Improving Your Company's Online Visibility
It's no secret that we now live in a digital age. In January 2021, there were 4.66 billion active internet users, accounting for 59.5% of the world population. With so much happening online, businesses can no longer survive only on traditional sales and marketing strategies.
Some of the biggest companies that have gone bankrupt in the last decade have failed to innovate and adapt to the rapidly changing retail market, unable to invest in their online visibility. Websites thrive on organic web traffic, and a company's website won’t attract new users if it is simply not accessible online.
Visibility Trumps Ability (To an Extent)
Online visibility is the overall consumer market presence of a brand or a product. When your business has solid online visibility, it enables clients and leads to find your website independently, fortifying brand reputation.
In an ideal world, companies with the best service or product will have the most clients. However, without a robust online presence, your competitors—who can be less competent—can still take your clients and leads. So, in many cases, visibility outweighs ability.
People will do business with you because they know, like, and trust you. If potential customers can't see you, how can you be all these things? People associate visibility with credibility. They won't choose your company if they don't know about it. That's why investing in your company's online visibility is an investment in its success.
Consistency is the Key to Online Visibility
Online visibility is all about “showing up.” It’s having a solid web profile that will show up where prospective customers can find and contact you. It’s also ensuring that your clients and leads will consistently think of your company first.
People will remember your business most for its brand; therefore, your brand must be consistent, representative, and powerful. You want to be your market’s go-to company: clients should feel comfortable recommending you to their loved ones or contacting you for additional products or services.
When you are consistent, you provide your consumers with a constant reminder that your business exists. Consistently providing quality content is also critical for consumer trust and ROI. Spend no more than 30% of your time promoting your product or service, and the rest engaging with your audience and educating them about it.
If you abruptly alter your tone or change your content delivery, you risk alienating your audience and losing their trust. Meanwhile, inconsistent branding can damage your company’s reputation and confuse the market.
As you build your online visibility consistently, you start commanding your market niche. By reinforcing your authority in the digital space and ensuring that you’re found more easily, the competitors will have a hard time taking that advantage away.