Is your business struggling to get noticed online?
Let’s face it—the internet is both a gift and a curse. Though a never-ending tunnel of resources and tips, it’s also a minefield of fake news and self-proclaimed experts, gurus, and ninjas. So, in order to garner attention for your business on the internet, you have to do more than simply exist.
If you don’t understand why your business is being continuously overlooked by customers, clients, or even investors, here are three possible reasons why this could be happening:
1. You’re not clearly communicating the value you have to offer.
Nowadays, we all have short
attention spans. Whether you’re introducing yourself at an event, or trying to attract the right people to your website, people should be able to comprehend the value your business or product can provide in two minutes or less.
Ways to Take Action:
- Update your social media profiles with your unique value proposition or tagline. What benefits can people expect? Why should someone invest in you, versus your competitor?
- Sell the problem you solve—not the product. Instead of introducing yourself via your title or role, start by talking about the problem your business or product solves for a specific audience.
- Showcase your impact by mentioning the accolades or achievements that you and your company have earned. This should appear on your company site as well as on any social media accounts affiliated with your brand. It could be as simple as something like, “Voted the No. 1 blog,” or “Ranked among this year’s 30 under 30 entrepreneurs,” and so on.
- Include calls-to-action to your social media profiles. For example, you can compose posts that say things like, “Download my free e-book,” “Subscribe to my podcast,” or “Join my FREE accountability group.”
2. You don’t have a specific target audience.
Listen, building a business that appeals to everyone is a recipe for disaster, because most people buy or invest based on emotion. We all want to feel that a product or service speaks directly to our needs, desires, or even our pain-points.
A Way to Take Action:
Create your ideal audience persona. Then, tailor your content, key messages, products, and services to the specific needs, behaviors, and challenges of that audience.
3. You lack credibility or social proof.
The reality is, if your social proof doesn’t show up in Google, your credibility is suspect. Think of it this way: comments are currency. If you want your business or brand to stand out online, start by building trust and engaging your followers in meaningful conversations.
Ways to Take Action:
- Build relationships with experts or influencers that share mutual interests. Then, partner with them to create more opportunities for cross-promoting your content or business.
- Add customer success stories, video testimonials, and industry influencer or celebrity endorsements of your product or service to your website.
- Encourage people to share your content across social media platforms.
- Host a weekly Q&A forum with customers.
- Add social sharing statistics to your website. Some examples of this could be, “Join my community of over 10,000,” or, “My e-book reached 50,000 downloads!”