Ten Strategies to Increase Your Visibility Online
By Donna Gunter
Increasing online visibility is the goal of most online business owners. After all,
without visibility, you have no traffic and thus no business. However, when you start to
research how to increase your online visibility, you discover so many options, yet have so
little time for research and implementation. Where does an online entrepreneur turn first
to get the visibility (and traffic) you seek to help you promote your online venture?
New tricks and gimmicks come out every day, but unfortunately, most of them are like so
many recording artists and become one-hit wonders. In my business, I've discovered that
there are a handful that are able to stand the test of time. Some have been around for as
long as websites have been around, while others are newer kids on the block. Here are my
10 most effective strategies to massively increase your visibility online:
1. Press releases. Press releases are a well-known marketing strategy that has worked
for years with print and broadcast media. In recent years they have found new life as an
online visibility tool. Just like in the old days, your release should carry some
newsworthy angle that has been optimized with a select few keywords by which you want your
business to be found. Don't waste your time submitting your release to the free press
release sites - the release simply sits on the site and goes no where else. Instead,
invest in a fee-based service (I prefer PRWeb.com), which will ensure your release gets
the recognition it deserves.
2. Social Networking. A "johnny come lately" to the online visibility scene, social
networking now ranks near the top in terms of attracting much visibility to your business
for a very low cost. If you don't yet have accounts on the two most popular social
networking platforms, Facebook and Twitter, today is the day to hop on board and begin to
network. Choose 1-2 social networking platforms where your target market hangs out, and
then begin to work it by making connections, joining groups or networks, sharing
resources, and asking questions. Dedicate 15-30 minutes each day to your effort to begin
to see results.
3. Article Marketing. Writing and submitting articles to major article directories has
definitely stood the test of time for online visibility. Article marketing will drive
traffic to your site, establish you as an expert in your target market's eyes, and give
you valuable content to repurpose into information products. For maximum effectiveness,
your article needs to contain a strong resource box (author's bio) that drives traffic
back to your site, needs to contain useful content that solves a problem of your target
market, and is written in a tips-based fashion, like this one, as they are the easiest for
a website visitor to read and digest.
4. Blogging. Business blogs (a web log or journal), have gained popularity over the
last few years as an online visibility tool. Blogs use RSS feed technology to immediately
get new posts and updates out to your blog subscribers through a feed reader. Unlike
ezines or traditional websites, search engines index blog posts almost immediately, which
help you generate traffic to your website. To use effectively as an online visibility
tool, you need to post 2-3 times per week to keep your readers interested and coming back.
|