Back to basics – Online presence

September 12, 2020 Admin

What is online presence

In short, online presence is the totality of information that can be publicly found about you, whether business or individual, through an online search.

Elements of online presence include:
– Social network accounts, including professional, specialty, dating, etc.
– Web page(s)
– News and articles about you published by third parties.
– Registers and directories
– Public databases (i.e. municipal, state, federal, other)
– Other data elements hosted by you or third parties

Online presence includes content in all its forms: text, videos, images, and recordings (i.e. podcasts, interviews, voice recordings).

Do I need to have an online presence?

While for individuals having online presence is to an extent, optional, for a business its a must. Nowadays anyone who lives in an active economy of certain scale and wants to research or find information about anything on of the first places they look -if not the only- is online.

If you want to communicate something about your business (or yourself) to others, publicly or privately, having online presence is one of the best ways. Consider how traditional methods such as newspapers, yellow pages, printed directories, and similar “tangible” methods have almost disappeared. If you are not available online and someone searches for you or the products/services that you sell you simply will not exist to them.

Now, if you are an individual you could opt not to have an online presence; however, with today’s expectations, not having online presence can actually be a red flag, and potential partners, customers, suppliers, or employers would wonder why there is no information available online about you -or your business-.

Where do I start?

If you are a business –
1. Build (or improve) your website. Keep content relevant, updated, and focused on your priorities.

2. Identify the social and professional networks where you want to operate. Remember that each choice will require time and resources to maintain so be wise in your selections.

3. Identify a lead or leaders for each online location. This person or team will be responsible not only for maintaining the site, but also monitoring activity and interactions with visitors.

If you are an individual –

Define your comfort level in where you want to be active and what type of information you want to share with the world. For some people this will be just a professional network such as LinkedIn.com and a personal profile in Facebook or Instagram. Other people will want to participate and be active in more social networks.

As you participate in these networks be assertive about your activity and privacy settings, keeping in mind that some networks will have default settings that can make you searchable and make much of your information available publicly. Avoid surprises and spend time understanding what, when, where, and how is your content made available.

Some social networks where you can participate include:
– Facebook
– Instagram
– Pinterest
– Snapchat
– TikTok
– Telegram
– LinkedIn (professional network)
– YouTube

What if I don’t want an online presence

Its an option; however, as we mentioned above, not having an online presence for can almost be a red flag about you. If you are a business you will limit your potential; if you are an individual, anyone may wonder why there is no information about you online, could you be hiding something?
Remember, you do not need to be present everywhere, just in the right places, at the right level for you, and whichever your choice is, be conscious managing your online presence.

If you would like assistance developing or improving your online presence contact us for a free informational discussion.