Ask just about any business owner in today’s competitive world and they will more than likely tell you that they have some form of an online presence. Without one, many would be looking at stagnant and not some impressive revenue streams.
That said how active are you online with your brand?
Do you do a good job of promoting it via blog posts, other content marketing initiatives, social media? Or is your online game coming up short for you and your brand?
Take Your Internet Game to New Heights
One of the first dynamics to look at is your overall website.
Is it something to be proud of as a business owner or do you hope that customers come across it rather sparingly?
With a stellar website, your brand can grow leaps and bounds over time, but it all reverts back to what you give the public to look at.
Examplesof this would be a brand like Target, Coca-Cola, Nike, Wendy’s, tradebit.com and others.
These are brands (like many others) which have easy-to-follow websites, making it simple for the consumer to find what grabs his or her attention on the respective sites.
With that being the case, take some time now to see where your online game is winning you fresh eyes and where it is in need of some TLC.
This revolves around:
- Appearance – Simply put, would you regularly look at your website if you did not own it? While you need to give yourself an honest answer, make sure you look at the highs and lows of your site before answering. What grabs your eye and makes you want to come back for more? What also grabs your eye and makes you shudder at times? Finally, put yourself in the consumer’s perspective. What would they probably find most and least appealing? When you can answer these questions, you’re moving forward;
- Workings – A business website can look all fine and dandy, but what if it has broken links, pages that freeze up and more? Regular systematic reviews of your site prove crucial in order to draw more visitors in. You and/or your tech team (depending on the size of your company) need to regularly go through each page and see where things are clicking and where you’re dropping the ball. It is not uncommon to have the occasional broken link or two, but this can’t be a common problem. Given that many consumers are apt to be one-and-done visitors if your site gives them problems, think about the potential in lost business such errors are costing you. While some might say any attention is better than no attention, make that attention fall into the positive category.
- Socializing – When you have a website that works for your brand, you should be letting the world know all about it. Part of such promotion revolves around social media. When it is done correctly, social media can be a great promotional tool for businesses of all kinds and sizes. The key is knowing where and when to promote your social initiatives. Just randomly throwing stuff out on social networking sites will do little if any good over time. Focus on the best sites for your brand, be it Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Google+, LinkedIn and even YouTube. Once you have your targets picked out, know what you want to share and when you want to share it. If you have an interesting blog post or an upcoming event that you want the social world to know about, by all means put it out there. You also have to decide when is the best time for your posting? If you do your research, you will see that some times of the day prove more opportune than others. Use this to your advantage for maximum exposure in the social networking world.
At the end of the day, your online game and the efforts you put into it can go a long way in making your brand a success or just another average business.
Take the time now (before it is too late) to see where your online game is at, how it can be improved, and how you will go about those improvements.
