Design, Mobile App, SEO, Web Development, Website Effective Ways To Build Your Online Presence
I was trying to understand what are the effective ways to build your online presence. Tried searching to find the perfect gift on the other day because I wanted to surprise my colleague on his work anniversary with a great option. Being into B2B & B2C business, I know how searching online is always easy compared to other traditional ways. When I searched for “work anniversary gifts” on Google, I found the brand SoghaQatar.
Amazingly, the company dominated the top search results on Google without even paid promotions. The first two results were their website, the third was their Instagram page, and the fourth was a review of their Facebook. Deciding I wanted to look into it further, I clicked on the Sogha Qatar website and found fantastic options, social pages, mobile app reviews, privacy policy, etc. They were impossible to ignore online. Ultimately, I ended up making a purchase.
My buyer’s journey is not unique. In fact, according to Adaptive Marketing, 97% of consumers use the internet to find a business.
That’s why having an online presence plays a vital role in the current new user acquisition. It helps consumers find your brand before they are aware you exist & it helps them learn about your various options before making a purchase. Eventually, all of this information will play a role in your customer’s purchasing decisions. Below we’ll review what an online presence is, and explore some of the effective ways to build your online presence.
Effective ways to build your online presence – B2B & B2C businesses.
- Make a website
- Social media presence
- Build an email list
- Master SEO
- Produce content
- Personify your brand
- Experiment with online advertising
- Research influencer marketing
- No closure of business
1. Make a website
Not to be repetitive, but again, to show up online, you have to have first a website online. Whether you are into B2B or B2C businesses or social media expert, one of the first places people will visit to find out more about your company is your website.
Your website is where you can show off your brand through colors, fonts, text, video, and images. You’ll appeal to your buyer persona’s pain points and present a solution to their problem. To make a website, there are many CMS sites you can use, say using WordPress, Wix, Squarespace, HubSpot, etc.
2. Social media presence
Being on social media is a necessity in this day and age. In fact, in 2019, there are now 3.2 billion people on social media globally, so social media is a key tool for reaching your intended audience on whichever platforms they prefer. Having a presence on social media instills trust in your current customers and prospects. Personally, if I see that a company doesn’t have a presence on social media, I lose trust and feel unsure if they even exist.
Plus, social media is a great way to build your credibility and reputation and showcase your brand. When potential customers are researching your brand, the first place they’ll look is social media to see what you’re putting out there and what people are saying about you.
3. Build an email list
One of the top ways to build your online presence is to create and grow an email list. An email list will enable you to engage with current and potential customers on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis within regular intervals. To grow your email list, you can create gated content that users have to sign-up to receive. Additionally, you can use a call-to-action (CTA) on your website and social media pages to promote your email newsletter. With a newsletter, you’re able to collect leads’ emails — additionally, it shows your leads and customers are interested in your content.
4. Master SEO
With algorithms changing every day, search engine optimization (SEO) is one of the best tactics to build your online presence. The first step to showing up online when people are searching is to master SEO. SEO can be divided into two categories — on-site SEO, and off-site SEO. On-site SEO is all about the content. You’ll want to use keyword research, including internal and external links, and create educational content that likely matches your target audiences’ search queries.
With off-site SEO, you’ll pay attention to the more technical side of things. For example, you’ll want to make sure your site is set up correctly, has simple URL structuring, and loads quickly. Additionally, off-site SEO also includes building credibility with backlinks. Lastly, if you want to show up on Google, create a Google My Business account, and use Google’s keyword planner.
5. Produce content
The more content you produce, the more opportunities you have to show up online. Having an online presence is all about showing up in search engines, on social media, and other aggregator channels.
To start producing content, strategize what places you want to show up online. Do you want to be on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, Twitter, Pinterest, Etsy, Poshmark, Goodreads, or Amazon? Prioritize the sites your customers are active on (based on customer research) and start brainstorming content that is best-suited for those mediums. For example, with YouTube, you’ll come up with video ideas — whereas on Instagram, you’ll come up with photo and caption ideas
6. Personify your brand
Building an online presence is a lot more than building a brand. One tactic many companies use to build a brand is to personify their brand by creating extra value. For example, SoghaQatar, a well established online e-commerce portal in Qatar, personified their brand when they were founded in 2012. The founders created a persona called, especially for Qatar. This was the personification of their brand. They knew their core strengths which like, dislikes, age, job, financial situation, and sense of humor.
By personifying their brand, the company was able to appeal to their target demographic while staying true to its mission and values. Having a clear brand helps users relate to your company and makes them want to engage with you, whether through a social media comment or by signing up for your email newsletter.
7. Experiment with online advertising
A faster solution to building an online presence is through online advertising. If your ad shows up in the top search results, you’ll build brand awareness and increase your visibility online. Though it’s a little expensive version of boosting the online presence, you can advertise on search engines like Google, Yahoo, and Bing. Additionally, you can look into social media advertising. Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube are well-known for their advertising options.
Before you begin advertising online, brainstorm what you want to promote. Once you choose what it is you want to advertise, you’ll also need to decide on the platform that is best-suited (i.e. has the right audience) to promote that content on.
8. Research influencer marketing
It is a trend that people follow well-known individuals online through social media in order to stay active in the community. For instance, if you sell beauty products, you might consider researching beauty influencers on YouTube and Instagram. Many consumers look to influencers for their honest reviews and promotion before purchasing a product.
Additionally, influencer marketing will get the word out about your brand online. The more people are talking about you, the more often you’ll show up online.
9. No closure of business
In some circumstances, making announcements of updates surrounding your company and outlining what is happening, will be appreciated by customers and clients. If it is common knowledge that your business is facing issues, both current and potential customers may thank you for the updates, especially if you go through some tough situations that currently Coronavirus affected businesses, integrate payment through the website itself and run the business online until you set everything offline and back to normal.
If the business is to be closed, leaving your site to lay dormant could confuse visitors who will wonder what is going on. Plus, you may still receive incoming inquiries and business offers. By announcing your business’s status, it will remove the burden of dealing with inquiries from yourself and your stakeholders.
These strategies can help you build your online presence, create brand awareness, and develop a strong reputation. Building an online presence requires effort, but over time it will pay off with increased sales and better brand awareness in your industry. Modern businesses must ensure that they are not left behind. An online presence is one of the most important investments that a business can make. The benefits are endless!
