Targeting Seasonal Keywords

There is a great tactic to see spikes in your traffic, and you can do that by targeting seasonal keywords. You will probably be surprised just how many page views you can get from a good, well-optimized article or post that relates directly to the calendar.

On the downside, the boost in traffic will be seasonal, too. But a spike is a spike, and that’s more eyes on your site even if it’s for a brief period. I would argue it doesn’t have to be brief, however, if you follow these tips:

• Make your seasonal content evergreen. OK, that sounds bizarre since it’s seasonal. But instead of writing about Christmas 2007, write about Christmas. Thnk of Christmases in the future as well, either by writing a Christmas post that would apply any year or by writing one that could be modified easily for next year.
• Research your seasonal keywords. For instance, this blog would seem like an odd place for holiday content. Christmas gifts is well searched, however, and there could be a post here on Christmas Gifts for Bloggers. Always be sure you bring that tie-in back to your topic. Otherwise, the boost in traffic could result in visitors who never visit again.
• Don’t just think seasons. Think of any annual event or calendar-related item that is a major issue in your blogging topic. Look at every holiday, and look for a tie-in. Are there ways to tie content to election years, or to sporting events? With a calendar in front of you, think of ways to go seasonal throughout the year to keep that traffic coming regularly.
• Think ahead of the seasons. In October on some of my sites, holiday and Christmas articles were seeing tons of traffic. Remember that people search ahead of events and seasons, and that you need to allow time for Google to spider your content as well. It’s better to be a little early than write too late, and miss out.
• Figure out what timely, calendar-related event is your money event. In that, I mean that some topics are best suited to a particular holiday, season or event. Determine which one serves your site best, and really focus on that event. Create content well ahead of time, and promote it heavily. Create hub pages linking to all the content for that season or event. Each year, keep building on that so that, one year, you become the authority for that topic and that event.

Seasonal content can be a nice way to see significant increases in traffic each year. If you look for ways to tie into various events throughout the year, you can keep that momentum going year-round.