Where Your Online Business and Traffic Comes From

Google Analytics recently sent me an email detailing where most people's traffic comes from.

The results were based on performance benchmarks for all their clients who subscribe to their anonymous benchmarking service.

According to Google, search engines and direct traffic (bookmarks or direct typing of a web address) make up the bulk of most businesses' traffic sources, followed by referrals and other sources.

One glaring ommission from this chart is email, which from my own experience over the past 12 years usually makes up between a quarter to a third of my clients' site traffic here in Perth, Western Australia.

Another glaring conlusion from this chart is that at least 90% of traffic is not coming from online advertising.

Make of that what you will.

Content Still King

What this means for you

It's been said many times before, but quality content is what makes or breaks a website. Without it, search engines aren't going to rank you and people are not going to bookmark you or link to you.

Your site must provide valuable and useful information, content or products. It's that simple. All the other forms of online marketing may help, but without good content your site will flounder.

Conversion Rates Still Appalingl Low

The other key and somewhat alarming statistic from Google's benchmarking report is the low conversion rates.

They still remain stubbornly stuck around, and mostly below, 2%. This is despite all the advances in online marketing knowledge and technolpgy over the past decade.

In other words most online marketers have not got any better at this.

I have a whole section on this blog devoted to how to improve conversion rates, so if you want to know more then just go here.

What this means for you

Improving your site's conversion rate is still one of the best online marketing tactics you can employ. If you're not consistently working on improving yoru conversion rates, then you are leaving money and business on the table.