How We Took A Shopify Store From 434 To Over 7500 Monthly Visitors (With Zero Ad Spend).

If you have a Shopify store, you know the importance of traffic.

Well, in this case, study, I will explain how we used The Lightbulb Method to take a Shopify store from around 430 organic monthly visitors to over 7500.

I'm going to teach you what 'The Lightbulb Method' is.

And how I got these results, step by step.

And don't worry if your website isn't power by Shopify. 

The tactics I am going to share will work for ANY website.

Ready? 

Then dive in.

How I Used 'The Lightbulb Method' To Generate Over 78,000 Visitors A Year For A Shopify Store

When I took on this client in early 2020, their organic traffic was low.

They had an organic traffic level of around 400 visits per month and a traffic value of only $121.

And they ranked for a mere 917 keywords.

Within 6 months we had changed all that.

They were gaining over 6300 visitors per month from organic traffic.

And even now, with over 6 months having passed since we worked with this client.

They are gaining over 7500 visits per month, and more likely to come.

And in this post, I will explain what The Lightbulb Method is and how you can use it to generate results like these.

(Due to client privacy, we will not be disclosing the actual site in this article)

What Is The Lightbulb Method?

The Lightbulb Method is a form of keyword research and content creation that makes getting online results easier.

How?

Well, if you have been involved in keyword research, you will know that it is both time consuming and requires skill to find keywords that generate business results.

The Lightbulb Method is an excellent way for even inexperienced Shopify and E-commerce store owners to generate traffic to their site.

Here's how it works.

The Lightbulb Method aims to identify keywords that inspire searchers in your niche.

And to create content that inspires them to purchase your goods.

So, what type of keywords do I mean.

These are keywords that build inspiration within a searcher to think:

So, when you create content based on that type of search query. You set a 'lightbulb' off in the reader's mind.

And when you set a lightbulb off, you create desire within the prospect,.

And your business is uniquely placed to help them to fulfil that desire.

Don't worry. 

We are going to break down how to use the lightbulb method of keyword research.

The 4 Step Approach To The Light Bulb Method

To use The Lightbulb Method for your site, follow these steps.

Let's break down each step.

Step 1: Find Out What Inspires Your Target Customer

Almost all products have a knock onto something else.

For example.

If you buy a fish tank, you need fish, a filter, tank ornaments, cleaning products, fish food etc.

Because almost every product needs accessories.

And this is where almost all e-commerce specialists focus.

The sales funnel.

But, what comes before the purchase?

You got it.

The inspiration to purchase.

And that is what we are looking for with the Lightbulb Method.

Search terms that inspire customers to start an activity where you sell the products that they need.

So, how do you do this?

Well, we do this in 2 stages.

Stage 1: Brainstorm Content Ideas

Firstly, write down all of the content that your customers would love to read.

This is a general brainstorm, so there is no need to leave any ideas out.

But you are aiming for ideas that would stop your ideal customer while scrolling through Facebook.

For example.

Let's say you have a store that sells movie merchandise.

The list might include:

Movie Quotes.

Highest Grossing Films of 2020

Highest-Paid Actors

Best Horror Films

Best Action Movies.

The Rock's salary for every film he has starred in.

Most expensive movies ever made.

Or perhaps, your e-commerce store sells gym clothing.

Your list might be:

Best exercises to build biceps.

A list of exercises to get a six-pack.

Keto diet recipes.

30-day flat stomach challenge.

Best celebrity workouts.

Best celebrity diets.

The aim of this part is to brainstorm ideas of content that your customers would love.

So don't worry too much about what you jot down, we are going to refine this next.

Stage 2: Remove Any Ideas That Don't Inspire action 

This is the part where you want to create content that inspires the reader to take action.

And by taking that action, they need the products that you sell.

This is the crucial part.

You don't want the reader to think 'that was interesting'.

No, you want the content to create an itch that the reader needs to scratch.

And one where you sell the scratching stick!

So, in our gym clothing store example.

It wouldn't make much sense to write content about Keto diets.

While your readers might enjoy that, you don't sell anything to help them start eating Keto.

Same with celebrity diets.

That content might be of interest to your target customers, but it's not in line with what you offer for products.

Instead, something like a 30-day Flat Stomach Challenge fits in nicely.

Because, to work out, even at home, people need workout clothing.

And your business will be able to sell them some.

Aim to come up with at least 10 content ideas before we move onto the next step.

Step 2: Break down your idea and see if there is similar (but weak) content online.

Once you come up with an idea, you need to see if there is similar content online.

And we are primarily looking for content that ranks on the first page of Google but is thin content.

To do this, you can use a simple Google search or a keyword research tool.

I use Ahrefs, so I'll quickly put into the tool my idea.

Here I have added 'flat stomach challenge.'

This brings back a global volume of 500, so, perhaps not the best target for me.

But here's a pro tip.

Don't just look at the search volume.

Always go and check out the SERP results at the bottom of the page.

And here is where you will usually find a winner.

Instead of flat stomach challenge, the keyword that generates traffic for a flat stomach challenge is '30 day ab challenge'.

Once you decide on your keyword, the next part is to manually look at the content ranking.

To do this, head over to Google and search.

From there, scroll down to see if the content is weak or thin.

The type of content we are looking for is less than 1000 words.

Because, if the content on page 1 is thin, we are in with a fighting chance to rank.

Keep using this approach on all of your ideas.

And soon enough you will find one that fits.

Step 3: Use The Skyscraper Method to create better content.

If you are involved in SEO, you will know all about The Skyscraper Technique.

It is the technique devised by SEO specialist Brian Dean that essentially involves creating bigger and better content than is currently ranking online.

And that is what you need to do to rank online.

Create content that is more in-depth, larger and better than what is currently ranking online.

For example.

I wanted to rank online for keywords related to LinkedIn marketing tips.

And when I looked, I noticed that the content online was generally weak or thin.

So I created a massive article with all my best Linkedin tips:

And with only a tiny bit of promotion, that content has arrived on page 1 and generated me considerable work.

So, it would be best if you aimed to make your content far better than what's ranking already.

Step 4: Promote The Content And Build Links

 I have been using the Lightbulb Method for years and have created many pages that have generated serious income for clients.

But the key to success with this type of content is how you promote it.

Because, while Google is getting better at judging content, promotion is critical.

Here are some ideas:

Promote on Pinterest.

Boost on Facebook.

Share to Reddit

Quuu Promote

Use Curate by Missinglettr

Once you promote your content, it has a chance to be found by the exact target audience you want to grab the attention of.

Aside from promotion, you should also try and build backlinks to the content.

Because without them, it could be challenging for your content to gain traction.

You don't have to go overboard with this.

If you have created great content, then people tend to be genuinely happy and even surprised when you promote it.

But to help you out here's my exact outreach email.

And here are some of the responses.

OK, so by now, you might be thinking "this is all great Andrew, but it seems like hard work, so how are we going to make money?

Let's cover this next.

How To Use Your Lightbulb Content To Generate Sales

I won't lie to you; getting results in SEO takes time.

And if you either wrote the content yourself or hired a content marketing agency to create the article for you, well, you need some ROI for your efforts sooner rather than later.

And so, it is essential that you use both lead magnets AND retargeting to generate results.

This way, you have a chance to generate sales for every penny you spend in the promotion of the content or your work time.

So, what kind of lead magnet works best for content?

The first thing you need to think about is that the reader hasn't landed on your e-commerce pages.

They are consuming content.

So, they aren't there to buy.

But that doesn't mean that they can't be given an offer.

Supplement company Onnit inserts adverts and offers into their content like this one:

They also use lead magnets to get email addresses in exchange for educational content like this one.

This gives you a great chance to secure a sale via follow up emails.

And, of course, don't forget the retargeting ads on platforms such as Facebook, once they have been to your site.

Which is a standard e-commerce tactic.

So, using a combination of lead magnets, sales emails and retargeting, your Lightbulb content will have you generating results in no time.

Now It's Your Turn

So, there you have it.

A way to grab plenty of organic traffic for your Shopify store.

The Lightbulb Method isn't designed to replace other forms of SEO or keyword research.

Instead, it makes it far simpler by giving your keyword research a goal.

So, now it's your turn.

Give the Lightbulb Method a try and let me know how you go on.

Thanks

Andrew Holland