Six Tips for Building Your Company Brand OnlineUsing the Internet to Establish Your Business Image
|
|
|
| 1.0/5.0 (1 votes total) |
|
|
|
Tony Baker August 24, 2007
|
Are you projecting a consistent image to your potential
customers? Do they even know your name? Wal-mart, Windows, Apple: each of those
names conjures an image, a logo or a product line at just the mention of their
name.
You, too, want to get your name out there as a certified,
reliable business. A cohesive identity allows people to associate your company
with quality, speed, reliability, or your unique selling points. The Internet
is a great place to get started. New
technologies and growing online audiences make online marketing a very
effective way to reach your customers. Here are six ways to build a powerful
image for your brand online and off.
1) Consider social media
Sites like MySpace and Facebook are just two of the numerous
social media sites out there. Starbucks has an excellent Myspace profile that
represents their company well. Their site hosts photo contests of Starbucks
locations or products, and offers an easy way to forward the site to other Myspace
friends. These features encourage and reward audience participation, a key
ingredient of social media.
Don't try to hit up all social media sites, though. The
point of social media is to get involved in it. Don't just make a profile and
throw up a couple of articles and hope for the best. Read and respond to other
people's blog posts and articles. Start thought-provoking discussions in
forums. Find a good niche and stick with it. Become a member of the community,
and the community will see you that way. If people are intrigued by what you
have to say, then they'll be searching your profile for more information.
2) Give your company a
voice and an image
Audio and video can become two of your best friends. With
YouTube and podcasting, it’s become easier than ever to promote your company
with multimedia. Don't splash them all over your site, but do some research
into your target audience and find out what kind of audio and video performs
well. Once you have an idea of what could work for you, start creating and
distributing your own content. You'd be surprised at how a few entertaining
videos on YouTube or another video-sharing site can boost your publicity.
3) Stop the presses
You can draw traffic to your website with well-timed press
releases and articles. Press releases can even show up in Google News or Yahoo
News if you use the right distribution service. Contact local or industry
reporters to expand the reach of your news through traditional and online media
outlets as well.
A well-written article can gain exposure for your website as
well. You can include a link to your website in the author bio information to
draw readers to your site when they finish the article. Directories like
EzineArticles.com are always looking for new content. You can also contact
online news websites and various online magazines and newsletters to see if
they are interested in running your piece.
4) Put your website on all
your marketing materials
Your offline marketing efforts should include your website
information. Every online profile, every brochure, every banner ad and every
business card should have your website URL on it. URLs should be easy to
remember and easy to visit. If somebody wants to get a better idea of what your
company's about, they should be able to tell with a five-second visit to your
site.
5) Keep your website
updated
If you want to build your brand online, you'll need to make
sure your website is working for you. And that means keeping it updated
regularly. Few things will kill your brand faster than having a website or blog
that hasn't been updated in months. That gives the impression that your company
and brand are tired, or old, or even out of business and nobody's told the guys
running the site just yet.
6) Keep your message
consistent
Whether you're going online or offline for your marketing
and advertising, the message you send should be consistent across all your
materials. If you have mixed messages, you'll risk alienating the customers you
have and won't be able to convert potential clients.
Online marketing is one of the best options for building a
name for your business, and there are a number of ways to do it. Explore as
many avenues as you can, and find the ones that have the best return for you. You
may not be able to become the next Starbucks, but you can establish a
trustworthy name for your business. |