Traffic distribution by channel refers to the different ways in which visitors arrive at a website. The channels through which website visitors come can be divided into several categories:
- Organic search
- Paid search
- Social media
- Direct traffic
- Referral traffic
This article will provide insights into the nature of traffic for each channel and its significance for our business.
Organic search
Organic search refers to visitors who arrive at a website by using a search engine like Google or Bing. These visitors are looking for information or products that the website offers and come across the website’s search engine listing.
We can track our organic search traffic through Google Analytics and Search Console (made by Google). The second tool gives us more detailed information about the keywords that attracted traffic to our website.
None of these tools can tell us how much traffic our competitors get compared to us and which keywords are delivering results for them. Luckily, competitor intelligence platforms such as Spycrow can provide the data we need to improve our performance. You can create a free account in Spycrow and start monitoring your competition in less than 5 minutes.
Paid search
Paid search refers to visitors arriving at a website by clicking on an ad that appears in search engine results or other websites. These ads are typically created using pay-per-click (PPC) advertising platforms like Google Ads or Microsoft Ads, which allow advertisers to bid on specific keywords related to their products or services.
Like organic search, we can (and should) track our competition to achieve optimal results and maximize our return on investment.
Social media traffic
Social media traffic denotes visitors who access a website via links shared on social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, or LinkedIn. Google Analytics can supply a breakdown of traffic by social network, making it a valuable tool for assessing where to focus one’s efforts.
Direct traffic
Direct traffic refers to visitors who arrive at a website by typing the website’s URL directly into their web browser or by clicking on a bookmark. Direct traffic can be improved by building a strong brand presence across multiple channels and a high % of user retention.
Referral traffic
Referral traffic refers to visitors who arrive at a website by clicking on a link from another website. There might be multiple reasons why a website would be linking to ours – from partnerships to news and product comparisons. We can find out which websites drive traffic to us by looking at the source report under referral traffic in Google Analytics.
Referral traffic can be improved by building relationships with other websites in the same industry or niche and by creating valuable content for both the website’s target audience and the target audience of other websites.
To find out what websites drive referral traffic to our competitors, we should conduct a backlink analysis.
Conclusion
Knowing where our website traffic comes from is crucial in developing effective digital marketing strategies. By analyzing traffic sources, we can identify which channels are bringing in the most traffic and which ones aren’t performing as well. This info can help you optimize your marketing efforts and improve your website’s overall performance.