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If you have a website, you are aware that traffic is essential, especially if you have something to sell. Not just any old traffic, though - you need targeted traffic.

How is targeted traffic defined? It simply means visitors to your website who are interested in what your website is about. For instance, people wanting to buy jewellery will find jewellery websites interesting.

How do I get targeted traffic? The following are tried and tested methods:

Forums: Whatever your topic, there's sure to be at least one forum about it. Subscribe to a couple of forums. Join in the discussions, answer questions, and ask pertinant questions yourself. Aim to become established as an expert in the subject. Then with each article reply you write, have a discreet link to your website in the signature file. Make sure that your signature conforms with the forum rules. You can get banned from most forums if you spam them - make your posts helpful or thought-provoking. You should be able to get a fair amount of traffic from a popular forum, and the people who click your link will already be familiar with your writing style.

Linking from/to other websites: Look for websites which are similar to yours (but which do not compete directly). Ask the website owner for a reciprocal link. Be sure to select your link partner to match your customer profile. Software programs like Arelis are useful in this process.

E-Zines: Buy adverts in ezines that target your market. Be sure to have a test run to see that the return on investment is sufficient to cover the expense involved. You may save a considerable amount.

Newsletters: Offer your visitors something of value, such as an eBook, in exchange for signing up for your newsletter. Your newsletter should be written tightly geared towards your topic. It should be published regularly at weekly intervals.

E-Books: Write (or have written) a free informational eBook which you can give away to your clients and others. You can place links back to your website in the eBook.

Joint Ventures: Contact online marketers looking for new products to sell. They may have large mailing lists with eager to buy customers. Normally they are willing to email their list for a percentage of the sale price. This works particularly well with informational products. It has several advantages. It can give a very sizeable boost to both your sales and mailing list within a very short period.

Buy Expired Domain Traffic: This is probably the cheapest in terms of time and most expensive money wise. It gives a traffic boost normally within 30 days. What is it that you're buying? You are buying traffic from a company which has invested in expired domain names. They are domain names which are still registered on the search engines which get a certain amount of traffic. The previous domain name owners have either lost interest in the name or simply forgot to renew the registration. The traffic from the expired domain name is redirected to your website. This is usually high quality traffic as only expired domains with relevant traffic is redirected to you. As always, you should do a test run to see if this traffic is suitable.

When you combine these techniques and apply them consistently over time you will find a rich source of targeted traffic coming to your website. This, combined with quality products will ensure the success of your online business.

Mike Devoran is the publisher of DJTraffic.com, a website devoted to improving your website traffic.