My blog is new, and I usually get a few clicks here and there from Google. But this week, I noticed the number of new users under ‘Direct’ traffic went from 3 to 20, while organic search traffic stayed the same.
Does direct traffic only happen when people type my website address in their browser, or could it be caused by something else?
Direct traffic can include spam traffic from bots too.
betterblogger said:
Direct traffic can include spam traffic from bots too.
Yep, that’s usually the case for brand-new blogs.
Direct traffic usually means visitors come to your site by typing your URL into their browser or using a bookmark. But it can also include cases where the source isn’t tracked properly, like links from certain apps, email clients, or stripped tracking parameters.
Since you’re already getting some traffic from Google, it’s possible those users bookmarked your site or came back later. The spike could also come from unknown sources.
@Barbara
Thanks for breaking that down for me!
Direct traffic just means there’s no referral source recorded.
For a new blog like yours, it could easily be bot traffic. Usually, direct traffic becomes significant as your blog grows and gets more established. That’s when it starts helping with SEO overall.
Early on, direct traffic can be misleading unless you’re actively promoting your site through things like social media campaigns where people might type in your URL. Otherwise, real direct traffic usually comes after people are already familiar with your site.
I had a similar thing happen once where I saw a big spike in ‘direct’ traffic, and it turned out to be from Google Discover. The numbers matched closely with what I saw in Google Search Console.
Basically, ‘direct’ traffic can include any link that doesn’t get properly tracked, even links from Google.
@Nicole
Got it, I’ll double-check my Google Search Console for anything like that!