6 Ways to Create an Online Presence for Yourself or Your Brand

In a day and age where everything is right at a person's fingertips, having an online presence almost becomes essential. Your online presence becomes your resume and allows people to better understand your mission, skill set, and what you care about. And, while it is easy to say, "That is not who I am," as a reason to not participate in online networking. It is also just as easy to see how much value it can provide.

Whether it is basketball trainers that used to scrape by with a few clients and are now working with hundreds of clients online or a basketball coach who is able to connect with other coaches online to find a new job, the value of an online presence speaks for itself.

So whether you are already trying to increase your online presence, or just now recognizing that you should have one, this article is going to provide six different ways that you can increase your online presence. There are plenty more than that out there, but this list will at least give you a foundation to start from.

One of the biggest mistakes that people make online is not being themselves. They want to present this perfect version of themselves because they think that is what people want. What happens, though, is that this comes off as very fake and generic. And with so many people trying to do this, it is very easy to become indistinguishable from everyone else. 

People are looking for content and people that are going to be real with them. They want unique and original content that is going to benefit them. The only way you are ever going to be able to provide this is to be real yourself. 

So when you look to connect with people online, look to develop real relationships with them. Whether you have ten followers or a million, you should still be the same person.

One of the biggest things that I have learned over the years with BasketballHQ.com is that quality content is king. In the early days, I thought it was all about quantity. I thought that the more I posted, the more chances there would be for people to come back to the site. It wasn't till a guest coach submitted a post on 8 Keys to Becoming a Great Point Guard that I understood the value of going the extra mile to complete a post. After sharing the post, it brought substantially more traffic than any other post previously. It was then that I realized the importance of making sure all of my content fulfilled a certain standard.

So when you share, whether it is something you have written or not, make sure that it meets a standard of quality that you stand by. If you share low-quality content, you will start to lose the interest of your followers. They will remember the last post, video, etc. that you shared, and think, "I don't want to waste my time again." So remember, quality is king.

This is going to be more difficult if you are only sharing quality posts, but it is also a must. It is almost impossible to build up an online presence if you are posting regularly. If you want to build up a following, you need to generate momentum and then keep that momentum going. This doesn't mean that you have to post every day, but it does mean you need to find some consistency.

I know, I know, there is only a limited amount of hours in a day, and you don't have time to work on this regularly. Luckily, there are a number of excellent tools out there for scheduling posts and content out in advance. A great example of this is with another website that I work with called ListsForAll.com. 

We use a program called Tailwind that allows us to schedule out our Pinterest posts (also offers Instagram). Within a couple of hours, all of our content is scheduled out and ready to go. After only using this program for several months, we were able to grow our presence on Pinterest from 100,000 impressions a month to over 3,000,000 impressions a month.

This does not mean that this will automatically happen for everyone, but your online presence will continue to grow exponentially if you are consistently posting quality content.  

It is hard to get anywhere in life without at least some help from others. As you are going to be looking to grow your online presence, you are going to need help from others. Whether it is someone else sharing your content, commenting, etc., you will need others to help you out. And, while you can't always control what others are doing, you can control what you do. So be the person that is willing to help others. Be the person that is actively looking to connect with others to help promote what they are doing. Before you know it, you will discover that they are trying to do the same thing for you in return.

This goes back to being real and genuine with people. Don't have a scratch my back, and I will scratch your back mentality. That is typically how it works out anyway, but you should be willing to help as you are able to.

For clarification, this doesn't mean that you need to help a direct competitor if you are a business. If someone is asking you to share something that conflicts with what you are doing, politely decline. There will be plenty of opportunities to help others outside of what competes with what you offer.

Depending on your content or what you offer, different social media outlets will fit your voice better. You will only know if a platform fits your voice, though, if you are willing to give it a try.

An excellent example of this is Facebook versus Instagram. I recently started a new basketball training business in Tampa, Florida. In the past, Facebook was a great way for me to connect with people online, and still is somewhat today, but where most younger players are today is Instagram. So what I did was target Instagram to try and build my social presence there. I was able to share my training videos, connect with potential clients, and ultimately generate some new clients. If I would've stuck with what I knew and only used Facebook, I would never have been able to get in front of those clients.

So while you may be used to doing something a certain way on one social media platform (and potentially having some success), that doesn't mean you shouldn't also be exploring other avenues. Be willing to try out the newest social media craze, and who knows, maybe you will be an expert on that channel before anyone else.

It is easy to see someone else's success or online presence blow up "overnight," and think that they got lucky. And while sometimes, it does take a little bit of luck, it is also is typically preceded by a lot of hard work.

If you are looking to grow your online presence, it may be slow growth followed by slow growth, and then that one article, video, etc. blows up, and you are able to connect to a whole new community of people. So continue to work until something good happens. If you know that you are providing quality content, stick with it, and continue to move forward with your mission. Because who knows, your big break could be right around the corner.

Creating a strong online presence for yourself or your brand is essential in today's digital age. It allows you to connect with a wider audience, showcase your expertise, and build credibility. The article you mentioned provides valuable insights, so here are six ways to establish a robust online presence:

1. Develop a Professional Website: Start by building a user-friendly and visually appealing website that represents your personal brand or business. Ensure it's easy to navigate, mobile-responsive, and includes essential information about you or your products/services.

2. Engage on Social Media: Establish active profiles on relevant social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn, or others. Regularly share content that resonates with your target audience, including articles, images, videos, and updates about your brand.

3. Content Creation and Blogging: Consistently create valuable and informative content related to your industry or niche. Blog posts, articles, videos, and infographics can showcase your expertise, improve your search engine rankings, and drive traffic to your website.

4. Search Engine Optimization (SEO): Optimize your online content for search engines to increase your visibility in search results. Use relevant keywords, optimize meta tags, and focus on both on-page and off-page SEO strategies to improve your website's ranking.

5. Engage with Your Audience: Interact with your online audience through comments, direct messages, and engagement on social media. Respond promptly, address queries, and encourage discussions to build a loyal community around your brand.

6. Collaborate and Network: Partner with influencers, other businesses, or individuals in your industry to expand your reach. Collaborative projects, guest posting, and participating in online forums can help you tap into new audiences and enhance your credibility.

Remember, building an online presence takes time and consistent effort. Regularly analyze your efforts using web analytics and social media insights to refine your strategies and achieve better results. By implementing these steps, you can effectively create a strong online presence for yourself or your brand.

When it comes to creating an online presence, there is no secret game plan or step-by-step that is guaranteed to work. If there were, someone would be selling it, and you could just buy your way into it. And while there is no step-by-step, there is a foundation that will allow you a chance at being successful. That is what this article was designed to do.