Don’t Overthink Web Traffic

RYAN F. LAURIN, ryan.laurin@photonics.com

This was a complicated newsletter. We’ve taken our 20+ years of experience in producing a top-tier website, along with some knowledge from experts in the field, to offer a crash course in web traffic and what it means for your company.

So much information on this subject can be daunting, so I’m going to tell you to take a deep breath, take a step back, find your inner Zen, and escape the complexity.

You should be monitoring your traffic and your campaigns but this shouldn’t be your endgame. There is so much more to your business than a website visit, and if you are making decisions based solely on that metric, you’re missing the bigger picture. If the boss is telling you that this is the only metric he cares about, you’re going to have a tough job when he questions why sales are falling and you have to explain that it was his fault.

Think — but don’t overthink — your web traffic. You need traffic, but you shouldn’t buy a banner ad that only appears on a certain page, with a certain keyword, when a certain user at a specific timeframe and from a certain place visits.

So remember: the overall metric for your business should be your bottom line. Keep this in mind when monitoring your marketing budget and performance.