We hear a lot about the amount of traffic a given item might be receiving online as if that should tell us anything about the value of that level of attention. But how does a “like” on Facebook or numerous clicks on a website translate into dollars? How much profit can an upvote bring? What's the value of a click?
Immediately once we started digging into this topic, one thing became apparent. There are a plethora of outlets online that do a great job of attempting to seduce companies into believing their websites and blog posts are hidden goldmines awaiting discovery. There are some grains of truth to it, sure. High-traffic websites and viral posts receive revenue from their advertisers based on the volume of interaction the advertisements on their pages receive. But for the average company whose goods and services may not be “sexy” enough to become a trending item, or serves too niche a market, this prospect is rather unlikely. But there are still other ways to gain.
Before we go into detail about how your online presence can make you money, let’s clear up some of the confusion about how revenue across major social media platforms works and why it’s less likely to be the best fit for most companies.
What are “Likes” on Social Media Platforms Worth? Not Much Unless Posts are Sponsored.
Traffic-to-Lead Conversion, What Your Company Really Needs
Setting aside the notion of trying to profit by gaining your content a million hits, there are still several realistic ways in which your online presence can make you money.
Social media is a valuable supplemental marketing tool to help build brand awareness and audience engagement in your community, but it is by no means your best online asset. Yes, it can help you increase profits in indirect ways by boosting your visibility, but it’s typically not going to be the source by which you’ll convert leads into sales unless you’re the entity running an advertising campaign across these mediums.
Your best asset is your company’s website, which is often the first impression many prospective clients will have of your services. It’s vitally important for your website to look sharp, be completely functional, and be set up in such a way that allows you to intake visitor data. This is the core of what’s called traffic-to-lead conversion – when a visitor provides your company their contact information.
In order for this to work, your content has to facilitate the visitor’s willingness to share their contact details. Most sites do this using quid pro quo methods by offering something in exchange for visitor information, such as a report that your experts have drafted, survey data, a webinar, free trials, consultations, informative videos, or others – whatever your visitors may want. Anything that is applicable to your business model and showcases your expertise should be a good fit for your offering.
Keep the contact information you collect to the essentials – whatever you need to begin your sales cycle. For many, this wouldn’t be more than a name, company name, email, and phone number. Asking for too much information is going to turn people off, and you’re likely to get far fewer new prospects.
From there, it’s just a matter of your sales team using the visitor’s existing interest in your company’s topics to break the ice and get the conversation started. Fortunately, you’ll know the client has prior knowledge that your services can help them reach their goals. So, at the very least, it’s several rungs higher than a cold sales initiation would be.
Keeping your website fed with the type of content visitors may be seeking is important, and these items can also be shared across your social media platforms. It’s an active, consistent marketing strategy. The key takeaway here is that social media should only be used to convey your image and help drive visitors to your main site where you can convert them into leads, not as your main online presence. Shoot for leads over “likes.”
Which Industries Earn the Most Revenue Per Click?
Source: Forbes, Viglink, Oliver Roup
