How to Build Up Your Online Presence

For a lot of roles now, they’re tailored to existing in a digital sphere, be it working for a company as something like a social media manager or PR representative, or maybe just as a freelancer trying to get the word out on their services. It seems that now it’s easier than ever to get the word out there about what you do, but it’s even harder to get people to listen. So what can you do to make the most of these multiple digital platforms in order to publicise your products and services?

Spot Gaps in the Market

With more people than ever seeing the internet as a chance to show their wares, it’s important to stand out and do something different. However, quite confusingly, you might have to join a few bandwagons too. If you take the case of a YouTuber for example, one way they get views is by following trends and challenges, whilst also playing to YouTube’s rulebook in regards to what content benefits algorithms. So if you’re a small business, a sole trader or even a freelancer, you’ll have tread the fine line between do something totally unique that will ensure you’re remembered in the right way whilst also not straying too much off the beaten path so much that you deviate from what people want. One of the most important things though is to do your research. Only then can you grasp at what tends to be successful in your field online, and you can go on to use that as a springboard for thinking outside of the box and standing out from the crowd.

One good way of doing that is to help solve problems. ‘What problems are you having and what are the solutions? That’s the way that most great inventors came up with their products or services. Take for example, airport parking. It’s sometimes an afterthought to many people booking their holidays abroad, and they can be quite expensive too. But there was a solution to be had, and Parking at Airports jumped in to fill that gap in the market. They offer cheap car parking from a whole host of airports up and down the country. So in a world where it seems like everything has already been discovered or invented, there are still problems out there that you can solve.

Utilise Social Channels

Especially if you’re a young person looking to make their way in a tough competitive industry, then you will probably need a strong online presence on social media channels, to act as both an easy promotional tool and to also get across your unique voice, personality and life experiences. For older people established in their preferred field, this is perhaps less important, but if you’re someone who’s in a creative role like an actor or graphic designer (or basically anything front-facing that requires attention from others to be successful) then having social media accounts like Twitter and Instagram are crucial. They allow you to spread the word about what you do and to increase your followership and fanbase. If you’re very visual then using Insta and utilising hashtags is the way to go. If you’re more of a wordsmith, then Twitter is the place to go to show what you’re all about.

Facebook, however, seems like a bit of a dead platform for startups, entrepreneurs and sole traders. In recent years they’ve focussed on big business, political parties and news sites and sidelined creators. Even if you created a brand new Facebook page and all of your friends liked it, they still wouldn’t see all of your posts. To do that, and to have a wider outreach, you will usually have to pay for promotion. However, if you are targeting anyone 40+ then the likelihood is that they will have Facebook more than any other platform, with Twitter and Instagram having a younger demographic, so it depends what your intended audience will be to judge whether it’d be beneficial.

Build a Boss Website

So you’ve got your ideas and your social media channels set up, but one thing that you will need to show off what you can do in depth is a great looking website. Having a portfolio website if you’re an independent creative, or having a website for your product or service if you’re an entrepreneur can really show what you’re about on a macro scale. Think of it like this. Social media is a promotional tool which shows off what you’re about on a micro scale, and by linking in the website on your social accounts you can direct people towards your work. Building a website these cans can be relatively inexpensive and pretty easy to do. There are so many services out there offering website building technology which exploits the very best of HTML5 coding. If have the technical knowhow to create your own website then it might be something worth tackling to have a completely unique looking website, but if you don’t have the time or knowledge then take a look at what Website Builder Expert thinks are the best free site builders currently around.