Goals for How to Make a Website Tools

I am very excited today. I am starting on a new journey. I have made a conscious decision to start writing full time for How to Make a Website Tools (HMWT).

I started HMWT with great hopes and a simple objective. I want to make a site which will help me and others make great websites, whether it’s a blog, a niche site, a business site or any other website. At HMWT, I want to experiment with all the methods, tools and tricks and document the process so that you can see the results and use the successful approaches and learn from my mistakes.

What have I learned so far?

I have read a lot related to making a website, from the basics to expert level material. Right from WordPress, to making themes, link building, writing great content etc.

However, I quickly realized that making a successful website is not so different from running a successful business. You have to solve problems for your audience and add value to their work. So that is what I will be doing at HMWT.

Goals for HMWT

I am aiming high with HMWT but I want to keep my feet on the ground.

My first main goal is get some traffic at HMWT. Right now the traffic varies from single digits to about twenty visitors a day. I know that is nothing compared to what many new bloggers get. HMWT is in a competitive niche and getting visibility is incredibility hard. As I will be working full-time on this site now, I will have the ability to focus and write some good articles and spread awareness about HMWT.

I want to set a realistic goal. If I set a goal that is too high, I may get demotivated and if I set a goal that is too low, I will not enjoy achieving it.

Alexa Rank, although not the best measure, is easily understood and is easy to compare.  So I will be using Alexa Rank to set my goal.

Alexa Rank Target: 200K

Currently the Alexa traffic rank is 620k, so a goal of 200K will keep me motivated and when I achieve it, I will be happy and aim higher. I think 150-200 daily visitors may get me to this mark.

How will I get there?

I will just be using the basic tools available to every blogger. Like I said before, I have high hopes for HMWT, I want to focus on building the foundations. So I will not be using any black hat tricks, spam or any other questionable techniques (like buying traffic).

So here is the plan.

1. I will comment regularly on some blogs. Like I said in my earlier post that focuses on my comments strategy, I do not comment to build links or to get traffic, I comment to build relationships.  So I will be leaving about 5-10 comments daily on various blogs.
2. Once I build relationships with other bloggers, I will request for a guest post slot. This is the best way to get in front of targeted traffic and its generally a win-win for both the bloggers.
3.  Submit my post to social bookmarking sites to build some links and get indexed by search engines and hopefully get some organic search traffic.

How did you get the first few hundred daily visitors to your site? Did you use link building, forum participation or some other approach? Let me know in the comments and give me your feedback.