5 Ways to Use Your Website to Develop Your Brand
Building an online brand takes time and diligence. Luckily, there are many ways you can use your website to develop your online presence, and they aren’t too complicated. Most things just require a little effort and a lot of patience. Check out these 5 ways you can use your website to get your brand looking, well, brand new!
1. Optimize Your Website
Having a well-polished brand will do very little for your online presence if no one can see it. That is why it is so important to optimize your website. Whether you do it yourself or solicit the aid of an SEO firm, you need to make your corner of the Internet easily visible and accessible to your target market. This is done through trial and error and some savvy analytics.
Use relevant keywords in your content and HTML. Track your site traffic to see how viewers interact with your pages, what sticks, and what isn’t working. Identify times when your site experienced notable spikes in traffic. What was the cause? What did you do differently? Can that scenario be replicated to generate more leads?
Moreover, consider optimizing for mobile devices. Nowadays most people are surfing the web on their phones or tablets. Making your site easily accessible and navigable on these devices will encourage people to use your site.
Much of your optimization will be a process of trial and error as you experiment with different strategies and tactics to draw an audience. Pay attention to the trends and stick with what works. As a rule of thumb, make it easy for people to visit, interact with, and share your website. The easier it is for people to engage with you online, the more traffic you will receive.
2.Publish Quality Content
Even if you optimize your website with relevant keywords, appropriate tags, and easy navigation, it will be difficult to keep people there if you don’t have good content. That is why it is vital to publish quality content on your site. This will not only drive traffic (and keep it there), but it will give you an opportunity to further develop your unique brand.
For example, the articles you post, the videos you share, the information you provide, all work together to create a specific brand. Pay attention to what you promote online, and make sure that it is of the highest quality. The better the content, the stronger your brand.
3. Incorporate Social Media
Whether you are a social media guru or Internet newbie, incorporating social media has become a necessary component of building brand identity. Be sure to include social media buttons on your website to encourage visitors to share and engage with your content. Some big-name platforms include Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and LinkedIn.
Depending on your online niche, you may want to have some or all of these platforms on your site. They will allow you to connect with your audience, further strengthening your brand as you engage with visitors on a social level.
Feel free to be less formal and more approachable on these forums. It will help people put a human face to your brand name and build relationships with your followers.
4. Create a Blog
Developing a blog is a great way to enhance your online presence and brand. Unlike the main body of your website, a blog can be a little less formal while providing your viewers with quality content and information.
Blogs give you an outlet to publish great content regularly, boosting your online optimization (i.e. making your site relevant in the eyes of Google). This will drive traffic to your site, encourage people to share and engage in your content, and give you greater opportunities to further brand yourself.
Blogs help you establish your own expertise in a field (as you write and publish on topics relevant to your area), provide a forum for expression (i.e. branding), and optimize your website for greater online reach and engagement.
So why don’t you have a blog yet?
5. Be Consistent
Finally, be consistent. Even your best branding efforts will be wasted if you do not remain persistent and consistent in your work. Regularly publish content on both your website and blog. Interact with people on your site: respond to their comments on posts, answer their questions on Twitter, and share resources you think will be valuable to your audience.
Moreover, continue to track your online presence, optimize your website according to the stats, and stay up to date on current practices. This way you will remain relevant and visible on online platforms now and in the future.
As you continue to develop your online presence, don’t be afraid to fail. Trial and error means you must learn from mistakes as well as successes. Pay attention to what is working for you and stick with it. Building a brand takes time, not just effort. If you are willing to stay in it for the long haul, you will see great rewards a few months down the road.
Author Byline:
Edson Senna is a business student. He enjoys applying what he has learned by writing about finance, entrepreneurship, SEO and online marketing, and other business-related topics for Clickcom.
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