Content Creation vs Promotion: How I Used the Pareto Principle to Drastically Increase Organic Traffic

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Have you heard of the Pareto Principle as it applies to online marketing and web promotion? If not, this article may be the key to unlocking the organic traffic you rightly deserve.

Do you spend the bulk of your time creating web content OR marketing content that you have already written?

I am going to show you how I increased blog traffic 3000% by taking a look at this very question.

It all boils down to the Pareto Principle or, as some call it, the 80/20 rule.

Most online marketers are doing their job wrong.

They hear “authorities” on the Internet exclaim: “Just create quality web content and visitors will come!”

This is the biggest lie perpetuated by those who are already an authority and deceives beginners into thinking that quality web content is enough.

The Necessity of Content Promotion

The Truth About Quality Web Content

Do you ever write web content that nobody reads?

It’s an endless complaint that I often hear: “I’m creating great web content and nobody is reading it!”

Today, I am going to tell you the biggest lie about web content: “Great web content alone brings visitors!”

And this lie is perpetuated in great abundance. Here is just one example quote from a leading publication:

“The key [to gaining visitors] is to produce content people find useful and want to share.” ~Smashing Magazine Article

The only time that statements such as this are true is for established, authoritative websites that have many existing readers…like CNN or Mashable.

But, for the rest of the folks, great content will be the proverbial tree in the woods unless you promote it!

Let’s look at this from another angle.

What is the number one soft drink in the world? If you guessed Coca-Cola, you’re right. In fact, I am enjoying one right now!

Now, think about this: Why does Coca-Cola, a beverage sold 1.7 billion times a day, have a Facebook page? You already know what it tastes like and it is already the most recognized brand in the world? Do they really need a Facebook page or, for that matter, a Pinterest page, etc.?

What does quality web content have to do with Coca-Cola? More exposure equals more consumption…be it web content or soda pop!

Quality Web Content Without Content Marketing: If you build it…

Don’t get me wrong–quality web content definitely does matter and it does bring visitors.

However, to suggest that quality content alone is sufficient, with no accompanying promotional content marketing strategy, is a lie and misleads those who are just starting out.

As I wrote recently in these secrets to small business SEO, people mistakenly believe, with respect to quality web content: “If you build it, they will come.”

Guess what? No they won’t!

You can create all the amazing content you want but, if you’re just starting out, nobody will read it.

This is why nearly everyone does online marketing wrong — they believe the myth that quality content alone is sufficient.

It’s not, not even close.

You need to reallocate your time to content marketing instead of content creation.

But how much time should you spend on each?

The answer is going to surprise you.

The Pareto Principle [80/20 Rule] and Content Marketing

The Pareto Principle, also known as the 80/20 rule, has its origins in ancient Italy but it’s highly applicable in online marketing and has helped me achieve massive traffic growth, which I illustrate in the section below.

As we read in this Forbes article, “The Pareto Principle, or “80/20 Rule” as it is frequently called today, is an incredible tool for growing your business. For instance, if you can figure out which 20% of your time produces 80% of your business’ results, you can spend more time on those activities and less time on others.”

This concept intrigued me and I wondered how it applied to building blog traffic.

Then, I came across a post called “Applying the 80/20 Rule to Your Content Creation and Promotion Strategies” and the lightbulbs went off everywhere.

The entirety of this article is an examination of Derek Halpern’s 80/20 Rule For Building A Blog Audience.

The idea is a simple: Spend only 20% of your time creating content and 80% of your time promoting content.

If you are currently creating loads of content and getting very few visitors, what have you got to lose? Not visitors!

This was my thought and so I gave it a try.

And the results? Oh, my, the results.

Take a look at my stats below to see why I love the 80/20 Pareto Principle for my content marketing.

How I Achieved A 3000% Traffic Gain Using The Pareto Principle

I learned all this the hard way.

Many years ago, I took my time and wrote several quality articles…that nobody read. What a waste of time!

I resolved right then and there to never waste my time again. If I take time to write quality material, I want it read by A LOT of people.

With the content marketing Pareto Principle in mind–spending 80% of my time on content promotion, I started promoting my well-written posts with a daily content marketing strategy.

Did it work? Oh my gosh…did it work!

Take a look at the stats that I just copied and pasted from ONE article below:

This article was written on a website that, at the time, was not yet an authority website.

As you see in the first month of May, the article received just 394 visits, about 10 per day.

Had I done nothing other than hit publish, the article would have languished at this meager number.

But now, I was embracing the 80/20 rule of content promotion. I no longer just hit publish…I’m a promotion machine!

What happened?

Over time and through gradual article promotion, the post now receives about 10,000 article views per month, or more than 300 per day.

From 10 visits per day to 300…that’s what a consistent content marketing strategy brings–lots of visitors!

It’s the Pareto principle in effect!

I’m focusing on the very thing that brings traffic.

Instead of “If you build it, they will come”, my new saying is: “If you promote it, they will come!”

Yes, quality content is important.

In fact, I always ask myself, “Is my article as good or better than the others that currently appear in the search results?”

If the answer is “no”, I rework the article and make it better!

However, clearly, quality content on a non-authority site is not enough. You must promote your quality web content.

You must embrace the Pareto Principle 80/20 rule of content marketing.

After doing so, I brought the article above from 10 visitors a day to more than 300. That’s nearly a 3000% gain!

So, the next time someone tells you…”Just create quality web content and you will get lots of visitors”…don’t believe them. It’s a lie.

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Richard Cummings

Director of SEO, Social Media, and Web Content Development at The SEO System

Richard Cummings has been practicing online marketing for many years and has setup and optimized hundreds of WordPress sites.He founded The SEO System to provide SEO, social media, and online marketing services and software to businesses.