Death=traffic :(

by 10 replies
12
My niche site (I only have one besides the farm one) has gotten an increase of traffic due to the death of Elizabeth Taylor. I don't rank all that well for my keywords yet and only show up on page one for a few of them. I don't know - it hasn't translated into clicks, so I guess I shouldn't feel bad that my traffic is a result of her demise.

It makes one wonder though - I know when Dale Earnhardt (sp?) died, there was a huge run on merchandise branded with him and his race car. Is impending doom a good bet for website traffic and commercial business, or is that too morbid?
#search engine optimization #death #deathtraffic #traffic
  • I do what I need to do to make money....if you are selling product regarding the dead person, aren't you essentially helping people remember them?
  • Any good business will anticipate and prepare for trends and events in order to make money. That's the bottom line. If that means taking advantage of a celebrity's death or current shaninigans (Sheen) or disasters, so be it. There are quite a few of these old-timers that are likely to kick the bucket soon such as Harry Morgan (late 90s, MASH) and sports stars such as Willie Mays and Yogi Berra. Anticipate and prepare for any eventuality. Nobody anticipated Micheal Jackson's death at 50. But had you prepared for it, you may have made a few bucks. Many newspapers and TV have files ready for celebrity deaths. That's why when it's announced, they already have footage about their lives hours later. That would not be possible to put together in that short of time otherwise.
  • Any business model based around short term trends seems like a lot of work to have any long term sustainability.
  • It depends completely on your niche and if it benefits you it is not something to worry about. It's not like you are rooting for anyone to die.
  • I suppose if you have an Elvis Presley niche, it could still be profitable, but cases like that are more likely the exception rather than the rule.

    I want niches that work better for the long term.
  • It seems a bit morbid to build sites around people we expect to pass away soon... but I'm sure some people do this to make some quick bucks. I would not feel good about doing that myself though...
  • My site isn't ABOUT Taylor, but I do have a few articles that mention her and her line of fragrances. So hence the traffic. I want long-term profitability - this was just a quirk. Just got me thinking.
  • Morbid or not, it's a fact of life with celebrated people. I guess when is "too soon"? It's ok too sell Elvis but Liz Taylor is too soon for some people.

    Events that cause changes of many types are always sought out by people trying to take advantage of the situation. That is life.

    Eileen, your just seeing more traffic because of her name on your site, but I'll guess that it isn't targeted traffic and isn't increasing sales?
    • [1] reply
    • Hi OKFarmgirl,

      You need to remember that traffic is not that hard to achieve.

      Lets say for instance that you were selling a farming guide or product.

      Then you can always remove any Ad marketing like Adsense and then employ a PPC marketing strategy to sell the product that you created.

      The important thing is that you ensure that you weigh the pros and cons, including placing the guide correctly.

      It is important to examine all types of advertising Facebook, Adwords and all other typical methods.

      Don't get caught in the trap that search engine traffic is the only type of traffic out there.

      Explore, explore and explore even more.
  • If you're not capitalizing on it, then someone else will. Did you know that Michael Jackson's Thriller's LP were going for hundred's of dollars on eBay on the day he died?
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    Death=traffic :(

    My niche site (I only have one besides the farm one) has gotten an increase of traffic due to the death of Elizabeth Taylor. I don't rank all that well for my keywords yet and only show up on page one for a few of them. I don't know - it hasn't translated into clicks, so I guess I shouldn't feel bad that my traffic is a result of her demise. It makes one wonder though - I know when Dale Earnhardt (sp?) died, there was a huge run on merchandise branded with him and his race car. Is impending doom a good bet for website traffic and commercial business, or is that too morbid?