Surprisingly there are still a lot of companies that don’t have an online presence for a variety of reasons which includes not having time, thinking that it’s not important, or that they still find success without having to be online. If you are a company that wants to get started the right way here are some things I recommend to all my companies I have helped get out of their comfort zone and get online.
Make a plan
The biggest mistake I see companies do is that they want to dive head first and jump on every single platform. It’s very common that early on in someone’s business that they get very excited and eager to do so much in the beginning. Often times what happens is that they don’t see growth on any of their platforms because they are spreading themselves too thin.
My recommendation is to focus on only a few platforms whether it be only Instagram and a website or a combo of a few others. It’s important to note that just because a platform is there doesn’t mean a company should be advertising on it. Depending on demographic and target audience sometimes it just doesn’t make sense. A plan should consist of what platforms make sense for a company to be on as well.
It’s also important for a company to set the goal for why they’re even marketing in the first place. Is to get more sales? Is it for publicity? There are a variety of different goals that effect the way that one markets.
Brand
Believe it or not there is a lot more to branding than just a logo! Branding deserves its own topic but to keep it short and sweet, branding is how a company identifies itself by use of marks, voice, values, colors, as well as many other things.
Branding is a company’s strongest asset. Branding is why you might choose Starbucks coffee at the grocery store rather than a different brand. Both Starbucks and the competing branding might have both of their coffees sourced and packaged in the same factory but it’s the fact that Starbucks has established trust and quality within their products which allows consumers to pick them over opposing brands.
Content and more content!
Content creation and strategy is the key to having a consistent and unique presence online. Creating your own content is a great first step! Whether you are posting on Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest, or your own website you need to have high quality stuff that people can respond to. Another thing I see all the time is that new business owners think they can be a swiss army knife when it comes to every aspect in their business which causes the content quality to suffer.
Many don’t want to spend the money contracting out someone to create or manage content and that’s totally okay but they need to be prepared for things to become overwhelming when it comes to producing great content.
Overall getting online doesn’t seem too hard in theory. My advice is to just start. If you’re anything like me I tend to make excuses for myself to avoid getting started. Whether you still need a logo or you don’t have a website yet, don’t let anything hold you back from producing content online and being visible for the online world so that your customers can find you!
