Consistency Is The Key To Success

Webpage created? Check.

Facebook page created? Check.

Now before you go too far building your online image, you’ll want to consider these 5 tips for success:

SUPPORT YOUR BUSINESS CONCEPT

The look & feel of your online image should support your business concept or product. If you charge professional fees for your service or deal with legal/government affairs, you’ll want a higher end website (ie. Strategex Group Chartered Accountants or Pinpoint Tactics – both of these have depth (multiple pages) and have been professionally designed).

A business who’s value proposition is “affordable luxury”, will want an easy to navigate website, such as Cranberries Spa – prices are easily accessible and the call to action is on every page.

BE CONSISTENT

All of your social media sites should have the same look & feel, the same logos & headers, and display a consistent visual message. For a great example of this, check out Rowan Smith. (Vancouver mortgage broker with The Mortgage Centre) His various online presences are consistent throughout:

• website • blog • YouTube • Twitter •

USE RELEVANT TEXT

People will put specific words or phrases into Google to find a business. By using these key words in your blog, ‘About’ page and throughout your site, you’ll improve Google’s ability to find your business & put you higher on the search results page.

Precision Athletics has done a particularly good job of this, with lots of relative phrasing of “Vancouver personal training”, “boot camp” and emphasis on “discounts or specials for group fitness”.

A PICTURE PAINTS A THOUSAND WORDS

As with Tip #1, you want photos & videos on your website to be consistent with your profession. An interior designer could show a work-in-progress, but the final photos should be polished & reflect the quality of their work (see Erka Interior Design) . On the other hand, if you’re selling travel, you know that people don’t want to see the airbrushed photos of the resort they want to book – they want to see what they’ll really experience (see Christine Turner‘s travel videos).

LIKE BLONDIE SAID, CALL ME ANYTIME

While it should be obvious, if your call to action isn’t abundantly clear on each page of your website, blog, or Fan Page, you’re missing the boat. There’s no value having hundreds of new people visit your sites if they can’t find a way to reach you. Add your phone number and email to each page and on the main pages, make it strong & large.

It’s also a good idea to add a link to your other Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn pages for easy reference.

Once you’ve got these social media tips in place, your online presence will be consistent and you should start to see your Google ranking improve. All in 5 easy steps!