The online world is crowded. It can be confusing and a source of information overload. So how are you supposed to be able to get your business visible in such a crowded online space?
Well, today I have five steps to share with you to start out and to set a solid foundation of getting your message heard online.
Step 1: Make Sure Your Message is Clear
Step number one is to make sure your marketing message is clear. I like how Donald Miller says “If you confuse, you lose.” Though it’s fun to come up with cute and clever sayings and slogans, that will not get you very far. You want it clear and concise so your audience knows exactly how you can help them.
Your message needs to come across quickly. If you make them think too much, to figure out what exactly you sell and how you can improve their lives, they’re going to check out before you have a chance to really introduce yourself and before they figure out what you offer. So make sure your message is crystal clear and simple to get across.
Step 2: Set up an Effective Website
Step number two is to set up an effective website. I see lots of websites just kind of thrown together in a hurry just to have something online. And while that’s fine while you’re just launching, a very early step you want to take is to get a website that’s effective. You need a website that actually turns those browsers into buyers.
There are many ways and things to remember while setting up an effective website, which I’ll get into another time. But for now, remember that you want your website to get that clear message across and tell your customers exactly what steps to take next so they can do business with you.
Step 3: Create a Freebie
Step number three is to put together a freebie. Now these have lots of names, an “Opt-in” and “Lead magnet,” just to name a couple. But it is basically a bait, a trade for their email address.
You want to build an email for a variety of reasons, but just know this is important. No matter what your business is, you need an email list. But in order to build that list, it goes much faster and easier if there is something that you can give your audience in return.
Now your freebie doesn’t have to be complicated. In fact, some of the most effective ones are quick wins like a checklist or a quick guide. You just something that your ideal customer will want, and that can lead them into your paid offerings.
Step 4: Set up an Email Sequence
So while step three is to put together an email freebie, step number four is to put together an email sequence.
This is going to be an automated sequence of emails that you can set up to send your audience as soon as they sign up for your freebie.
And this is your chance to really turn the audience into warm leads, because you can introduce yourself and give them more value. You definitely want to build value through this sequence, share how you can help them, and what next steps they can take.
Step 5: Social Media Presence
Finally, we have social media. This is one of the last steps for this first phase of bringing your business online. You want your social media to lead back to your home base, which is your website and your email list.
So you definitely want to build relationships and value on social media too, but it’s very important that your social media profiles and many of your posts lead back to that home base, where those browsers can turn into buyers.
So that covers our five steps to the foundation of getting seen online. Make sure your message is clear, set up an effective website, create an email freebie and welcome sequence, and finally set up a social media strategy that leads back to your home base.
If you want to save these steps, be sure to grab at my freebie below, which outlines them for you in a printable document that you can save and refer back to. So enter your email below and I will send it straight to your inbox.
