What Creates a Brand’s Positive Online Presence?

Reputation Management

What Creates a Brand’s Positive Online Presence?

Ian Domenegato

Brands like Google, Amazon, and Netflix rate among the most loved brands online. But why is that? What have they done to dominate in their niche when there are no doubt other search engines, e-commerce platforms, and streaming services that offer value?

Well, having a positive presence online is about more than what people say about you – it’s about the public’s overall experience with your brand.

This consists of things like discoverability, web/social media aesthetics and function, problem-solving marketing, and an easy and streamlined buyer journey.

Let’s dive into each!

Discoverability

Positive business content/presence isn’t just about having inspiring or motivational words to share, it’s also making sure that your helpful content actually gets into the hands of those that need it. Discoverability is important not just for your brand growth, but also so people in need of your products/services know there is light at the end of the tunnel!

Focusing on SEO optimization of your website, blog posts, IG profile and video content will ensure a higher discoverability for searchers. For example, having video on your website makes you 53% more likely to appear on the first page of Google – and let’s be real, no one is going past the first page when they are REALLY looking for something. So, using discoverability hacks like this and creating a 2 minute welcome or explainer video about your brand can make you more discoverable, welcoming, and accessible to people in need of what you have to offer.

Online Aesthetics and Function

You create a positive experience online when people feel a sense of intrigue and optimism from your content and overall brand experience. So, brand aesthetics and function really refer to how accessible you are making your website and social media profiles (easy to consume fonts, bright colors, streamlined forms, and working links, etc.)

Being a new or amateur business owner is okay – we all must start somewhere, but you don’t have to look like a newbie online. There are very straight-forward marketing aesthetic hacks on branding colors that work best to sell (blue), catch attention (red), create excitement (yellow), and more that can support your customer’s experience when engaging with your brand. Large blocky fonts are easier to read than thin scripts, black font is better on a light background than white and punchy, results-driven sentences offer more value to your visitors than long-winded sentences with every detail of your backstory.

Function of your website is just as important. Things to consider are: flow – do you start off acknowledging where they’re at, justifying their fears and dreams, presenting your business solutions and results from people like them with links to book a call throughout? You want to make it easy for them to take inspired action when they resonate with your message. Having both options to call or email is also important.

These considerations may seem small, but overall, provide a really positive experience for your customers and audiences when they are interacting with your brand.

Problem-Solving Marketing

To create a positive online presence through your marketing, you’ll have to go beyond ads and brand awareness. A problem-solving approach is rooted in solving your client’s concerns/problems for free to highlight your thought leadership and expert positioning within your niche. It’s one thing for people to know about your products and services and an entirely different thing to actually serve them before they buy from you.

A problem-solving marketing approach follows these principles: understand what a typical day in your ideal client’s life looks like … when do they wake up, what kind of lifestyle do they value, what are their desires, why don’t they have those things yet? What are their main struggles or pains and how do your products or services help with these problems?

When you intimately understand your ideal customer’s life, your marketing is able to specifically serve them versus just advertising to them and hoping for a buy. It creates trust, and engagement and sometimes breaks down barriers to talk about things our society still stigmatizes. Service-based marketing creates extremely valuable, and therefore, positive content for your brand to not just sell products and services, but to start a movement online where people that believe in the same things you do band together and spread your mission.

Streamline Your Buyer Journey

The opportunity to create ease and streamline your buyer journey online is through creating/establishing multiple touchpoints from discovery to sale. Most people will not (though some might) make the big leap from discovery to purchase on the first exposure to your brand. Therefore, having an authentic system of: discovery, creating curiosity and interest, relationship building and value-driven selling is one of the surest ways to a) close the gap with many people, but b) to give your potential customers many chances to develop trust that you are the ONE to deliver what they desire.

Discovery and creating curiosity and interest have a lot to do with your SEO optimization and problem-solving marketing as mentioned above. The relationship-building comes down to speed of correspondence, hosting free events/calls, email marketing, going LIVE on social media and even using polls/surveys to understand your audiences better and connect with them about it. After doing all of these consistently and authentically, you’ll have a hot buyer or audience to sell to that is more likely to understand the value of their investment.

Curating a positive presence and creating positive content online is so much more than the content itself, it’s about the intention we set our profiles and sites up with as well. Leading with a customer-first mentality allows you to consider things like colors, pain points, SEO and relationship building so your client’s experience with your brand both physically and psychologically is more positive. These tips build your reputation so you can scale your business year over year.