Represent Your Business Online in 10 Simple Steps
These days it is foolish to stay offline in most cases. There are few businesses that will not benefit from being online. Obviously, there are some businesses which could not exist if they were not online, from being on Google maps to have a range of websites and affiliate websites. Due to the popularity of businesses having websites online, it has become a lot easier and cheaper. It is now possible to represent your business online for the price of a half hour cab fare in New York. However, this does not account for the staff hours that your online venture requires, but one dedicated member of staff may be all that you need. Here is how you represent your business online in ten steps.
Table of Contents
1 – Start with a website
This means to build at least one website that represents your business. It should be an ambassador for your company, and you should make sure that it is advertised as widely (and as cost-effectively as possible). This means the website address should be on your stationery, emails, and even on your office signage.
2 – Affiliate advertise your website
This is a very easy way of advertising your website and your business because the affiliate networks are set up to make it easier for you. You can start with a trustworthy one such as Google AdWords and then move onto others once you feel you have found one that better taps your potential target audience.
3 – Create a blog for your business
This is not a terrible idea, as it helps you to keep pumping out streams of positive information and spin on your own company. You may also look into having parts of your blog mirrored onto other websites, and look into both having guest posters on your blog and being a guest poster yourself. It is possible to accrue publicity for your business via the publicity you again for your blog.
4 – Put up a business profile on Facebook, Google+ and even LinkedIn
A profile representing your business should be present on Facebook and Google+. That is just a given, but you may also like to consider putting you and your staff on LinkedIn so that people may contact you from the business world via the site. There are also arguments for putting your website on something such as Pinterest if you happen to have some very attractive page elements on your website.
5 – Post social media marketing campaign posts
This means taking time to create posts for the various social media networks. It means that you do more than just post. You must create marketing pieces that are also persuasive whilst also giving the reader a reward for even visiting your social media profile in the first place.
6 – Get your business website added to paid and unpaid directories
Paid directories should send you targeted traffic that is easy to convert or convince. If they do not then do not renew your subscription when the time rolls around. Getting yourself into directory articles that are free is difficult, but you can always write a few yourself and post them online.
7 – SEO (Search Engine Optimize) your website
This means making your website more search engine friendly so that the Google search engine will rank your website up on search engine results pages. This will make your website more visible and so will make your business more visible online.
8 – Have your business included in Google maps/ Google locations
When you have your business included in the Google locations section, you also have it put into the Google maps section too. This is done quite easily through the Google Webmaster Tools, and Google has articles explaining the simple process needed to have your business listed in their database and on the Google maps tool.
9 – Write articles and guest posts about your business
You can put articles about your business onto other websites or you can guest post them onto other peoples blogs as suggested in tip number three. Writing about your own business specifically can be done in two ways. You can post as an expert on the business who is also an insider of the business, and you can create fake identities to act as if you are an outsider but an approving outsider who puts a positive spin out there.
10 – Have your staff become more involved in the online community
This means have them post questions and/or answers to forums and comment sections. Have them converse online with members of the online community. Gain a bit of a reputation in forums and on social media networks, and have them join online groups. Have them set up work-related social media profiles too so that the issues are not muddied if they use their own social media profiles.
