Hello Online World

So you started your new business or non profit organization specializing in historic preservation, you have fabulous program offerings, but no one knows you're out there. What do you do next? Building your online presence can be time consuming and, at times, frustrating, but it’s also very important and could make or break your new venture.

Your online presence can determine if consumers will take your business seriously. With a few click consumers determine if a visit to your location, museum, tour, camp, or any program is a viable investment of their time and money. Your online presence is the beautifully decorated buffet or menu that compells consumers to come inside, grab a seat and enjoy a good meal that is guaranteed to fill them up.

But I'm not a programmer and I'm on a shoe string budget, what do I do? There’s a lot that goes into building your online presence, from establishing your goals, to actually creating your different profiles and accounts, to building a website, to figuring out the best ways to engage and interact across different mediums and social media platforms. Are you overwhelmed yet? Let’s break it down so you can get started right now.  

3 Ways That You Can Start Building Your Online Pressence Today

1. Provide Valuable Easy To Read Content - Whether it’s via your website, an online community, or through your social media channels, you should always be looking to provide excellent content value first and foremost. The number one question you must ask yourself is, what content are you providing your audience and what message are you trying to convey? It might be a blog, website, a podcast, video or social media post; whatever form that content takes, make sure it’s consistent and valuable. Creating consistent and valuable content will help you gain credibility and authority in your industry or niche, which is important for your online growth and visibility. Providing consistent high value content through the online communities you manage and on all of your social media channels is important for your online growth as well at you increased foot traffic in brick and mortar locations.

2. Go Social - One of the greatest things about the Internet is that it allows you to be everywhere. Being social doesn’t mean you HAVE to have a Facebook page, Twitter profile, Google+ profile, Pinterest board, YouTube channel, LinkedIn profile and so on. But being social DOES mean you should have at least two or three of these profiles set up that you regularly post and engage on. Consistency here is key. If you’re not able to manage your social media channels by posting regularly and being a part of the conversation, then it’s going to be hard to increase your following. Social media can be a GREAT marketing tool to help you gain those initial fans and followers, and once you have those followers, it’s also a great tool to reach those who know, like and trust you.

3. Build A Solid Platform - Don’t just build an online presence because you’re “supposed to”, build a solid platform strategically, so that it can help you achieve your overall business goals. For most small businesses and entrepreneurs, building a solid platform starts with building your website. Your website is your hub: a centralized place where people can go to learn more about what you have to offer, contact you, and interact and engage with your content. Things like a clear message (what your business is all about), easy-to-use navigation, an opt in giveaway (so you can start building your email list), a contact page, an about page, and some type of valuable content are required.

Don't forgert to ask for help from those around you, who have enough knowledge to help you get started. The Google Keyword tool is a great resource if you want to start with at least finding out the ranking of the keywords of your website. For more information and tips on developing a great online presence, check out bitcacha's beginners guide to an online presence at https://www.bitcatcha.com/beginners-guide-to-online-presence. Click here to see an example of the first website that I built using the online website builder tool https://wix.com. Wix is fast, affordable and easy way to get a web presence. You can do it yourself without learning code or spending hours on the phone with tech support. If you're like me and you like to KISS your projects (keep It Simple Stupid), all you need is time and patients to create a beautiful, user-friendly website with Wix. Been waiting for your chance to join the online world? Give https://wix.com a try today. Happy Website Building.