Thursday, January 26, 2012

Your Internet and Social Media Presence

 


Your Internet and
Social Media Presence  
Getting Started

Greetings. Today we are taking a day trip into the world of having an online and social media presence. This trip is into a world that is very different than traditional forms of advertising and marketing.
We all know the importance of having a good website or do we? In days past it was sufficient to have a website and some SEO (search engine optimization) and people would find you. This made the use of a phone book yellow pages almost obsolete. So began the birth of the yellow page advertising online. We saw directories being born all as a way of having opportunities for people to find you. Enter social media. Oh how the birth of this changed the landscape on our online or internet experience.  It has changed and continues to change how businesses market their business on the internet. 

It is hard to imagine what life was like prior to the internet. This online world continues to expand and grow and is now to the point that just having a website, some SEO and a listing in a yellow page type  directory is no longer sufficient. Because of Social Media, possible customers/clients now want to find out all they can about you before making a buying choice. When people search they now go beyond just your website, they will now search your business name. 

So how does one increase their online presence? Here is some general information to get your started. Many of these options are social networking friendly and make it easy to share them on your social networking sites.

Directories - some directories provide you with the opportunity to include more information about you beyond business card information. You will want good content there so those reading about you have a feel for what you do, they feel like they know you and could possibly like you and your services. 

Blogging - is a wonderful tool and does not take as much time as you may think. Content should provide information related to your field of business so that those reading will see your level of knowledge. You can use your blog for special promotions as well but you want your blog to be balanced. 

You will also want to find some good blogs of interest to your business and leave comments. However do not promote your business in your comment. Many allow you to link back to your website and that is all you need to do. Your comments should add value to the original post and not be a commercial for yourself. you could be marked as spam should you do this.  

Articles- There are many good sites where you can submit articles related to your business. These sites help you been seen as an expert as people who are searching the net will see that you have expert knowledge. If you do not feel you can write an article then it would be wise to consider hiring a good content writer.

Press Releases - There are many online press release sites. A vast majority are free or offer a free version. When you offer a new product, or service or want to announce a product, service or event this is a great resource. Most of these sites have guidelines that do not allow you to announce a "sale". It is This is also an area where a good content writer can help you.

Social Networking - This is a great way to keep your current customers/clients engaged. They can easily help you share information, recommend you and you keep them as a customer or client. do not under estimate the power of keeping your clients/customers coming back over and over again. We often focus so much on gaining new clients/customers we lose sight of our current ones. 

There are others you can also do but these will get your started on your journey and in most cases there are no or little cost to take advantage of these valuable tools.   

When marketing your business online you want to think of it in terms of having a online presence that will attract new customers and clients and keep your current ones engaged and sharing your content with others.

If you have a resource you use to a technique you would like to share please feel free to do. 

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