Any good traffic leak examples?

Joined
May 10, 2015
Messages
236
Likes
134
Degree
1
I managed to leak a bit of traffic from /r/TIL today. It was fun! Just practicing a bit. I don't like the way reddit traffic bounces though.

Anyway, I read CCarter's posts and there was a post where he shared some ninja masterful subtle traffic leaks. 2 links I think, but both of them not working.

Can anyone share great traffic leaks to aspire to? Just wanna know what good looks like. Thanks, guys!
 
My best leaks have come from making up a bullshit story around the link
 
Saw this on Reddit today: http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/37hzrn/i_am_missy_suicide_founder_of_suicidegirls_artist/

She's using the IamA to go on about how an artist 'stole' and sold their property for 90k each photo recently...

I'm 90% sure this is probably a clever PR / Media stunt. In my opinion, this is a "traffic leak" also... I don't really like the term traffic leaks because I think it's as limiting as it is enlightening to a lot of people. Course that's not @CCarter ' fault.

Look at all the money they will have made from that, all the press links they've got... All the damn visitors they will have had...

They're riding the wave that this drama has caused for all it's worth and that's why it smells like a stunt to me. Granted they are a pretty huge brand, but you know what? You can do the same kind of thing if you get creative enough and understand the psychological side of the game.
 
My best leaks have come from making up a bullshit story around the link

Can't do that in r/TIL, though. So I'm guessing you only leak your niche subreddit? My niche subreddit only has about 16k subs..

Reddit is great for practicing this kind of stuff. You get instant feedback from the market as to what works and what doesn't. Gonna try another one this afternoon.
 
Can't do that in r/TIL, though.

Mate, half of the stuff on TIL is bullshit. Half of that goes on to get removed, but only because it offends their SJW agenda.

All you need for TIL is a very loose wikipedia source - if even that.
 
DUDE. Think outside of Reddit. @CCarter, get in here and tell them. Their fucking dumb if they think Reddit is the only source of traffic.
 
I know it's pedantic, but lol.

DuQ94aE.gif

uhzrVAV.gif


The force is strong with you @Chumbawamba
 
Mate, half of the stuff on TIL is bullshit. Half of that goes on to get removed, but only because it offends their SJW agenda.

All you need for TIL is a very loose wikipedia source - if even that.
Yup really loosely based on wikipedia. I'm referring to the post type, though. TIL only accepts link posts right? Or am I missing something?

@built said he was using fake stories. you need to do a self.post for that.
 
Yup really loosely based on wikipedia. I'm referring to the post type, though. TIL only accepts link posts right? Or am I missing something?

@built said he was using fake stories. you need to do a self.post for that.
I'm banned from TIL, but yeah only links
 
DUDE. Think outside of Reddit. @CCarter, get in here and tell them. Their fucking dumb if they think Reddit is the only source of traffic.
lol Reddit is not the only source but, it can convert, I'm sure about it. From what I can see so far, those kind of individuals need to be challenged directly to be engaged successfully (and then converted into whatever one's wants...). It's not going to be as simple as one post or link but, I'm sure that well made lander and well planned sequence from few accounts will make them bite.
 
Yup really loosely based on wikipedia. I'm referring to the post type, though. TIL only accepts link posts right? Or am I missing something?

@built said he was using fake stories. you need to do a self.post for that.

Ah, right you are mate. Sorry about that.
 
I believe there's been a number of posts on BuSo that have pretty well hammered out the notion that while traffic from reddit can be somewhat easy to get, it's not necessarily worth its weight in gold. Reddit traffic comes in with a pretty high bounce rate, low rate of conversion, and low time on site. They're also fairly unlikely to return, because once they've consumed the info there's not much of a need to go back. It's great for getting people on your site in the short term, but I don't think that it's great for long term traffic. Just use it for quick wins when applicable and keep your eyes open for the opportunities.
 
I believe there's been a number of posts on BuSo that have pretty well hammered out the notion that while traffic from reddit can be somewhat easy to get, it's not necessarily worth its weight in gold. Reddit traffic comes in with a pretty high bounce rate, low rate of conversion, and low time on site. They're also fairly unlikely to return, because once they've consumed the info there's not much of a need to go back. It's great for getting people on your site in the short term, but I don't think that it's great for long term traffic. Just use it for quick wins when applicable and keep your eyes open for the opportunities.

True on all counts, mate. The reason I'm leaking on reddit is that it's really fast. You can see the results of your work almost immediately. So I use it to practice on.

Also, if you can get enough numbers going, you might get shares and links. Which is good for longer term traffic.

Some of the stuff I've tried on reddit audience that kinda maybe works:
1) Permanent/irreversible stuff - like a bad habit/disease/wrong technique that causes you to permanently lose some of your ability to function. Redditors are obsessed with that.
2) Intentionally including "facts" that have been proven wrong in the past - sit back and watch them correct you.
 
If you can get the Reddit users engaged, you can snag a solid $100 or so from it, if not far more, depending on the performance of the submission. That immediate income is nice, but I think the real value of a submission that does very well is the tons of links and shares you'll get organically. My last Reddit leak snagged me legit links that I'd never have imagined getting or considered going for. It's like @secretagentdad said. The value is in exposure and where that takes you.
 
A good sample of a traffic leak that turned into a brand if memory serves me correct is https://www.facebook.com/IFeakingLoveScience which started on reddit/Imgur?

Good example of traffic leak using reddit and their iAMA system. Check it out http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/388dc6/a_year_and_a_half_ago_i_quit_my_job_and_sold_my/

The one about emoji masks starting off with just producthunt and snowballing from there might count? http://needwant.com/p/how-our-side-project-generated-51365-in-60-days/
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Are you guys building retargeting lists - and separate ones for your traffic leaks?

Get yourself AdRoll/Perfect Audience - two plug and play retargeting solutions. Mark up your traffic leak URLs with a unique tracking tag (if needed), add a rule in PA/AdRoll saying "If source = reddit" or "if URL contains 'reddit'" etc etc and then let your lists build.

Then retarget those users separately. Maybe use some dank memes in your banners or some shit.

You'll start getting a better idea if that traffic's worth it or not (if you're trying to get them to convert on something on your page.)
 
Are you guys building retargeting lists - and separate ones for your traffic leaks?

Get yourself AdRoll/Perfect Audience - two plug and play retargeting solutions. Mark up your traffic leak URLs with a unique tracking tag (if needed), add a rule in PA/AdRoll saying "If source = reddit" or "if URL contains 'reddit'" etc etc and then let your lists build.

Then retarget those users separately. Maybe use some dank memes in your banners or some shit.

You'll start getting a better idea if that traffic's worth it or not (if you're trying to get them to convert on something on your page.)

I'm pretty sure you can do this in Adwords too by using the referrer URL rule. (If URL contains "special tag") etc etc.
 
I still can't get the hang of this bullshit story thing. I guess it's just force of habit. The education system fucks you up good. For some reason my brain just wants to report the facts as they are without embellishments - which is really bad for traffic.

I'm reading Ryan Holiday - Trust Me I'm Lying to get into the mindset of a manipulator. Need to get into the reader's heads.
 
I mean, once you see these things, everything looks like a traffic leak. But then, isn't that just marketing?

r/entrepreneur is rife with these to the point that I stopped following the sub. Telling the story and adding a little self promotion at the end is a classic example of direct marketing.
 
I just found an interesting traffic leak example.

It's more of an Lead leak. The dude is literally capturing leads trough Reddit.

He offers free 60 minute "consultation" where he will work with you to find your limiting beliefs.

Consultation is in quotes because I'm 99% sure, he will upsell you to his product in the cosnultation. His conclusion will be that you need to work with him further. I do this myself as well for people that really match what I do.

The traffic leak itself is an intersting one:

First
: He posts an offer to a free consulation in a super small subreddit. (Link to first thread)

Second: He posts an advice thread in a big subreddit. And at the end, he drops a link to the smaller subreddit thread where he offers free consultation. Therfore mods probably drop their guard, because it's an internal reddit link. Smart! (Link to second thread)
 
Back