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Saturday, July 21st, 2007
If You've Got A Webcam, You've Got Traffic
Posted @ 10:02pm
I've been to almost all the blogs that are handing out tips to bringing an increased flow of traffic. I think we all have. However, it's baffled me that one of the easiest things I've ever done to get people to this site, has never been mentioned.
That is, the webcam.
Years ago, it seemed like every blog had some sort of webcam image posted. Yet, now a days, I rarely see one, and if I do, it's not being used to it's full potential. With that said, let me share my little secret with you on how adding a live webcam stream to your blog, can benefit you, almost instantly.
What You Need
Obviously, if you want to put a webcam stream on your site, you're gonna need a webcam. If you don't have one, don't worry. They're actually much cheaper than what they were when I first got mine. You can get a decent one for around 20 bucks at almost any retail store.
Once you have your webcam hooked up, it's time to get it on your blog. There are several sites which provide a free, live streaming service. All you have to do is go there, sign up, download the broadcaster, copy and paste the code to your blog, and you are ready to go. I personally use Camstreams. There are others, but I honestly have not tried them, so I am unable to compare the services. However, I love Camstreams, so I don't really have much reason to switch. For those of you who like to shop around, I'll provide links to a few others at the end of the article.
Now before you go running off to get this going, allow me to explain the pros, cons, and most importantly, how this is going to drive more hits to your site.
How Does This Work?Once again, let me emphasize, that I can only give you my personal experience from Camstreams (don't worry, they're not paying me for this shameless plug....although they should), your outcome from other services may vary.
When you first sign up at Camstreams, they put your webcam under a category. For example, my webcam primarily shows me sitting around looking lame, thus placing me under the "People" category. Once you are set in a category, they put you in their directory. You can see an example here. As soon as you sign up, your cam is placed at the top of their directory. There is not rating system to this, and no way to stay on top. Once someone signs up after you, you are bumped down to number 2. Luckily, it's a small community, and your time on top can last several days.
There is a catch to this. For your cam to be listed, the broadcaster must be on, and it must have at least one viewer. Whenever I turn mine on, I open a separate browser window, and go to my website, thus always ensuring I have 1 viewer, and that I will be listed. This way, I can still check my e-mail, update the site, and so on. If it's not on, and no one is watching, you are not listed.
How Will This Bring Me Traffic?
Once you're in a category, your webcam stream is running, and you have a viewer, all you have to do is sit there. It will take care of the rest. By being listed on there, other people will see it, click on it, and you can use it as a tool to advertise your site. They even provide a link to your homepage.
To this day, Camstreams is my #1 referrer. Out of all the blogs, directories, digg articles that I'm involved with, or listed on, Camstreams has sent me more regular traffic than any of them.
It's that simple people.
Let me add, theres that old saying "If something sounds too good to be true, it probably is."
There are some drawbacks to this....
Cons
Camstreams has a bandwidth capacity. For you to have a nice, live, steady stream, it will only allow 15 people to view your cam at a time, or else it slows it down. Now you can lower the rate of the stream, to increase how many people can see it, but that's personal preference. However, this article is mainly set towards new people just starting out. I have yet to exceed the bandwidth capacity for mine at this time. If you're raking in a few thousand hits a day, I don't recommend this service. There are ways to put a cam feed up through FTP. Unfortunately, I don't fully understand the mechanics to set something like that up.
At times, the broadcaster will turn itself off on it's own. It doesn't always happen, and I'm not sure what causes it, but it's a small price to pay. It's free, can't complain too much.
Pros
The traffic doesn't have to stop there. Use this tool to find new ways to promote your blog:
Live Webcasts: You can announce times when you will be live on the webcam! If your blogs about politics, do a live show about the Presidential Campaign Trail. Or perhaps, if your about a hobby, give a live demonstration. Camstreams offers a chatroom with the stream, so you can have a live chat while you're on cam. Talk to your viewers, and convert the new ones into regulars!
Start A Cam Portal: Know someone else with a live stream? Instead of begging for a link, offer a webcam image exchange. You can show other peoples streams on your site instead of posting a link. Get enough, and start a portal, which is a collection of other peoples webcam images. That's an awesome way to boost traffic.
Be Entertaining: I admit, I rarely do fun stuff on my cam, and still get plenty of hits. I sometimes imagine the boost I could get if I was actually doing something funny, or interesting on there. Please do note that Camstreams is a family friendly site, and does not allow nudity.
With a creative mind, the possibilities are endless!
Here is a list of other sites the offer a similar service:
CamstreamsI hope this helps!
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