Mr. Rakesh is a distributor of industrial pumps for the past couple of years. Recently, he met a potential customer at one exhibition and after explaining about the products he sent a quotation to that customer. After receiving that quote, the first thing that the customer did was to google Mr. Rakesh’s company name on Google! He was hoping to find out more about the company, its product range, and details of existing customers. Guess what, he found nothing.
That customer couldn’t build enough confidence to do business with Mr. Rakesh and eventually stopped responding to calls.
If this story sounds familiar to you, probably you do not have a web presence and for your potential customers, your company does not exist!
Why is it important to have a web presence for your business?
Have you ever heard the saying, “If it’s not online, it doesn’t exist”? In today’s digital age, that statement has never been more true. As more and more people turn to the internet to research products and services, web presence is a must-have for every business.
Well, it’s very obvious. Nowadays, every customer turns up to Google before making any purchase decision. If you casually introduce your business to a recently met person, chances are he will try to find more information about you on Linkedin or search for your business on his favorite search engine.
People do this because they want to get comfortable with you before doing any business and to do that they will try to find as much information as possible from various sources.
Take Mr. Rakesh, for example. He’s been in the business of distributing industrial pumps for a couple of years, but when a potential customer searched for his company online, they found nothing. As a result, they lost confidence in Mr. Rakesh’s business.
This is just one example of how not having a web presence can cost you potential customers and hurt your business.
In this blog post, we’ll show you how to avoid that fate by building a strong online presence for your business in just 5 simple steps. So let’s get started!
How to build a strong web presence for your business?
Now that we have understood the importance of having a strong web presence for your business, it’s time to dive into how to build one. In this section, we’ll explore the key steps you can take to create a strong online presence that helps you to reach your target audience, build brand awareness, and increase sales.
The process of building a web presence does not happen overnight and it requires a well thought strategy and investment in terms of time. are you ready for it? From building a professional website to leveraging the social media platform, creating engaging content, and optimizing for search engines, we’ll cover everything you need to know to get started.
Whether you’re a small business owner or a marketing professional looking to improve your online presence, this guide will provide actionable tips and the best ways to help you succeed. So, let’s get started and learn how to build a strong web presence for your business!
Step 1- Set Goals before getting started
You cannot start building an online presence just because it has to be done, before you begin building your web presence, it’s important that you set goals that align with your overall business objectives.
These goals will help you stay focused and measure your progress. Your goals can and should change with time, it is important to set measurable goals and time frames. Here are some questions that you can answer while setting a perfect goal for your online success:
- Why does your business need a web presence? Do you want to increase sales, generate leads, build brand awareness, or something else?
- Who is your target audience? What are their needs, interests, and online behavior?
- What actions do you want your audience to take on your website or social media channels? For example, do you want them to fill out a contact form, make a purchase, or sign up for your email newsletter?
- How much budget you are willing to invest to build your web presence
By answering these questions, you can establish a clear set of goals and objectives for your web presence that will help you to set a strategy and ensure that you’re on track to achieve your business objectives.
Another good way to find the right goal is to research your competitor. Just google them and see how they are managing their web presence. Once you are done with this step, let’s move to the next step
Step 2- Build the right website for your company
Build the right website for your company
When it comes to building an online presence for your business, your company website is the most crucial aspect. It serves as the starting point for potential customers to learn about your business, the products or services you offer, and how to get in touch with you. In this second step, we’ll discuss how to get your company website right.
You can either hire a web design company or create a website by yourself with the use of low-code or no-code website builders.
Check this easy website builder to get started. Most of these sites also offer a free trial plan, you are required to pay only when need additional services like a custom domain name.
A good company website should have clear information about the products or services and contact details. Avoid using flash and large images that might slow down the site and affect visitors’ experience.
One of the critical factors for a good company website is its discoverability on Google. Search engine optimization might seem daunting for a non-technical person, but it’s worth it once you grasp the basic concepts. Check out this step-by-step guide to search engine optimization. The objective here is to optimize pages for your company name and the names of your products or services which visitors might enter in search engines.
By following these steps, you’ll be on your way to creating a company website that is engaging, discoverable, and informative for your target customers. It may take time for your website to appear in search results, so patience is key.
Step 3 Use Social Media Effectively
Build your business presence on social media
In today’s digital world, having a social media presence has become an essential aspect of building an online presence for your business. In this third step, we’ll discuss how to effectively use social channels to reach out to your target audience and promote your brand.
To keep things simple, we recommend starting with the big three social media platforms: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Youtube, and LinkedIn. It only takes a few minutes to create a page for your business on these social platforms. Once you have created your accounts, here are some tips to build a brand on social media:
- Project a professional image of your company by using beautiful photos or background images.
- Decide on a posting frequency and stick to it.
- Remember, social media is not just about promoting your products or services. You should also provide value by talking about your industry or by sharing useful tips. It’s essential to engage with your audience by responding to comments and messages.
.Pro Tip Use Hootsuite, an excellent platform that helps you to manage up to 3 social profiles in one place. You can also schedule future posts.
With these tips and the right tools, you’ll be well on your way to building a strong social media presence for your business.
Step 4 Build your network through Social media
Network on social media
Building a strong network through social media can greatly benefit your business by providing you with valuable connections, partnerships, and potential customers. The fourth step in building your online presence is all about leveraging social media to network with individuals and thought leaders in your industry.
Next question is, how to build a network online? Google groups and Linkedin Groups are the best places to build a good network. Quora is another great question-answer platform where users help each other on various topics.
Along with social media don’t forget to focus on email marketing as well as creating a WhatsApp business profile. This will help you connect with your target audience even if they are not super active on social media platforms. you can use tools like MailChimp for email marketing.
The important thing to note here is, you should participate in the discussion to add value, and avoid direct advertisement of your product or services as the community might ban you for that.
In addition to online networking, don’t forget the importance of offline networking. Attend industry events and business expos to meet people face-to-face and build connections that can extend to the online world.
Step 5 Analyse and improve your online presence
Here at ProfitBooks, we say you can’t improve what you can’t track, this also applies to your business’s online presence.
It’s important to track the progress and know if your efforts are paying off. This can be achieved by tracking website visitors using Google Analytics, a free tool that provides detailed statistics about users visiting your website.
Similarly, social media performance can be tracked by recording the growth of followers on Twitter or fans on Facebook.
By analyzing the data over time, you can identify trends and events that impact your online performance. For instance, you might see a surge in traffic after you participate in a business expo. This information can help you make better decisions and improve your online presence.
Remember, continuous improvement is key to achieving your business goals.
Conclusion
Now you know the importance of building an online presence for your business, as you can make a lot of potential customers your loyal customers, and don’t face the same fate as Mr Rakesh. Remember, building a strong online presence takes time and effort, but the rewards can be huge.
So, start by creating a great website, use social media wisely, and keep track of your progress with analytics. And don’t forget to always keep improving! With a little patience and persistence, you can build a strong online presence that will help your business thrive.
Now that you have understood the importance of having a web presence, and you will see a rise in your sales. this might be the right time to also Invest in accounting software can be very helpful. Accounting software, such as Profitbooks, offers a variety of features that can simplify tasks like invoicing, inventory management, and payment tracking. One of the key things to note is that using Profitbooks accounting software is its “Forever free plan”
And if you have any additional tips or tricks for building an online presence, I would love to hear them in the comments below!
Also read:-
8 free ways to promote your business online for free
