You spent the time to plan and design your website. You monitor interactions, pay for ads, prioritize customer experience, but your website traffic is still down. Nothing is more frustrating! You may think the odds just aren’t in your favor, but perhaps there is something that slipped through the cracks.
Here are some potential reasons why your traffic is down:
Algorithm Changes
You may be playing the right game but following old rules. Google’s algorithm is constantly changing, and you need to For example, the upcoming update is going to prioritize page experience. If your site does not meet Google’s new criteria, your ranking may drop, and your website traffic will take a hit. Our marketing team can work with you to ensure that your site meets the appropriate SEO requirements.
Technical Issues
Technical issues can play an important role in your website traffic. If your site has broken links or directs to pages with error messages, your users will not be willing to stick around. Google views that as a negative user experience, which can negatively affect your website traffic. Do you complete the necessary maintenance for your site? Does your site have trouble loading or produce a server error? We can work on your site to ensure it is always running smoothly and providing your users with a flawless experience.
Decreased Sharing
Social media, email marketing, PPC advertising— all of these are vital to directing traffic to your site. Are you using these appropriately and consistently as needed? Are you being strategic with your ads? Maybe you recently have been uninspired and not posting on social media as much. Your website traffic may be paying the price. PPC is a great way to drive traffic to your site, and at CommonPlaces, we build a strategy around your KPIs to get you the most for your money.
Lack of New Content
When was the last time you posted a new white paper to your site? Do you consistently post to your blog? Users don’t visit your site just for fun. They go to gain something. You need to be providing value to your users, or they will stop returning to your site. Content needs to be new, user-targeted, and consistent. Schedule your blog posts on a content calendar to keep your team on track. Monitor trends in your industry to ensure your content stays relevant and exciting.
Loading Speed
Nothing will lose you traffic quicker than long loading times. Your users want pages that load immediately without any issue both on their computers and mobile devices. If you have recently updated your site, this may have negatively impacted your loading time. Be sure to use constant user testing to see what the interaction between your site and customers looks like. You should also make sure that all of your software is updated to avoid any lagging.
Old Keywords
Your users’ needs are going to change. As their needs change, so should your approach to keywords. Are the keywords you currently use still appropriate for your target audience? Have they been updated to match your industry’s changes? Ensure that you are doing the necessary research and updates to keep your keywords relevant to attract the correct audience to your website. Not sure where to start? Here are our five tips to choose the right keywords.
You should be constantly monitoring your website traffic to find patterns, and this list is just the beginning of potential issues. It can be frustrating to feel like you are taking all of the necessary steps, but the numbers don’t reflect your hard work. We encourage you to not be discouraged but continue to put in the necessary love that your website deserves. Your users’ experience will improve, and your website goals will be met!
