A comm0n response to an advertising inquiry I’ve made numerous times for my websites is, “we already do our Internet advertising on Google.” Sure, Google can be a very effective source of leads, but it can also be expensive and might not send the most targeted traffic, depending on the Adwords campaign.
One of the best ways to close an advertising deal on a website or blog is to discuss the direct navigation traffic. It’s important to point out to a potential advertiser that direct navigation traffic can’t be purchased like traditional media buys. Visitors to a particular website that directly navigate, generally do so because they know what they want, and they either know they can get it at a particular website or they assume this. Companies who want to reach out to these visitors need to advertise directly on that website. In my brief experience, I have found this to be a compelling argument, and the same can be made by any domain owner whose domain name receives type-in traffic.
I was thrilled when traffic to TropicalBirds.com grew to over 90% search engine-based. It meant that I was doing something right in terms of SEO, and I was happy that people were visiting because of it. However, an advertiser could easily buy some of  this traffic simply by advertising on Google. However, direct navigation can’t be bought because it completely bypasses Google and Yahoo. IMO, this is a great deal closer.
Totally agree Elliot.
One additional point is that even when using a search engine, a searcher is more likely to click on Burbank.com other than clicking on visit-burbank-california-today.com simply because it is the perceived leader. It’s kind of an automatic brand leader on the SERP pages.
Another sales point for prospective advertisers.
Cheers,
Mark
Great point….Our direct navigation is running 15-20%…I never thought it would be that high.
Elliott,
web site development is a continual process that never ends.
As your site reaches the 400 thru 600 page range… The developer at that point can have a stronger though clear selling proposition.
You can sell just by providing them a breakout of the number of pageviews their respective category gets on a monthly basis.
Say City.com gets 2,500 daily pageviews… you can easily close the sell by informing that 250 of thise page views relate to their business.. whether its real estate or golf course info.
@ Patrick – Once you spend a little time optimizing your website you definitely won’t see 15-20% (and if you do, you aren’t doing a good job of optimization…)