Having a website is crucial nowadays. Whether you’re a blogger, a business owner, or are simply using a website as your personal resume, a well-designed website can make a huge impact on how others see you.
However, a website that doesn’t engage its users and doesn’t provide value is of little use. The most important thing for any website owner is to build a loyal audience and the best way to do so is to add constant value and offer engagement.
In this post, we’ll show you 15 dynamic ways to keep audiences devoted to your website.
Include Video Content
From showcasing various products to educational how to’s, using videos is a wonderful way to create and display your content. It helps captivate your viewers and encourages participation between you and the viewers.
You can embed your own videos to your written posts as well as including videos from other users that would be relevant to your audience’s interest. Be sure to check if the video owner allows embedding their videos and if you’re not sure, ask for permission. Also give credit, where credit is due. Include a call to action in your videos description as well as in the video itself; be it asking users to share the video, subscribe to your channel or join your email list.
Allow people to subscribe to your RSS Feeds
This one helps your viewers read or see your content without having to go directly to your site. It allows your readers to get your wonderful content delivered to their RSS Reader, like Feedly and it’s a great way to stay updated with your favorite websites while you’re on the go.
Widgets
There are plenty of social sharing widgets that will help people get a sense of your presence on the web. By carefully placing them on your website, you can encourage people to follow you on social media networks and start the interaction with them on their preferred social media network. This leads to building genuine relationships and turns your followers into your loyal fans who will share your content across the web. The most common widget feeds include Twitter and Facebook.
Include Images in Your Posts
Images are often the first thing your visitors notice and they can increase the chances of people clicking on the title of your post to read it entirely. What’s more, images increase the number of social shares which helps your content to get seen.
Create Podcasts
Podcasts are great interactivity tools, as it allows people to get a glimpse of the real you. You can do them alone or you can take it a step further and include others by interviewing them on a specific topic. You can also do a podcast where you feature members of your community and having them participate in your podcast is a great way to show you really care about your audience. More importantly, podcasts are an easy way to enjoy your content while they are on the go which is a huge plus in today’s busy world.
Ask for feedback with User Polls
User polls help you create new content and can springboard your ideas as to how better approach your readers. Being able to connect with your readers is one step closer to getting them to subscribe, which is one step closer to converting them into customers. It allows you to tap directly into their mind and create more of the content that is useful and targeted specifically to their needs.
Add a LiveStream
If you own a small business or if you are a freelancer, setting up a livestream of your work process can be an effective way to garner interest. It allows you to show your human side, answer questions about your product or process and can be the final push someone needs to hire you. Often, people need reassurance before working with someone and what better way to show your expertise than to let visitors watch you while you work? There are several different streaming sites with the major players being YouTube and Twitch.
Live Chat
Having a live chat option is invaluable resource. It gives everyone a chance to connect with you for a variety of reasons like alternative payment methods in case they aren’t listed, or if shipping is available where they are. It’s also a great way for readers to feel involved with the site.
Create Slide Shows
Adding a slideshow to your or a website can be a great way to turn a long piece of text into a more digestible format. What’s more, you can use the slideshow as content upgrade and use it in your custom online forms to encourage subscribers.
Integrate Forums
Forums are a great way to extend the conversation and keep the users engaged. While they do look empty when they are fresh out of the box, they tend to grow rapidly when readers know that they can join the discussion or help move things along. Depending on your preferred niche, having a forum is an invaluable tool.
Create Online Communities & Membership Areas
If you have a WordPress website, consider using a plugin such as BuddyPress or S2Member to create an online community or a membership area. BuddyPress allows you to create your very own social network where your readers can engage directly with you on a more personal level. Having an exclusive membership area with content that’s accessible only to those who signed up is an excellent way to provide extra value, especially if you include monthly freebies.
Opt-In Forms
Whether you monetize your website or not, your email list is a powerful asset because it allows you to engage with your audience in the most personal way: right in their inbox. Adding opt-in forms to your website to capture email addresses is rather easy nowadays. Most lead generation software offers email forms which can be embedded into any type of website – either via custom email forms or via one of many WordPress popup forms.
Add a Blog
Google loves websites that are updated regularly so now is the perfect chance to add a blog to your website, if you haven’t already. It also allows you to position yourself as an authority in your niche when you publish engaging and relevant content which leads to more exposure. It’s worth mentioning that by integrating your blog, you can take advantage of many WordPress popup forms easily to help you grow your email list.
QR Codes
While originally created to help control the moving of autoparts in car manufacturing plants in Japan, it has found its way to the masses. Used by many mobile devices it makes getting to websites, advertisements, special offers, and even places where a login is needed so much easier.
Strategic use of this nifty barcode can enhance your viewership and your membership because people don’t have to remember direct URLs or login information. It can be used in conjunction with your sales funnel in many ways.
Landing Page
A well-placed landing page can do wonders for you. There are several types of landing pages that are aimed at doing a specific function; like a click through landing page that aids the visitor to another aspect of the site, or a lead generation landing page that is aimed at capturing data like your visitor’s name and email address. You will have to consider what you specifically want when using landing pages because they are simple pages designed to do one thing and do them well.
It is also worth noting that you can run several different landing pages simultaneously, to include running several different versions of the same landing page. It is possible to track the conversions of each so that you can always have the best landing pages for your specific needs.
Growing a loyal audience is not an easy task and requires time and effort. Now that you have a list of 15 dynamic ways to keep your audience devoted to your website, you’ll be well on your way to creating a website that people love to come back to.
