Your web presence is the aggregation of every webpage, social media account, customer review or touch point on the Internet that is either owned by you or that mentions, links to, or refers to you. A successful web presence has a very broad reach and can increase brand awareness, followers, leads, sales and fulfill any other business goals you may have. With 97% of consumers researching products and services on the web before they buy, having a strong web presence an integral part of any marketing strategy all companies. It is no longer enough just to have a website because people consider all online media before purchasing.
Set Specific Goals
Defining specific goals is the first step to creating a solid online presence. Knowing what you want to accomplish allows you to plan the appropriate marketing activities. Do you want to:
- Stand out from your competition
- Generate quality leads
- Develop expert reputation
- Cultivate future relationships
- Increase brand awareness & loyalty
- Build email list
Your marketing strategy should include some social media marketing, blogging and email marketing to be successful. If your marketing plan hinges on blogging, interacting with your followers and scheduling social media posts, make sure you can devote the time or have the budget to hire a resource who can handle this.
Identify your Target Market
Defining your target market and different buyer groups allows you to more easily grab their attention because their needs and goals are front and center. If you are selling wine, you should target enthusiasts differently than image seekers or newcomers. Your messaging should be catered to each buyer group targeting places where they spend most of their time. Posting on Facebook and Instagram might be more effective when targeting wine newcomers than creating a LinkedIn page. Incorporating the keyword phrases they are searching in your website and social media posts will also help in getting found. Knowing your prospects’ motivations and pain points can help you show them how they could benefit from your products or services. If you’re looking for a user-friendly tool to create target audience personas, check out Personapp.
The Website
Your website, ideally, WordPress and mobile-friendly, is the centerpiece of your web presence. An effective website tells visitors why they should trust you, what you do and how to contact you. People will decide if they want to browse more or leave in a split-second so first impressions are crucial. Your website also should be fast-loading, user-friendly and have content that is valuable to your target market.
Continuously Updated Content
Google loves fresh content so keeping your website updated will help improve your search engine rankings and keep your visitors coming back regularly. Your website will always be a work be a work-in-progress. A website that is constantly being improved is a sign of a growing company.
Optimize for Mobile
Despite Google penalizing websites that are not mobile-friendly, 95% of small business websites are still not responsive. With mobile traffic having surpassed traditional laptop and desktop traffic, consumers are demanding responsive websites. If your website is not optimized for mobile, the majority of your visitors are abandoning your website which means you are losing sales, leads, brand recognition and trust. Check out Google’s Mobile-Friendly Test to see if it needs to be converted.
The Blog
Fresh, relevant content is the key to strong web presence and a blog is a perfect way to achieve that. The days of launching a website and forgetting about it are long over. Today’s websites constantly create unique, engaging content giving visitors a reason to return. Although Jeff Bullas recommends blogging 16 times per month, we have experienced traffic increases from 2-3 posts per month. Regular blogging can establish you as an authority in your industry and improve your website rankings. Writers’ block? Check out CoSchedule’s 150+ Blog Ideas.
Coherent & Consistent Branding
A brand is a name given to products or services from a particular source originating from how cattle ranchers branded animals to show ownership. Brand consistency is when the elements of a brand remain the same over time. Brand coherence is when all the elements of a brand feel familiar and are effective. To ensure that people always recognize your brand, you have to use a consistent logo, fonts, colors and design elements. If there were another company with a similar name, would your customers know that they are not you?
Clear Calls-to-Action
Calls-to-action tell your visitors what to do next. If they do not know what to do or there are too many options, they might leave your website. If you have communicated your product benefits, then a simple “buy now” might suffice. If you have written a blog post, you can ask readers to subscribe to build your email list.
Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
Search engine optimization refers to tactics and techniques to increase the visibility of your website by improving your website rankings in search results. This goes back to understanding your target market and what they are searching online so you can naturally incorporate those keyword phrases into your website and social media posts to be more easily found. Although there are other SEO techniques like directory submissions, backlinks and meta data, writing fresh, relevant content is the crux of any SEO strategy.
Reputation Management
Reputation management is shaping the public perception of a company by influencing online information about that entity. Some techniques include creating positive content to counter negative content and responding to customer complaints in a timely manner. The most effective approach to reputation management involves promoting your company honestly and actively engaging with customers on social media, your blog and review websites.
Connect with Email Marketing
Even though email is not as sexy as social media, email marketing is more direct and has higher ROI and conversion rates. Email marketing keeps subscribers informed of promotions and product changes and keeps your brand top-of-mind. Start email marketing by implementing a subscription form on your website and signing up with for a free account with MailChimp.
Build Rapport on Social Media
Social media is a great way to build rapport with your community and humanize your brand. Posting daily and interacting with your followers is the key to growing your web presence on social media. Knowing which social media networks are most frequented by your target market and strategically targeting those channels will do wonders for your online presence.
In Conclusion
Building a successful web presence is undoubtedly hard work. Website management, web maintenance and the many web marketing strategies we discussed can be daunting so please contact us if you need help.