Building an Effective Online Presence

by Stephen Nagle Hingham

As one of the primary mediums linking consumer and vendor, the Internet has become central to the modern marketplace. Even long-established brick-and-mortar companies with strong brands have found it necessary to establish e-commerce and online marketing strategies in order to remain relevant and in the forefront of public awareness. The same goes for small- and newly-established businesses; if prospective clients in and around your physical location don’t know about you, your business won’t grow. Take a look at the steps on the next page for tips on building an effective online presence:

1. Research. With a virtually limitless number of venues on the Internet, it can be tempting to take a scattershot approach to marketing, placing advertisements or business profiles without any forethought or strategy. Because market dynamics differ among industries, it's critical to first see how your competition approaches marketing.

2. Optimize. Because search engines like Google often serve as the kickoff point for consumers locating a product or service, find out what prospective clients are searching for, i.e., what specific words do they use to engage in a search? Build content around these terms.

At this point, the focus comes to continuously developing quality content that engages readers and has them returning on a regular basis, as well as monitoring ratings and reviews on various websites. Also, don’t underestimate social media; create profiles on websites like Twitter and Facebook to connect with your customers.

About the Author: As Vice President of Phillips Hospitality, Stephen Nagle Hingham introduced e-commerce to the Phillips Candy House.