The internet has become an integral part of our daily lives, so much so, that having an online presence is a must for any business to be successful. As such, it is important for not just start-ups and small businesses, but also already established companies who want to remain relevant in this age of information technology as well as those aspiring entrepreneurs who wish to exceed the success of the established brands, to have a strong online presence. For any business to be successful, it has become important for them to create an online presence, and so there are some useful steps that you can take in order to build a strong online presence for your business.
1. Hire Experts
Because the idea of building an online presence is talked about often, some people think that it can be done by just about anyone. However, the support a digital marketing agency can provide can hardly be overstated. While there are some basics everyone should know about digital marketing and getting more traffic, it takes a lot of time, effort, and talent to really create something special. How popular your online presence will drastically depend on the algorithm the platform you’re using has. For example, for a few years now you can’t find anything on Facebook unless it is shared by a minimum number of users just to have your post seen, and it is even harder to convert those viewers into customers. If you want the majority of your traffic to stem from search engine results – like Google, you’ll have to know how to structure your content so that it ranks higher. Thus, hiring experts that know how these algorithms work, the appropriate way to approach different platforms, and that can help you create exciting content will be a huge plus for your business as they can help you improve how you communicate with your target audience, and grow your business.
2. UI/UX Website Design
The first step to improving your online presence is having a well-designed website. Because the features your website offers (UI) and the way it’s all laid out (UX) are so important, you should always look for tips when choosing how you want your website to be designed. While there’s always a place for creativity and a personal touch, there are some general rules that you might want to follow. For starters, don’t introduce something new into the design just to be different. People have a certain expectation on how a website should look, and if yours is too different when it comes to some basic features, it might make the experience of using your website frustrating to the potential customer. For example, people expect there to be a search bar – if you don’t have one, they might give up on trying to find what they were there for in the first place. That said, it’s also important to think about where you’re going to put the search bar. Most websites have it in the top right corner. If you don’t want to put it there, it’s best to have a really good reason that will make up for the user not being able to find it at first glance. As a general rule, if your preliminary design means that something is more than three clicks away, or requires the user to think instead of really on their intuition – you might want to go back to the drawing board.
3. SEO
When you’re trying to improve how your online presence will be perceived by the public, and thus increase the number of potential customers, it is important to use SEO. Search engine optimization is the means by which you can make sure that your website is easily visible by those looking for products and services like yours. There are a few things you should keep in mind when making improvements to your site’s SEO:
- Make sure that all of the content on your website is original and not even slightly copied from somewhere else. If it is, Google can label your site as spam, and it will be more difficult for you to rank high in search results.
- Your website should have a clear link structure that makes sense and is easy to follow.
- Every page on your website should have a clear purpose – it shouldn’t be too long, or too short. If people are seeing the same text, again and again, they might get bored reading the same information.
- Meta links are the ones that are displayed in search results when someone’s looking for something specific, so it’s important to have them on your website.
- Backlinks are links that come from external websites, and they increase the number of people seeing your website and also help you move up in search rankings.
4. Blogging
Blogging is another way to increase your presence online. Even if you’re not looking for any backlinks, or keywords that other websites could potentially use to find you via search engines, blogging still has its other perks. For example, people like reading about topics they can relate to, and bloggers are usually open to interacting with their fans and potential customers. Just having your blog on your website is a good start, but you can also follow some of these tips to improve how it benefits your business:
- Make sure that the blog’s content is related to what you’re offering.
- Create how-to articles that will be useful to your potential customers.
- If you’re selling something, create lists of the products’ features and let people know why they should choose yours instead of the competitors’.
- Always post new content on a regular basis – ideally, once or twice per week.
5. Brand Identity
Most people are visual learners, so if they don’t have an image of what you do or sell when they hear about it online, chances are that they might forget about it pretty quickly. That’s why having a consistent and memorable brand identity is important. There are a few simple things you can do to make sure your branding doesn’t go unnoticed:
- Create a logo that matches the image of your company.
- It’s also important to use the same color scheme throughout all of your branding materials, including your website’s design elements.
- Clearly define your brand voice and stick with it – people respond well to familiarity, and they might not be eager to change their opinion about you after getting used to your voice.
- Use consistent wording and phrases to describe things, as well as visual representations (i.e. infographics) that will make it easier for people to relate to what you’re trying to communicate.
There are hundreds of ways in which you can improve the online presence of your business. However, it is important to always keep your target audience in mind and adapt the way you communicate with them to what they’re most likely looking for. Only then will it be possible to establish a strong online presence that generates more leads and helps you grow your business.
