On February 11th, 2023, a tiny Salvadorean girl decided to go back to blogging. December 2022 was not kind to her, and the first couple of months of 2023 were gray-looking.
“Let’s go to WordPress.”
Why WordPress? As much as I know about website building and marketing, my decision to go with WordPress was more based on the fact that I have known them for years rather than on the fact that they are the go-to of most web developers and marketers. WordPress has been part of my life since back in 2010 when Windows Live Spaces CLOSED and all sites transferred to WordPress.
February 2023 is when we started building Luna’s online presence, and February 14th, 2023, was the first time we wrote on our little marketing blog. As a celebration of the first anniversary of our blog, let’s talk about online presence and how Luna has grown during this year.
What does “Online Presence” Mean?
Your online presence is EVERYTHING you do online: from your website to your social media – and even the posts from other people where you appear – anything that exists online about you or your brand is part of your online presence.
Not existing online is nearly impossible nowadays, and as we mentioned when we discussed what happens if you are not on Social Media, refusing to establish yourself somewhere online is nothing but a missed opportunity: you have zero control of your online presence if you are not online.
How Do I Build an Online Presence
There are two ways to build an online presence: one is having a plan, and the other is NOT having a plan.
Most regular humans will open (or not) a social media account and start posting (or not) what they like and share their lives (or not) with friends and family. And that works well when you are being you, the human – but when you are online as a brand, the thing might be different: you need a plan.
As a brand, you need to define your identity and voice as well as to have a well-defined target market before starting. If you do not know who you want to talk to or which image you want to portray with your brand, establishing an online presence will be more difficult than it should be.
Once you know who you are as a brand and who you want to serve, the fun starts: you shall put yourself out there. While there is no particular order to do this (we have seen brands starting with simply having a Facebook Page), in an ideal world, you would have one of each of the following:
- A website
- Profiles on at least TWO or THREE of the major platforms
- Threads
- Tiktok
- YouTube
- Twitter/X
- Snapchat
- A Google My Business Page
The above are just the basics, and by no means do they represent the totality of what your online presence should be. There are LOTS of other places online where you can have a profile and will count as having an online presence (like having a YELP page, a profile on Nextdoor, or even Reddit), but the above are the first places where people are going to look for you which makes them important.
The order in which you open them might or might not be relevant and could depend on your current resources: it might be easier to open a Facebook Page or Instagram profile and go from there instead of investing in building a website. While we recommend starting with a website and Google Business and then moving to Social Media, the order in which you start won’t affect the final result.
Consistency is Key
When we talk about consistency, there are TWO things we should consider: consistent timing and consistent branding.
While you will have access to different platforms – and potentially different audiences – your Social Media posts and profiles should resemble your website’s content and color scheme as well as the same messaging and tone. You are being consistent not only to look good but also for familiarity and to reinforce your brand identity and style.
Consistency includes too being on a schedule: keep your profiles active and updated. Being active and posting with a certain regularity confirms to your audience that you exist and are still in business. Of course, this does not mean you have to post every day, but you should be consistent on the days and times you post.
Your Content
A very important part of your online presence is your content: deciding what to share and how to share it will talk about you and your brand more than you imagine.
To attract your audience, the content you create has to be:
- Valuable
- Relevant
- Engaging
Having the right content addressed to the right audience will help you build brand awareness, trust, and authority (which is great for SEO too!).
Luna’s Online Presence – A Building Example.
Now, let’s get a bit personal. How are we building our online presence? The first thing we would like to mention is that building an online presence is a never-ending process: it is not enough to create a website or a Social Media profile and call it a day. Building an online presence is something you do constantly and, usually, FROM SCRATCH.
Once we had decided what we wanted Luna to be, we started FIRST working on our website. The first couple of weeks are always a back-and-forth: adding copy, removing images, changing things here and there. During our first month of life, there were no more than 100 visits a month – and most of those were us checking that the site was working – it took us some time to get where we wanted the website to be (and still re-did it a couple of times, including one last one recently). Regardless, our first goal was to be out there and be searchable.
We needed to put ourselves where people could see us. And that’s exactly what we did.
Once we had established our website and started posting on our blog, we opened our first Social Media profile. We started small, with just Facebook – because, believe it or not, Facebook and LinkedIn pages show A LOT on searches – and then moved to other platforms. It was all a process.
Currently, our content schedule is still changing and adapting: remember that part of the process is to analyze what is working and make changes accordingly to keep your activity online POSITIVE and growing.
Where is Luna Going?
It has been an interesting year for us: we have seen our impressions grow from ZERO to HERO, and our clicks go up; we have seen some of our blog posts get ZERO traction, and some others keep getting views over and over again.
Our Social Media profiles have not just grown but thrived, creating meaningful connections with friends and peers – and we even had the honor of being invited to a podcast – an absolute highlight for our small yet dedicated team. Every day, we tirelessly work towards enhancing our online presence, driven by resilience and an unwavering commitment to greatness.
I firmly believe that our success is not just about numbers; it’s a testament to our dedication, consistency, and the belief that no matter the size of our team, we’re on a journey to inspire and uplift other businesses. We’ve been there – putting ourselves out there – and now, we’re passionate about helping others become the best version of themselves.
Where are you going? Is your online presence healthy and thriving? Reach out to us if you have any questions or need assistance with your online presence.
