Simple Ways To Build An Online Brand

ByPeter S. White

A brand is much more than a matching logo, letterhead and website. A brand should be the foundation of all your advertising and marketing material.

In fact, your brand should shine through everything that represents your business.

A brand helps you forge a relationship and build trust with existing and potential customers. And it's just as important to build your brand online as it is offline. Where to start?

Where to build
The internet is the first place potential customers are likely to use to find out about you and your products. The internet enables you to reach, talk to and attract people from all parts of the globe, so it's important to build a good brand online.

Until recently, a website used to be the sole tool for achieving this and, of course it's still a vital tool, but in the last decade social media has developed. Its continual rise in popularity makes it hugely influential and important for any brand.

So, giving you advice on the best way to use social media will help you build your business's brand.

Blogging on your website
Blogs are a great way to build a brand online because they provide your customers with constant content.

A blog will also maximise the value of your content. Using fresh and unique content in a blog will improve your search engine optimisation, which can only help develop your business.

Even though it's free to use, the content of a blog should be beneficial for your customers. This will ensure that your rapport with customers will be strengthened and they'll keep returning to your site.

Producing a blog demonstrates that you're not just out to make money, but that you want to speak to and relate with your customers. This, in turn, affects how you're perceived by them and continues to build your brand and therefore your reputation.

A response to your blog post is what you're looking for. This interaction with your customers means that they'll be able to leave comments for you and forward your blog to others, thus making your content even more valuable.

Networking with social media
Sites such as Facebook

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Online Slander, Libel, Character Assassination, and the Psychopaths That Propel It All

Not long ago, I was contacted by a very nice person who runs a small business. Apparently, someone had some sort of grievance and then proceeded to make up slanderous comments, call them a fraud, and attempt to character assassinate them. Oh, but it got worse, as the psychopath went online and started using other fake names and going through online social networks and slandering friends and family to boot.

If this story sounds familiar, it's because the problems online are truly pervasive. In fact, I've actually had to deal with such baloney myself, luckily, they didn't go after my family, still, it's amazing the amount of damage to one's reputation someone can do online in the short term when they have it out for someone. It's truly unfortunate, it's worse than political character assassination. And this whole concept of using multiple-identities is VERY common, apparently the oldest trick in the book.

Perhaps, this is why I favor the concept that people use their "real" identities online, all of the time, although many who claim they want privacy say anonymity is better, and safer, healthy, and allows for grievances without repercussion. I hear that argument, still I do not concur, I'd like to have everyone use their real names all of the time. What can someone do when a psychopath pulls out all the stops and attacks their reputation online?

Well, there are various online companies that offer "reputation" blocks, and are able to either bury stuff in the search engines, or cause such pages to become non-listed for a period of time. I am not sure how that works, but I am assuming it does work because these companies seem to be making money doing it.

The reality is, and I am certain this isn't news to you, there are screwed up people in the world, it's too bad really, but humans seem to have some sort of vengefulness built in and then they sometimes go off the deep end. In this case, the individual who has been traumatized does most likely have a good case against this individual, but it costs money to hire a private investigator, locate them, serve them, and get a restraining order, and if the person is mentally problematic then, they'll just get angry and do more harm using more fake aliases using different IP addresses around their city, public WiFi, etc.

Sure, it might be easy to trace it, but they might leave their mark on a 100 or more websites all over hells-half-acre in the mean time, proliferating online. So, it's almost as if and I hate to say this, but; there is nothing you can do. Still, from a philosophical standpoint and I know this may not make you feel any better, especially if you've been a victim; you have to be strong, and stronger than those who oppose you, through your own personal will, and strength of character. So, please consider all this and think on it, deal?

Lance Winslow has launched a new provocative series of eBooks on Future Concepts. Lance Winslow is a retired Founder of a Nationwide Franchise Chain, and now runs the Online Think Tank; http://www.worldthinktank.net

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Curate Content More Profitably by Understanding Who Your Online Customers Are

ByNathaneal Mohr

This article on is here to help you better curate the content your customers will want. Because as we curate content more effectively we become better at keeping our ideal customers attention online. And as long as we are able to keep the attention of our target market we are able to share with them the reasons why they should by from you instead of your competitors.

The trick with starting to become great at curating content is to first understand your customers. More specifically you want to understand what kinds of content they want to consume and how they prefer to consume it. So I outlined a few questions that you can ask yourself or pass to one of your team members before anyone starts to curate content.

Take a piece of paper and in as much detail describe who your ideal customer is. Don't hold back, the more detail you put the better off you will be. You might find that you have more than one kind of ideal customer. If so take a special note of that but make sure you do one description at a time. After free writing a description go back and fill more detail like... How old are they? where do they live? What is their typical day like? What do they like? What do they dislike? What questions would they want answered?

What would they find interesting or entertaining? Do they prefer facts or stories? What media do they use as their primary communication tool? What method do they use as their secondary communication tool?

How do they prefer to consume information that is interesting to them? Do they prefer to read, listen or watch a video?

What kind of person would they connect with? Its important to understand what kind of person they would connect with and make the personality the driver that will curate the content. If that isn't you I would recommend you hire someone with the personality that will resonate with them.

This will deepen the relationship you are able to build with your target market and make it easier to build a relationship with them.

Once you outline this information you will have the foundation set to start and curate content. Your next step is to then put your content curator to work and collect the kinds of information that will be of interest to the ideal customer that you outlined. Then use the personality we described that will resonate with your target market to share it with them.

I am one of few Motivational Business Speakers that specialize in topics like content curation and Video Marketing Tips

if you would like to learn more feel free to connect with me on twitter

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Are You Spending Your Online Time Wisely?

and countless other online websites give you plenty of opportunity to be social. Connecting with others online opens up so many possibilities and opportunities for independent business owners and direct sales consultants.

Online networking has a plethora of positive aspects to it, if done properly. It can also be detrimental to your business if you are spending an abundance of time online, all in the name of 'networking' but actually, all you are doing is chitchatting. True that in order to be successful online, building a rapport and reputation are key, but just who are you taking to and can it help build your own business?

To illustrate this point - consider the direct sales consultant who hangs out at their company forum. Companywide forums, where all consultants, from all teams gather to ask questions and share ideas can be a big help to some, especially if they feel they are not getting the support they need from their own upline. But is spending hours each day chatting with other consultants who are not even on your team giving you the return on your time investment?

I'm all for helping others. I'm all for giving more than you take. Though we cannot forget that we are in business; and we are in business to make a profit. Any consultant who is not in your downline is essentially your competitor. I'm not suggesting by any means to be cutthroat, but if you are spending more time with your competition than you are with your own team or with potential customers and prospects, your business will suffer.

Another example is a companywide Facebook page that was created for the purpose of discussing an upcoming incentive trip that consultants can earn. There is nothing wrong with this type of page, as I am certain it was created to help motivate each other and to clarify any questions about qualifications. However, if you find yourself hanging out on this FB page, again, with your competition, rather than on a team site or spending face/phone time with your own team and/or your own customers, it is not helping your business.

Forums, groups, pages and anything related to social networking can be great platforms to increase your knowledge, your sales and the size of your team - providing you are investing your time wisely with the right audience (read: don't spend too much time with your competitors). Don't confuse being nice and helpful to all your 'direct sales sisters' with avoiding necessary, productive steps that will produce tangible results in your own business.

If you're attacking your market from multiple positions and your competition isn't, you have all the advantage and it will show up in your increased success and income. - Jay Abraham

About the Author: Laurie Ayers is a WAHM from Michigan and a Superstar Director with Scentsy Flameless Candles. She enjoys helping others start and maintain a candle business in the US, Canada, Puerto Rico, Deutschland, Ireland and the UK. You can find Laurie at http://www.ThrivingCandleBusiness.com.

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