When it comes to site traffic, some people might tell you that you don’t need to worry about the numbers.

That’s a lie.

If you’re running a business, you can’t disregard the numbers. Especially when it comes to your site traffic.

I’m tackling that lie (and a few other lies that come along with it) by telling you the truth about site traffic and why it has a large impact on the success of your business.

Why Site Traffic Matters | Elle & Company

Lie: Your website is just a business tool

Truth: Your website is your business’s home base

Before you can dive into the importance of site traffic, you have to gain a better perspective on the role your website plays in your business. You have to change how you view your website in the first place.

Too many business owners see their websites merely as a necessary business tool. But they need to be viewing it as their business’s home base.

Because your website is where all of the important action happens.

It’s where sales are made, portfolios are browsed, information is consumed, products are purchased, social media accounts are linked to, and contact forms are submitted. It’s the livelihood of your online business.

Sure, social media sites are helpful for increasing exposure and promoting your offerings, but they’re merely funnels pointing back to your website.

People can’t buy your product on Twitter; they have to follow a link back to your website to purchase. People can see bits and pieces of your portfolio on Instagram, but they have to return to your site to view your complete portfolio and learn more about your services.

Increasing your number of social media followers and email subscribers is a worthy venture, but those numbers aren’t worth much if you aren’t funneling people back to the place where they can buy and book: your website.

Not only that, but your website is the most effective place for generating conversions and encouraging people to buy.

The goal is to make a purchase easy on a prospective customer, and the less links and pages they have to click through to get to the main goal, the better.

So by sending traffic straight to your website, you’re putting people in a prime position to work with you or buy your products.

Instead of writing your website off as one more necessary feature of your business, view it as the center of your online presence.

Because your website isn’t just a simple tool or facet of your business; your website is your business’s home base. And when you begin to see it as such, your perspective on site traffic will begin to shift.

If your website is where all of the magic happens and where all of the conversions take place, wouldn’t you try to increase the amount of traffic you’re sending to it?

The greater your site traffic, the greater your business’s exposure and the greater opportunity you have to make a sale and reach a prospective client.

Not only that, but if you have a consistently large number of people visiting your site on a regular basis, you have a captive audience to sell to.

One of the biggest struggles for creative entrepreneurs is to to find an audience that would be interested in booking their service or buying their offering. But if you’ve already worked on building your site traffic, you’ve already gotten the hard part out of the way.

Not to mention that you’ll gain a better understanding of the wants and needs of your audience and be able to come up with a product that’s better suited and more appealing to them.

There’s no denying that site traffic opens up more doors and provides more opportunities for your business.

The more people who visit, the greater opportunity you have to make a sale.

Lie: The size of your mailing list is more important than your site traffic

Truth: The higher your website traffic, the higher your number of subscribers

It seems that more and more business owners are understanding the importance of growing their mailing list, but they’re quick to downplay site traffic.

Here’s the thing: If people aren’t landing on your website, you’ll have a hard time getting people to sign up for your mailing list.

Your website is where the opting-in takes place. The more people who see your opt-in, the greater chance you have of getting their email and growing your list.

It’s a numbers game: The more people who land on your website, the more people who sign up for your mailing list.

Here’s another thing: Your mailing list is another funnel for driving traffic to your website.

Mailing lists are great for promoting your products and services and getting them in front of your audience, but where are you always pointing them? Your website.

Your audience can’t purchase directly from an email; they have to click a link that takes them back to your shop or another page of your website.

You want people to subscribe when they land on your website so you can eventually point them back to your website.

So again, it all comes down to site traffic.

Lie: Loyalty is more important than size

Truth: Audience loyalty and audience size aren’t mutually exclusive

Those who downplay site traffic like to tell you that the loyalty of your audience is more important than the size of your audience.

But who ever said you could only have one or the other?

Loyalty and size aren’t mutually exclusive and the goal for every online business owner should be to acquire both.

It isn’t an “either/or;” it’s a “both/and.”

Yes, a small loyal audience will generate more sales than a large, unengaged audience, but you don’t have to sacrifice one for the other.

If you’re wise and seek to set yourself up for success, you’ll aim for both.

The most effective way to increase your site traffic

Understanding your need for more site traffic is only half the battle. The greater question is, how do you increase it?

Blogging consistently gives visitors a reason to return to your home base regularly.

If you had a storefront, people probably wouldn’t return to your shop on a regular basis. But by utilizing a blog on your website, you’re giving people a reason to return to your online storefront on daily/weekly/monthly basis.

And the more people return, the more familiar they’ll become with your business and the more likely they’ll be to purchase from you down the road.

Blogging also gives your audience content to share, link to, and reference, which drives even more traffic. By sharing your posts with their audience, you have the potential to grow your audience exponentially.