Appart from SEO, according to you what's the best way to bring traffic to your site?

[3dmagicaldesigns]

I use blogs and forums, what do you use?

[crankydave]

Use blogs and forums for what? And how?

Dave

[3dmagicaldesigns]

Well.. I've been using blog engines to submit my blog website, it has worked for me on the Search Engines, the forums have been useful to meet new people, promote my business, share concepts and make new clients.

[notsoold]

Most directories will not bring in any traffic. But some popular ones do. Also sign up an account in social networking sites and join some groups there. Make friends with them and they will come to visit your sites.

[Doc]

I have had good luck with specialized directories. One of my sites is a specialty contractor, and we've gotten quite a few conversions via KUDZU.com, for instance. But I would have serious doubts about general directories bringing any benefit.

[MayaLocke]

Outside of SEO, PPC advertising brings the best traffic.

[redmanti]

This is my opinion to date.

PPC
Works quickly but can be costly and the click-fraud issue is a problem.

Podcasts
I would say my podcast has driven a lot of quality traffic to my site especially before I realized the site itself needed a lot of on-page SEO attention. iTunes just has the distribution. A constant flow of traffic and a way to engage visitors as long as you keep refreshing the content. Podcasts recorded 2 years ago are being listened by new listeners everyday.

Off-line PR& Media Coverage
Certainly developing this angle. Especially if you have something news worthy for the off-line media. Survey results etc...as I think that is essential as a further step. That's the next step up.

[bobchrist]

Outside of regular SEO, forums and blog you can use social media sites which can help you in marketing.

[Dcrux]

Want better, more qualified traffic? Develop a product worth talking about. It has the novelty of rarely having been tried.

A properly developed, properly researched product is a remarkable product. Remarkable products have one defining characteristic: They get remarked about. As in blog posts. As in one-way inbound links. As in customers telling their friends.

As in not confusing the medium and tools with the marketing technique and savvy of execution. As in figuring out what drives traffic. As in copywriting -- not PPC. As in infomercial quality scriptwriting -- not merely Podcasting as end unto itself. As in what goes into developing that news angle -- not just releasing a time-insensitive "me, myself, and I" press release.

Marketing is just as much about creating a better match with a target market through product or service design.

The posts are mentioning the easy part, the medium, the tools, while completely glossing over the mistakes almost everyone makes (because they confuse the tools with the skill require for getting a good end result).

How useful would a marketing discussion be if someone said to use TV, Radio, and Print? No help at all.

You don't have marketing success from forum posts. You might have some degree of success from making high quality, informative (meaning new ideas and insights, not rehashed, trite filler) which portrays you as an expert worth hiring.

Within the subject line is a small gotcha: The Best Way. The "best" way is not being so fascinated with the technology you gloss over the skill in using technology. Right now you sound like an Amish person's first encounter with electricity-powered gadgetry.

[morestar]

I actually print out about 20 little 'brochures' (if you can call them that) with the name of my site and a quick blurb about it's theme (free online dating) and tape my poster to elevator doors (on the inside), outside walls and any other place that I know it will be seen and stay around for at least a couple of days.

Aside from Google, the second highest traffic source for my site has been direct traffic so I could assume that my poster campaign is bringing me some traffic for sure!

[weegillis]

Superlatives are the first refuge of the uninformed... Is there really a 'best' anything? Dcrux nails this one right on.

Who cares how much traffic a site gets if visitors just leave. The traffic that returns are the people who will tell others. What kind of traffic do you want? Just anyone? How do you convert just anyone?

Do you have a fantastic new product that everyone will want and can use? Off line methods are equally important to online, as indicated through morestar's experience. There's a hint. People want what is offered, and don't need to be online to talk about it. These kind of links can't be bought or begged--they are earned, and will never show up in the SERPs.

[redmanti]

The reality is that marketing is important and that most business do not have products that are so unique and appealing that they will sell themselves. If they do, there is usually is only a short period until they are copied.

Off-line the word of mouth angle is key. People's willingness to recommend it to others etc. but it is a combination of on-line and off-line that matters. Different market segments require different marketing approaches.