Having that said, I am not going to tell you that traffic is a bad thing. The more traffic we all get to our sites the happier we are, that’s a given. Who doesn’t want extra traffic? But that’s not the point. The problem is that most people think increasing traffic is the solution towards fixing a web site that is failing to earn money. That is far from the truth.

In most cases when I check out the sites of the people that email me asking for tips on increasing traffic, what I find is that their site has conversion cancer. Simply put, their websites or blogs are failing to convert for them. It doesn’t matter what it is, some people want to get more Google AdSense clicks, others simply want their visitors to purchase their eBooks. Whatever the call to action may be, It all boils down to the same thing; conversion, and the lack there of.

What good is increasing traffic if the current traffic you already receive doesn’t convert? If the existing traffic you receive doesn’t convert, do you really think that adding more traffic will help conversions? It won’t!

Something is wrong. You have to change something. If your blog or web site doesn’t have a lot of traffic, that is fine! Use that to your advantage. In my business, I based things off percentages rather than by units. In my fleet of a few hundred various sites I own, most are very low volume. Meaning each site I own typically gets around 100 visits per day. Most of my sites are monetized with Google AdSense. My aim is to score 10 clicks per site per day off 100 visits, which equates to 10% conversion.

On occasion, quite a few of my sites get bursts of traffic. When that happens, they still convert at 10%. When more traffic is added, say 1000 visits per day, I make more money off the added traffic because I still convert at 10%. The reason why is because I always focus on conversions based off low volume. Gaining massive amounts of traffic to a blog or web site is the single most difficult thing to achieve. My focus is in taking full advantage of the traffic that I do get.

Consider this and re-visit your blog or web site and ask yourself what you can do to capitalize on the current traffic you get. If making money using Google AdSense is your goal, then consider changing the position of your ads. Maybe change the size of your ad or even the colors. After you make changes, take note of the effects the changes have. If performance increases, try to tweak things even more. If after you tweak things further and find that the results depreciated your earnings, reset things back to how you had them previously, or try something different again.

You’d be amazed when you discover how simple it is to run tests on your site. The beauty of discovering how to score high conversions is the fact that once you discover what works, you can do what I do and duplicate your system over a few hundred times. My Google AdSense earnings for the month of December 2008 exceeded $10,000 USD. This was all generated on a few hundred low volume sites that achieve high conversion rates of 10% or higher.

Before you ask for advice on how to increase traffic, the better question to ask is how can I increase conversion off the current traffic I already receive.

So, you’ve spent the time and money to get your site top rankings in the major search engines, and you’re experiencing a major increase in traffic. Now what?

If that spike in traffic isn’t leading to a considerable increase in sales, it’s time to take a look at some tips for improving your website’s conversion rate. The truth is good rankings just aren’t enough. It’s how you capitalize on your search engine rankings that really matters.

Here are a few easy tips for improving your website conversion rate.

• Have Clear, Concise Copywriting- As soon as someone lands on your website, they need to have a clear understanding of who you are and what you do. More importantly, the need to know how your company will benefit them. Keep in mind that online readers tend to scan text rather than reading it. Accommodate them by using short paragraphs with bolded headings.

• Use Easy to Understand Navigation- Don’t try to get cute with your website navigation. I can’t begin to tell you how many times I’ve left a website in frustration because their navigation was far too confusing. Make it easy on your website visitors to find the information that they desire. If you don’t, they’ll leave your website until they find someone better to help them.

• Direct Attention toward Call to Action- Your call to action should stand out on your website. You want the visitor to take action, right? Have a clear, easy to understand call to action that tells the reader exactly what you want them to do. Give them incentives for taking this action such as a limited time offer or a free item if they act now.

• Reduce Customer Risk- Despite the increasing popularity of online shopping, customers are still more cautious online than in other situations. For this reason, it’s your job to reduce the risk they take when dealing with your company. How can you do this? Offer guarantees and no strings attached refunds. If the customer feels he has nothing to lose, he’ll be likelier to take action.

• Use Testimonials to Build Trust- Testimonials are really great tools for building trust with your company. Use real life testimonials with the customer’s real name, and people will start to trust your company. Also, I recommend not hiding the testimonials on their own page. I think it’s best to include them in a sidebar on your main landing pages. That way, while the visitor is thinking about the benefits of dealing with your company, the testimonials are right there encouraging him to do business with you.

• Be Easy to Contact- This is one of the most important tips for improving your conversion rate. Have your contact information readily accessible for website visitors to see. I recommend using more than the simple contact form that the customer has to fill out. Those are fine, but you should also include your company’s phone number and physical address so that the customer knows you’re a legitimate operation. The more information you give them, the more trust you earn.