When you think about promoting your business online, the first thing that usually comes to mind is the cost. Advertising campaigns, social media marketing, and pay-per-click ad networks can quickly add up. But what if you could get steady traffic without spending a dime? Believe it or not, there are a few free traffic sources.

For any business, website or blog owner, traffic is the key to success. Without it, no one will find your site and you will never reach your potential customers. So today, I’m going to share with you some of my favorite ways to get free traffic.

Keep in mind that being free does not mean you don’t have to put in any work. You’ll still need to invest your time instead of money to get the best results. You can use these free traffic sources for your blogs, websites, courses, affiliate products and more. Let’s dive in.

Related: Best Link Building Tools

How to Choose the Best Free Traffic Source for Your Website?

I’m going to share 17 free traffic sources for your website. But before we get into them, it’s important to understand what traffic source is best for you. You can get free traffic from all the platforms but quality matters, not quantity. Following are a few factors that you need to consider before choosing the best free traffic source.

• Your Niche: The most important factor is choosing the platform relevant to your niche. For example, if you have a blog about health and wellness then Pinterest will be the best free traffic source for you because it is image centric social platform and visual content does really well on this platform.
• Your Goals: Before using any of these platforms for free traffic, you need to decide what results you want. For example, if you want to drive more sales then you should focus on SEO, social media and influencer marketing, and if you just want to grow your email list then focus on content creation.
• Your Time: Every medium requires a different amount of time to master. For example, SEO takes more time than others, but the results are long-lasting. Similarly, Twitter takes less time compared to any other platform. So decide how much time you can spend on each platform and try to optimize it.

Now that you know what factors to consider let’s look at 17 free traffic sources you can use for your website.

Related: What is Search Engine Marketing?

17 Best Free Traffic Sources You Should Use

These free website traffic methods are great for website owners, marketers and bloggers. Each method will require some work upfront to get the best results but they are all free and can provide a steady stream of traffic over time.

Search Engines (SEO)

Search engines are the first and perhaps most obvious source of free traffic. Organic traffic is the best traffic source for your website. It is free and highly targeted. And the best part is that it will continue bringing you traffic for years.

However, ranking at the top with SEO takes time and effort. You need to do keyword research, create content and optimize your website for search engines. But if done right, you can get a steady stream of free traffic from search engines. Search Engine Optimization is my favorite method to get free website traffic.

TikTok

TikTok has over 1 billion monthly active users. And do you know that TikTok got more traffic than Google in 2021? That’s right, it is a great platform to get free traffic. This platform is beating the other social networks and is the go to platform for millennials.

As it is a video-sharing platform, you have to create interesting videos and post them on TikTok. Lists and storytelling are very popular on TikTok and users love watching videos. Use this to your advantage and you will see tons of free traffic in no time.

Make sure the content of your video is useful, engaging and entertaining. You should also use relevant hashtags to reach more audience. You can add a website link in your bio or the video description for more traffic.

Email Marketing

Elon Musk has paid $44 billion to buy Twitter. But according to experts, the value of Twitter is $25 Billion only. Now why he paid extra for it? It’s because he knows the power data. Twitter has 396.5 million users globally.

Data is the new currency and email marketing is one of the most powerful tools to leverage it. It is often neglected by website owners and bloggers but you can use it to reach thousands of targeted users in just a few clicks.

Email marketing is extremely important if you plan to make a WordPress site or Shopify store for your business. You need to build your email list and write engaging emails that will hook your readers and compel them to visit your website. Email marketing is the best way to get free traffic and increase revenue. I suggest that if you don’t have a newsletter, start building it now and use it to promote your website.

Content Marketing

Content marketing involves creating quality content that resonates with readers/audiences and then distributing it widely across different channels including social media platforms, email newsletters etc., as well as through press releases or guest posts on other websites. 

It allows you to generate more leads and build relationships with potential customers by showing them that you are knowledgeable about the topics they are looking for online. You can create brand awareness through educational pieces that focus on topics related to your audience however make sure to measure the progress by measuring brand awareness after campaign.

Related: Copywriting vs Content Writing

Quora (Q&A Forum)

I’m sure you have heard of Quora. It is a Q&A forum where people ask questions and get answers from experts. But do you know that Quora is a great platform for driving free website traffic and building your brand?

It works like this, people post questions and you answer them by providing useful information. Don’t just copy and paste your article as an answer; instead, provide value to the users by giving them quality advice. At the end of each answer, add a link to your website with relevant keywords to appear natural.

Reddit (Awesome Potential)

Reddit is similar to Quora and a great platform for finding free traffic. The website gets organic traffic in millions per month. The best part is that you can find a highly targeted and engaged audience here.

All you have to do is join relevant subreddits, add useful comments, or post your own content. Redditors love detailed answers, so make sure the comment/post is informative and interesting. Also, don’t forget to include a link to your website with relevant keywords for extra traffic.

Facebook (Groups)

Facebook has roughly 2.96 billion monthly active users as of the third quarter of 2022. Let’s say you are a pet lover and want to leverage Facebook for free traffic. There are two-three ways you can do this without spending a dime.

• Join Groups Related To Your Niche: With roughly 2.96 billion monthly active users, you can find and join plenty of groups related to your niche. Once you are in, start engaging with members by commenting and replying to the posts. You can also post your content but ensure it adds value to the group members.
• Create Your Own Group: This method will take time, but it’s best to have your own group because other groups sometimes don’t allow members to promote or advertise. Also in your own group, you have full control of who joins and what kind of content should be posted.
• Your Facebook Page: I cannot say anything about the other social media platforms but you should have a page dedicated to your niche. It’s good because a brand without a social media presence looks unprofessional.

Twitter (Share Everything)

Most people think it is only for politicians or celebs to share their stories. But Twitter is also a great platform for business owners and bloggers to drive free website traffic.

You can use Twitter to share content from your website which will help you reach more people in no time. You can even retweet other people’s posts and join relevant conversations. This will ensure that more people are aware of your website and will visit it.

But the trick is to stay relevant to the audience following you. If you have a pet website, post content related to pets so that people will know what kind of content they can expect from your Twitter handle.

Pinterest (Best Platform)

I’m in love with Pinterest, which is my all-time favorite platform for traffic. Most people think that Pinterest is only good for visual content. Still, I’m here to tell you that it can also be used to drive free organic traffic to your website.

You can use Pinterest to promote your blog posts or create pins with relevant keywords. This will ensure more eyeballs to your website content. And the best part is you don’t have to learn photoshop if you want to create professional pin images.

Canva is a great online platform that can create pins, posts and other visuals with just a few clicks. So start using Pinterest today because it can provide you with tons of organic traffic in no time.

Instagram

Instagram is improving and providing new features every day. Recently they have added the ability to add clickable links in stories. This feature is great for driving free organic traffic to your website.

All you have to do is create stories with relevant content and then add a link to your website at the end of the story. This will ensure that more people are aware of your website and will visit it. You can also add links in the main bio section of your profile, so make sure to add the link with relevant keywords for extra traffic.

LinkedIn

LinkedIn is a platform with a professional network of over 875 million users. It’s the best platform to connect with professionals related to your niche and can be used to drive free organic traffic.

Like Twitter, you can join conversations, share content from your website, and engage with other community members. This will help increase awareness about your website and people who will find it relevant will visit it.

You can even write articles on Linkedin which will get you more eyeballs. Just make sure to add a link to your website in the article, so people can visit it and learn more about your website or business.

Snapchat (Don’t Ignore It)

Snapchat is growing day by day and is a great platform to drive free organic traffic to your website. All you have to do is create stories with relevant content and then add a link to your website at the end of the story. People love watching stories on Snapchat, so make sure that you post them regularly. Also, use hashtags and geo-filters in your stories to reach more people.

YouTube (Video Sharing Site)

Youtube is the second large search engine and first largest video sharing platform. People love watching videos. If you create educational and entertaining videos then there is a chance that people will find your content interesting and they will visit your website for more information.

You can use YouTube to promote your blog posts, tutorials or any other kind of content related to your business. You can even add clickable links in the description of your videos and people interested in your content will visit your website. You can also add videos to your content because some people like to watch instead of reading. This way you can grow two platforms at once.

Guest Blogging

Guest posting is an effective way of getting organic traffic to your website. You can write content for other websites related to your niche and add a link to your website in the post.

This will help increase awareness about your business, as people interested in the topic will read the post and visit your website for more information. Make sure that your content is high quality, as people will judge your website based on the content.

Direct Links

In addition to social media platforms, direct links from other websites can also be a great way to get free traffic. Having links on other sites directs visitors back to yours which can result in increased visibility and potentially more customers/followers.

You can obtain these links by guest blogging or collaborating with influencers in your niche; both methods ensure that high-quality content is shared across multiple websites while allowing you to promote yourself simultaneously.

Related: Types of Backlinks You Should Know

Forum Marketing (Don’t Overuse)

Quora and Reddit are not the only forums available. There are many other forums related to your niche that you can join. This is a great way of connecting with people interested in the same topics as you. It is one of the best strategy of off page SEO.

Just ensure not to overuse this option, as it can harm your reputation if done wrongly. Just provide helpful answers to questions and subtly promote your website or business. This will help increase organic traffic to your website without annoying people or spamming the forum.

Free Advertising (Think Outside the Box)

When you start a new website it is important to get more organic traffic as quickly as possible. To do this you can use free advertising platforms like sharing in Whatsapp groups, Facebook Groups or classifieds sites.

Ask your family members or friends to support you in the beginning by sharing your website with their contacts. You can also use social media platforms like Twitter and Instagram to reach more people.

Just remember to always think outside the box and try new ways of reaching people who are interested in your content.

What Is the Best Source of Free Traffic?

There are many free traffic sources, but my favorite and best is using SEO. Search engine traffic is highly targeted, meaning people who visit your website from a search engine are already interested in what you offer.

And since most online searchers never even make it to the second page of results, ranking in the top few positions on page one is essential for getting significant amounts of traffic from search engines.

Is Traffic from Free Sources Better Than Paid Traffic?

Yes, both traffic sources are worth your time. In my experience, using free and paid methods is best to get the most out of your traffic.

• Paid traffic can be a great way to get targeted visitors quickly.
• While free methods often take longer to generate results.

But with patience and perseverance, free methods can still be incredibly effective at driving traffic to your site. So don’t overlook either type of traffic – use them to see the best results.

Start Using These Free Traffic Sources

In the end, there are many effective ways of getting free traffic without spending money on advertising campaigns. All of these methods allow companies & individuals alike an opportunity to reach out directly to new audiences.

As long as one takes their time researching & implementing these strategies correctly – they should expect positive results over time.

But if this sounds overwhelming and you need help, just contact us and our team of digital marketing experts will help you every step of the way.