?

Tomorrow's Lesson

Search Engine Marketing and Facebook Ads (Paid Traffic)