Using the Skyscraper Technique to Boost Your Traffic

Using the Skyscraper Technique to Boost Your Traffic

Skyscraper TechniqueMost websites live or die in proportion to the amount of traffic they get. The exception is those where the site owner has a substantial budget which they can use to buy traffic. For the websites who rely on organic and free traffic, SEO is required to boost the website’s ranking in the search engines, and the subsequent increase in traffic that brings to the site.

According to experiencde SEO’s there are hundreds of techniques and SEO strategies that can achieve this, but in this instance, we are going to look at just one, called the ‘Skyscraper Technique’. This process has doubled the traffic to some of the websites who have used it, and whilst there no way to guarantee a result like that, if it is used correctly there is no reason why it shouldn’t boost your website’s ranking and the traffic coming to it.

At this point, you might be imagining the Skyscraper Technique’ is some long, complicated process where you must create hundreds of backlinks, use blackhat SEO tricks, and commit countless hours of your time. The fact is, it is none of these. It is a very simple process and as is often the case, the simpler the technique, the more effective it is.

The Skyscraper Technique can be broken down into three distinct steps, and you do not need to be an SEO guru to be able to do any of them.

The first is the simple matter of searching Google with the search term or terms you want to rank for and clicking through the websites that appear in the results. What you are looking for are websites that have lots of good content and have obviously built up a lot of authority within your niche, due to the number of other websites linking to it.

Using a tool like ‘Ahrefs’ you now want to analyse where all the backlinks to that piece of content are coming from. Ideally, you want to identify other websites, with good authority, within your niche that link out to the content on other sites.

Once you have identified a piece of content that is linked to from other authority websites you simply create a piece of content that is significantly better than it. If you have a budget you could outsource this on Upwork or Fiverr.

You can make this new piece of content better by implementing some of the following elements:

  • More detailed and fuller explanations
  • Include the latest info/news
  • Mention recent developments in the industry
  • Use a better layout (paragraphs, bullets)
  • Make it visually appealing (infographics, images)

The third step is contacting the owners of the websites who link to the content you have sought to improve. Email them, or contact them through social media, and first praise the piece of content they link to. The mistake many make at this point is to criticise it, which is totally the wrong approach to take. You want to sound professional and respectful.

Next, explain you have content on the subject which you believe their audience would appreciate, and if they would like to look at it. Then you paste the URL to your content and close by thanking them. That’s it.

This email should be no more than a few lines and there should be absolutely no hint of you begging or pleading, that they link to you. It is just a simple heads-up, as though you were emailing a friend about a new pizza place they might want to try out.

Not every web owner is going to go for it, but for each one who does, you will be gaining another backlink, have increased traffic, and the authority flowing from that site to yours means higher rankings.