We spend eight hours a day doing digital activities, guys. That’s more than half the day. More than the majority of us sleep. And we have different online identities: we’re gamers, alter egos (Reddit), social butterflies (Facebook), professionals (LinkedIn), and customers (what we’re focusing on in this post).
So, whether you run a service-based, brick-and-mortar, or online business, having a strong web presence is critical today. And this isn’t limited to eCommerce. While the pandemic has hastened online expansion, it has also increased support for local businesses. Furthermore, 97% of customers use the internet to identify and learn about local businesses.
However, as the internet evolves, so does the definition of having a significant online presence. This comprehensive, data-backed handbook will teach you all you need to know, including:
- What constitutes an online presence, and why is it crucial.
- Best tried-and-true ways to boost your online presence in 2021.
- Five easy steps to help you manage and maintain your online presence.
- You’ll be able to fix all your fears in the end.
Why is Having a Web Presence Crucial?
It is, after all, self-evident. Nowadays, before making any buying decision, every buyer consults Google. If you send an informal introductory email to someone you’ve just met, chances are he’ll try to find out more about you on Linkedin or look for your firm on his preferred search engine.
People do this because they want to feel at ease with you before conducting business with you, and to do so, they will gather as much information as possible from numerous sources.
When done correctly, internet presence can help you develop a reputable brand image, raise awareness about the products/services you sell, and generate more leads and customers.
How to Create a Powerful Online Presence for Your Business?
Outbound marketing requires an internet presence because it promotes your brand and what you provide to your target market. After you’ve spoken with your target audience, you’ll need to have a web presence that explains why your product/service is so fantastic – since that’s where the bulk of your potential buyers will go next. It’s also important for inbound marketing because quality web content will assist attract customers who haven’t heard of your brand before.
So, building an online presence does not happen quickly, and it requires a well-thought-out approach and a time investment. Are you prepared? Let’s look at how you may establish an internet presence for your company with minimal work.
Step 1: Set Goals
We can’t begin working on setting up an online presence simply because someone advised us to. There must be some clearly defined objectives. Our goals can and should alter over time, but first, we must establish quantifiable targets and a time range. Consider why you want to do this. Here are few examples of goals you can start with:
- Give details about your product or service.
- Boost brand awareness
- Generate leads for your business.
Another method for determining a reasonable goal is to research your rival. Google them to observe how they manage their online presence. When you’ve completed your first goal, you can go on to the next.
Step 2: Create Your Company’s Website.
The most crucial phase of this project is the company website. For most of your prospective consumers, it will be the beginning point from which they can find more about what you have to offer, learn about the work you have done thus far, and contact you for further discussion.
You can engage a web design company to work on your website, but if your budget is restricted, you can do it yourself if you lack technical expertise.
To get started, use this simple website builder. Most of these sites also provide a free plan and need payment only when additional services, such as a custom domain name are desired.
A good company website should provide detailed information about its products or services as well as contact information. Avoid utilising flash and huge graphics, which may cause the site to load slowly and negatively impact the visitor’s experience.
The following step is to guarantee that the company’s website is searchable on Google. Next, you can read this search engine optimisation guide, which may appear to be too much labour for a non-technical individual. However, once you understand the fundamental concepts, it is well worth your time. The goal here is to optimise pages for your company name and the names of your products or services that visitors may type into search engines.
Your website may take some time to appear in search results.
Step 3: Make Effective Use of Social Media
This is the easiest part. The number of social networking sites accessible nowadays can be overwhelming, so let’s start with the top three. Most of us have already a Facebook profile. It takes less than 5 minutes to set up a Facebook profile for your company.
Create accounts on Twitter and Linkedin next. I will not advise you to create a profile on every social network available. It will not operate if you are unable to post on these networks regularly.
Here are some helpful hints for developing a social media brand:
- By choosing stunning photos/backgrounds, you may project a professional picture of your organisation.
- Set a schedule for blogging and stick to it. Typically, it would help if you published three times per week on Facebook, twice per week on Linkedin, and three times per day on Twitter.
- Don’t solely talk about your products. Instead, you should add value by discussing your industry or providing helpful hints.
- Respond to comments and interact with your audience.
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Step 4: Build Wide and Strong Relationships
Whatever industry your business is in, I’m sure a few internet groups will be dedicated to it. It will be worthwhile to investigate the groups where individuals or thought leaders from similar industries express their perspectives. You can begin to create relationships by engaging in relevant topics and being an active member.
What is the significance of this? Chances are, these people are more connected than you are, and they may be able to introduce you to others in your sector. Customers or partners who can help you build your business can be made through new connections.
The next issue is, where do you begin? The greatest places to start are Google Groups and Linkedin Groups. Quora is another excellent question-and-answer platform where members assist one another on a variety of issues. The vital thing shouldn’t forget here is that you should participate in the debate to add value rather than directly promoting your products or services, as the community may ban you from doing so.
Also, don’t forget about the old-fashioned networking that we conduct at gatherings or business expos. When more people recognise you offline, they will look for you online on search engines and social networks.
Step 5: Continue to Improve Using Analytics.
We should track how we are doing online regularly in the same way that we track the operation of our firm using intelligent accounting software. Once you’ve started building an online presence for your company, you’ll want to know if your efforts are paying off. So we should track our progress from the start and keep improving until we accomplish our objectives.
Begin by keeping track of who visits your website. Google Analytics is a fantastic free tool for tracking the performance of your website. It provides you with detailed data about the users that visit your homepage, such as their location, browser or device from which they visited the site, their age, the source from which they arrived, and how they browsed around the pages.
You can also convert the rise in followers on Twitter or fans on a Facebook page to track your social media performance.
You will begin to see the trend when some time has passed. Certain events may cause an increase or decrease in website visitors. For instance, you may notice an increase in traffic following your participation in a business fair. Once you have known this and have this information, you will make better business decisions.
Wrapping Up
You must have realised the significance of developing an online presence for your business by now. It has enormous potential for developing a positive brand image, raising awareness, and acquiring new customers.
You don’t have to be everywhere, but the consumers should find your business through search engines. As a result, you may establish meaningful contacts and open avenues for consumer acquisition online.
The process is time-consuming, and results may take some time to appear. So be patient and continue to improve.
Also, do check out our latest articles from the experts of Reputedfirms. Finally, please leave a helpful tip in the comments section below if you have a helpful tip to share with other readers.