All news
Building a Brand from Scratch
November 18, 2011
Building a brand online is intimidating to many businesses, but the process is simpler than you may think. The process can be de-mystified, and as long as your organization is willing to commit to an online marketing strategy for the long haul, you will achieve success.
Recently, it's become more and more obvious to me that one of the largest challenges for businesses is simply becoming noticed online. For businesses who have been around for a while, it's a tough pill to swallow. When you're known for bricks and mortar business, it's easy to focus on that part of your establishment, and forget about the digital side - especially considering today's economic circumstances.
But having high web traffic is rapidly becoming essential to the survival of even the most traditionally successful brick and mortar operations. Websites and applications like Groupon and even our very own PrePaidDining.com are changing the way restaurants must market themselves. Consumers are using Google, and they're finding new places to eat and entertain not in the Sunday clippers but online. There are deals online, and people are now ordering online rather than using the telephone or stopping by a local establishment. It's convenient and it's customer service. And the kicker is that the most effective way to market online is via social media - but not the way you think. Traditional self-promotion doesn't work in this arena. What works is simply building a solid reputation the good, old fashioned way, and turning that reputation into legitimate referrals.
The challenge for businesses trying to compete for attention online is that there is a myth out there that there's a quick fix for all of this. There is no quick fix.
Some SEO shops will promise hundreds of "inbound links" per month to your website for specific keywords. The fundamental problem with this is that they're not telling you WHERE those links will appear, nor that Google will likely eventually penalize your website for blatant link building or link buying.
The answer to the million dollar question of how to build a solid online reputation is one that businesses don't want to hear - but need to.
It's the same as building a brand from scratch. Just because you've been out in your community for decades doesn't mean your online presence is where it needs to be. If you don't use Google Analytics to track your web traffic, or don't make some type of update to your website content monthly, then you're likely in trouble. You need to approach digital marketing as building a whole new brand from the ground up.
But there is good news around the corner. It's not as complicated as you think. The process can be totally demystified. Building a solid online brand is possible - and you can either do it completely internally, or with outside help, depending on your philosophy. It's a lot like how you built your business traditionally to get where you are today - only doing so online. The concept is the same but the tools are different.
Instead of holding seminars, you're blogging and publishing. Instead of making physical sales calls you're using social media, and instead of fielding phone calls and walk-ins, you're using forums and "contact us" forms to listen to how to improve your business.
If you can learn the digital tools to apply the same strategies that made you successful 20 years ago in order to come alive online, building a new brand from scratch will not be difficult. It will, however, take significant time and effort. Remember, there is no quick fix.
For an advanced crash course on building a brand online without big dollars, check out this post from AimClearBlog.com.
For more information on how Atiba can help you build your brand and reputation online, email marketing@atiba.com.
Follow us on Twitter:
Paul Hickey
Atiba News
