Ask yourself whether or not you can find your business online in less than 30 seconds.

 

Nine times out of ten, your business will have an online presence whether you’re consciously doing something about it or not.
We prefer that you do. Tracking, monitoring and improving your online presence can positively impact how well customers and prospects perceive your business and grow your sales pipeline.

 

Your customers and potential customers are already online. Right now. Today. There’s a good chance they might already be looking for a business like yours, but if they can’t find you easily, they are probably going to choose someone else.

 

Reality is, this is how people do business today. When someone has an interest in your business or if they are curious about your brand, the first thing they are going to do is research online and see what they can find out about you.

 

If a potential customer can’t find you online, they may conclude that your business doesn’t appear to be credible. There is a very good chance that a lot of these potential customers may decide not to take your business seriously and they will quickly head somewhere else.

Once they have made that decision, they probably won’t be back.

 

So, why is your online presence important?

 

1. It makes your business more accessible

 

Even if your business doesn’t sell anything on the internet, a positive online presence can help you sell more offline. Today, we understand and appreciate that people search for businesses and products online before making any purchase decisions.  

 

2. It enhances your marketing and branding 

 

Your online presence helps people become familiar with your brand. Customer reviews and engagement on social media can serve as sales enablers. A website or social media profile helps establish a visual identity that people can recognize as well as trust. Having an online presence is a passive marketing stream for your business.

 

3. It can make your business more credible

 

Having a solid online presence is the first step towards making sure people take you seriously. Online presence is key to establishing your brand credibility and company as a legitimate business. Nowadays, it’s hard for us to trust a company if we can’t find any information about it on the internet.

 

4. It helps you better understand your audience

 

Having an online presence means allowing for a dialogue with your audience to gather insightful feedback or reviews. This also allows you to better understand who your potential customers are and understand their ‘wants’.

 

Bottom line, your online presence is a form of communication that you can’t completely control, and you should constantly monitor it. Although the ultimate objective of having an online presence is to be found on the internet, often, that alone is not enough.