Ok, so you've got a killer web site, but until you're getting web site traffic , you're still at Square One. So how do you gain increased web site traffic? You don't just want clicks, but quality site visitors. After all, steadily gaining more web site traffic is the lifeblood of your business. Without it, you go nowhere. In a very real sense, all site operators are also a web site traffic seeker.

Attracting traffic, especially targeted traffic (i.e., people who are actually looking for what it is you have to say or sell) revolves around a few basic principles. Here are some simple ways you can get more web site traffic.

First of all, you need to keep in mind that Search Engine traffic is free. Opinions differ hotly about how important such traffic is, and estimates for how much traffic it accounts for at a given site range from about 10% or so on the low side to as much as 80% on the high side. Undoubtedly, the figure varies in part depending upon the kind of site in question, and how well its pages rank within the search results.

The secret to getting increased web site traffic lies in optimizing your pages and your site as a whole to be attractive to the search engines, so you'll get a high listing for your primary key words and phrases. The principle factors involved are your use of keywords on your pages and in your page titles and descriptions, the use of a "theme" for your site, with all of your pages relevant to that theme, and your use of key words in your incoming and outgoing link text, enhancing both your "link popularity" (the number of incoming links to your site) and also your "link reputation" (whether the links to you come from relevant, high quality, high traffic sites).

Optimizing your site isn't as difficult as you might think, but it does take time and effort. Picking the correct key words and phrases for your site is critically important, and is well worth your time, effort, and the expense necessary to do it right. So is learning where on your page those key words should appear, and learning how to get high quality, relevant links that utilize several variations on your key words and key phrases in the text they use to link to your site.

You'll need to read an ebook or two to learn what is involved in optimizing a site to gain increased web site traffic. These are my favorite basic Search Engine Optimization e-books .

Many people advocate the use of Search Engine Optimization Software . Such programs certainly make your life a lot easier. Personally, I find them invaluable. I use both Internet Business Promoter and WebPositionGold.

Of course, once you have your web site up and running, you need to let the major directories and indexes know where it is. The major SEO packages will automate your submission to some directories and indexes, but here's a handy link where you can self-promote your web site and can learn some cool tips, tricks, and secrets, in the process.

Finding quality incoming links for your web site will take some time and effort on your part, but is well worth the effort, as it contributes greatly to your ratings in most of the major search engines. Many webmasters maintain, also, that they get more targeted traffic from their incoming links than they do from the search engines. It is well worth the expense to purchase the tools you'll need to be able to get more web site traffic with link exchange software.

Among other things, you'll need to learn about link popularity, and about link reputation, and learn how both the text used by other sites linking to you, and the "page rank" of those sites can drastically affect your search engine results position and web site traffic. You really should educate yourself on the subject of gaining increased web site traffic using linking strategy.

Don't overlook PayPerClick Search Engines as a source of significant increased web site traffic. In addition to being a sales tool, they are often a great web site traffic generator. There are dozens of PPCs, but the two biggest are the Google Ad Words program, and king-of-the-PPC-hill Overture, which claims to reach 80% of active internet users. I have also had good results with FindWhat, and with Kanoodle.

Most of the Pay Per Click sites have rather good documentation to help you learn how to use them, and you can also learn PPC strategy here.

For the most part, I don't advocate the use of hit exchanges, since they are very time consuming if you use the "surf for hits" method, and the traffic you get is generally not very well targeted. Nearly every member of the exchange is a web site traffic seeker, rather than a potential customer, so they aren't all that interested in your site. However, I have had some good results with two of the better traffic exchange programs, both of which allow you to purchase traffic and/or surf for hit credits.

Check out Traffic Swarm and also 123 Clicks. The latter program has a unique "revenue sharing" plan that allows you to eventually double the money you've spent on traffic. If you're willing to be patient, you not only get free traffic, but make some extra income, too.

Both of these web site traffic seeker programs allow you to build a "downline", and benefit from signing up new members below you, which earns your web site traffic credits. This makes the process "viral", in that eventually you may build up enough traffic credits just from your recruiting that you no longer have to do any surfing for credits yourself. The result is entirely free traffic!

Once you've covered the basics, there are some other things you can do to further attract even more web site traffic.

Writing articles for submission to ezines is a great way to get a lot of exposure, since you get to put a "resource box" at the bottom of your article, advertising your URL. Posting articles to ezine and article announcement sites works very well. Many of these sites give a free link back to your website, in addition to the one that appears in your "resource box". In either case, you slowly but surely build the "link popularity" of your own site when you publish in article directories. "Article Marketing" is the secret behind the success of many an online entrepreneur. Do not overlook it!

Starting your own blog and RSS feed can lead to a significant increase in web site traffic over time. I've done it myself, and I've written an ebook on the subject of increased web site traffic using blogs and RSS. Check it out ... this is simple to do, and is the hot marketing tool for 2005 and beyond!

Posting to forums is a great way to gain some exposure, get your name out there, and meet other people interested in the same things that you are. It also has a hidden benefit. Many forums allow you to include a "signature" with your posts, and that signature can contain your web site URL. Guess what? Popular forums turn up ranking well in the search engine results. If you keep your posts confined to forums and pages relevant to the "theme" of your website, you'll end up with some great incoming links to your site from your own forum posts!

Adding a "signature" to all emails passively advertising your URL is another way to get some free publicity, and get some increased web site traffic.

Submitting your URL to targeted directories relevant to your business theme IS a good way to get listed in the major search engines and also pick up some traffic. I've had good results with Linksnoop, and also with Jayde and with Linkopedia. There are additional suggestions in my Links Directory.

You should also seriously consider using some software to assist you in locating and submitting your links to the directories. "Mass submission to thousands of directories", which you will see advertised widely, is pointless, since most search traffic comes from Google, and to a lesser extent Yahoo and MSN. On the other hand, the spiders from the "big three" do visit quite a few directories, so getting yourself listed in 30 to 100 directories which have decent Page Rank ( PR 4 and above) is a good idea.

Posting to "free for all" (FFA) links pages is NOT a good idea, since the traffic is not targeted, and some search engines are even thought to penalize your site if it has incoming links from FFA pages, which are also known as "link farms".

There is available a comprehensive solution that automates most of the above processes for you. You still have to invest your time, and it still takes some work, but you'll have most of the resources you need at hand in one package, with very detailed step-by-step instructions.

Take a quick tour of this comprehensive site building and publishing tool, which assists you in all aspects of developing your web site and your business, including the process of getting quality traffic to your site.

Don't forget to browse at my online bookstore for ebooks that will help you learn how to increase web site traffic.