Creating an online presence is not a passive task. You cannot simply schedule a year’s worth of blog posts, ignore your blog and social media, and come back to a devoted following. In order to successfully create a presence with clout, it will require some planning. Here are a few things to keep in mind when looking to create a lasting online presence.
- Pay attention to the reception that your posts are getting. Look at your page views, your shares, and comments made on your site.
- Once you look at how your posts are doing, make plans to change their reception. For example, if you are simply not getting any page views, up your social media presence and advertising, and make some posts that you feel will be clicked on. Teaching something useful but not well known, or giving the impression of insider information can be useful. Conversely, if people are viewing but not sharing, put more of a focus on creating very interesting or humorous content,
- Make a plan. Have real numbers for your expectations on shares and views, and create an actionable plan that specifically lays out your targets. This will allow you to evaluate your progress, and figure out if changes will need to be made in order to meet your goals.
- Aside from views and shares, look at the impression you are getting from readers and browsers of your website. Are their experiences positive? Negative? Driving people down your sales pipeline is one thing, but it is also very valuable to simply create positive exposure for your brand.
One final thing to take not of is that one great way to create a following is through promotion by single users. If someone not known to be affiliated with your brand starts to share your posts or promote your content, that is a much more telling endorsement than if someone simply sees an advertisement. Anyone with money can purchase advertising space, but it takes a quality service or content to convert others to your brand. Therefore, content should be cultivated to be easily shareable, with topics that will not be seen as controversial. Additionally, you should create content that people will be eager to share with their networks. Knowledgeable and well written posts will be a big help, people can feel like they are sharing important knowledge with their peers.
