{"id":14748,"date":"2021-09-01T22:19:27","date_gmt":"2021-09-01T12:19:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/karasudesign.wpengine.com\/?p=14748"},"modified":"2022-09-10T05:39:55","modified_gmt":"2022-09-09T19:39:55","slug":"why-online-presence-check-is-essential-for-your-business","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/karasu.design\/why-online-presence-check-is-essential-for-your-business\/","title":{"rendered":"Why an Online Presence Check is Essential for Your Business"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>[vc_row fullwidth=&#8221;yes&#8221; el_class=&#8221;styled-p-16px&#8221;][vc_column][vc_column_text]<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">You took the leap and launched your website. Now you sit back and wait for the customers to roll in, right? Unfortunately, these days there are billions of websites fighting for views. The days of \u201cif you build it, they will come\u201d are long gone.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">To stand out today, you need to have a solid online presence. But how do you know if your online presence is strong enough?<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Thankfully, there\u2019s no shortage of data and information these days. You no longer have to guess what\u2019s working for you or not. In this blog article, you\u2019ll learn what online presence for your business is, why you need it and how to improve it.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>What do we mean by online presence?<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">First, we need to say what online presence isn\u2019t. We don\u2019t mean simply having a site online. Building a website and leaving it sitting there is not your online presence. Think back to your school days. You could physically be at school, but your mind may not be present and learning, right?\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Your online presence is the total weight of your brand online across all the platforms you\u2019re involved in. It\u2019s everything from how easy it is to find you to how aware people are of your brand to how your clients interact with you.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It includes your:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Website<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Social media accounts<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Local listings<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Affiliations with industry or community organisations\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In other words, it\u2019s your street rep, your credibility.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Why your business needs an online presence<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Your online presence is vital to establishing brand awareness and ensuring you\u2019re found when customers search online.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/blog.hubspot.com\/marketing\/local-seo-stats\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">97% of people<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> search a company online before engaging with them.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">These days you can\u2019t afford to not have a presence online. Your customers will use everything they can &#8211; organic search, social media, local directories to learn as much as they can about you before deciding on you.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">As they\u2019re searching, customers will move on if any of those pieces are off, broken, or look unprofessional. They have other options these days, just a couple of clicks away. You could very well be the best in your field, but your customers aren\u2019t industry experts. They can only go off of what they can find and see. And if what they see doesn\u2019t give them confidence, they will move on.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When you build an online presence, you help prospective customers find your business. You also give your current customers extra reasons to stay engaged as they stay connected with your brand across the internet.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>How to increase your online presence with your website<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Yes, an online presence is about more than just your website. However, your website is the home base for your online presence. Everything you do online will compliment, feed into or work from your website. So if your website is outdated, broken, filled with spam or other ominous signs to your customers, your customers will move on.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Only once you have your website sorted can you begin to look into other aspects of your business. But you must make sure your website is in top shape before doing anything else.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Why? Say you have a great Facebook campaign going that\u2019s getting a lot of traction. The customers think, \u201cOk, I like what they\u2019re saying. Let\u2019s go check them out.\u201d They click over to your site and find it broken, the page down, or it\u2019s loading too slowly for them. They will leave and mentally write you off.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Any slick campaign you do in the future will get blocked by these earlier memories. \u201cOh, I remember this site. It never loaded. I don\u2019t have time for this.\u201d So before tackling the broader areas of your online presence, you have to deal with your website.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Here are a few areas of your website to focus on to get you started:<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>1. Make sure your website is modern and built for your target audience<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">We\u2019ve all done it. You see an amateurish website and immediately judge the company. Honestly, sometimes it\u2019s hard to keep up with all the style changes, updates and new techniques. But your customers don\u2019t care how busy you are. More than <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.kinesisinc.com\/the-truth-about-web-design\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">3\/4 of customers<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> admit to judging a company\u2019s credibility based solely on how their website looks.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>2. Work on your SEO<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If people can\u2019t find you, all the site updates, content creation, etc., are for nothing. Taking the time to authentically address your SEO has many benefits besides your page rank. For example, focusing on organic SEO helps you build good content delivery habits and also helps you learn to think like your customers. When you\u2019re addressing your site\u2019s SEO, don\u2019t forget to also optimise your Local SEO. Developing local SEO content and strategies helps you stand out in your community and can really help drive your business.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>3. Produce Fresh Content<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">You might fall into the trap of thinking, \u201cI\u2019ve launched my website. Now I can forget it.\u201d Unfortunately, that\u2019s not true. Fresh website content is a key to your success for a few reasons. When your customers see outdated content, dates, products you no longer offer, etc., it erodes their trust in you. They start thinking, \u201cthese people don\u2019t keep up with the details.\u201d Fresh content is also a critical factor in SEO rankings. Google loves delivering fresh, up-to-date content to searchers. If your last blog post was four years ago, we guarantee your competitor\u2019s site will rank better.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>4. Analyse your results<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It\u2019s not enough to just make changes and hope for the best. Who knows if the content you\u2019ve created is working or the SEO changes are affecting traffic? You don\u2019t have to just sit around hoping they are. The great thing about doing anything digital these days is that there is no shortage of information about what\u2019s going on available for you. So don\u2019t just absentmindedly make changes without knowing your baselines and what areas you should be tracking.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>What our<\/b><a href=\"https:\/\/karasu.design\/website-health-check\/#table\"><b> Online Presence Check<\/b><\/a><b> Can do for You<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Those were just a few tips to get you started. These days there are so many factors that go into your online presence.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">To keep people from gaming the system, Google and other search engines are constantly shifting the goalposts for what they consider website best practices. Suppose you\u2019re busy and lack time to keep updated. In that case, you might unknowingly apply a change to your site that\u2019s outdated or will result in a penalty from Google. You don\u2019t want that.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Managing websites can be overwhelming. We get that. That\u2019s why we offer our <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/karasu.design\/website-health-check\/#table\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Online Presence Check<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> so that you can sit back, relax and have it all done for you.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">We live and breathe website performance. When you have us run an Online Presence Check on your company, we test every aspect of your website using the latest industry standards and best practices. We check:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Conversion Optimisation<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Website Performance<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Website Security<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">User Experience<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Content Format &amp; Copy<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">WordPress Technical<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Search Engine Optimisation\/ Online Visibility<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">My Google Business<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Accessibility<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Legal compliance<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Competitors Analysis<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Each of these things is good to know, even if you don\u2019t think anything\u2019s broken. When you have these things clearly written down for you, you\u2019re able to prioritise what areas to work on first, saving you time and money.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">And once you have a baseline understanding of your website, you\u2019re in a much better position to keep improving things in the following months. You\u2019ll be able to see exactly how effective any changes were.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>In Conclusion<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Have you ever had a date or a meal with a friend where you talked and talked, only to later discover you had food stuck in your teeth the whole time? If it was with a friend, it was probably simply an embarrassing story you\u2019ll joke about for years. If it was a date&#8230;it might have been the last one.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Broken, dated, and buggy websites are like talking to prospective clients with food in your teeth while also yelling at them. It\u2019s wrong on so many levels. Take the time to audit your site, or if you\u2019re like many and lack the skills, find a trusted partner to help you check and prioritise what to fix.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">We\u2019d like to help your website function as best it can, so you can put your best foot forward online. Please <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/karasu.design\/contact\/book-clarity-call\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">book a Clarity Call<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, and we\u2019ll talk with you about how to get started.\u00a0<\/span>[\/vc_column_text]\r\n\t<div class=\"prelude-spacer clearfix\" data-desktop=\"40\" data-mobi=\"30\" data-smobi=\"30\"><\/div><div class=\"button-wrap icon-right wow fadeInUp\" style=\"\"  data-wow-duration=\"0.75s\" data-wow-delay=\"0.3s\"><a href=\"https:\/\/karasu.design\/contact\/book-clarity-call\" target=\"_self\" class=\"prelude-button btn-1096614429 medium no_icon custom custom\" style=\"border-radius:3px; box-shadow: 0px 10px 10px 0px rgba(110,123,131,0.2)\" data-background=\"#0575e6\" data-text=\"#ffffff\" data-text-hover=\"#0575e6\" data-background-hover=\"#ffffff\">\r\n\t\t<span style=\"\">Book Clarity Call <\/span>\r\n\t<\/a><\/div>\r\n\t<div class=\"prelude-spacer clearfix\" data-desktop=\"40\" data-mobi=\"30\" data-smobi=\"30\"><\/div>[vc_column_text el_id=&#8221;download-cheatsheet&#8221;]<\/p>\n<h2 style=\"font-weight: 600; margin-bottom: 10px; text-align: left;\">Checkout our Cheatsheet <span style=\"font-weight: 300;\">as well.<\/span><\/h2>\n<div id=\"gtx-trans\" style=\"position: absolute; left: 633px; top: 37px;\">\n<div class=\"gtx-trans-icon\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>[\/vc_column_text]\r\n\t<div class=\"prelude-spacer clearfix\" data-desktop=\"40\" data-mobi=\"30\" data-smobi=\"30\"><\/div>[vc_raw_html]JTVCY2JveGFyZWElMjBpZCUzRCUyMmNib3gtVzdkbUdOOW43cDVFdUNGeCUyMiU1RA==[\/vc_raw_html]\r\n\t<div class=\"prelude-spacer clearfix\" data-desktop=\"40\" data-mobi=\"30\" data-smobi=\"30\"><\/div>[\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row fullwidth=&#8221;yes&#8221; full_width=&#8221;stretch_row&#8221; css=&#8221;.vc_custom_1619769863333{background-image: url(http:\/\/ninzio.com\/prelude\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/full-page-bg-1.png?id=12427) !important;}&#8221;][vc_column][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n<h2 style=\"font-weight: 600; margin-bottom: 10px; text-align: center;\">Have questions? <span style=\"font-weight: 300;\">Book in a call<\/span><\/h2>\n<div id=\"gtx-trans\" style=\"position: absolute; left: 68px; top: -16px;\">\n<div class=\"gtx-trans-icon\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>[\/vc_column_text]\r\n\t<div class=\"prelude-spacer clearfix\" data-desktop=\"10\" data-mobi=\"8\" data-smobi=\"8\"><\/div><div class=\"prelude-headings clearfix text-center\" data-font=14 style=\"\"><h3 class=\"heading clearfix \" style=\"font-weight:500;color:#0575e6;letter-spacing:0.25px;margin-bottom:15px;font-size:14px;\">\r\n\t\tREADY TO BOOST YOUR WEBSITE SPEEDS?\r\n\t<\/h3><\/div>\r\n\t<div class=\"prelude-spacer clearfix\" data-desktop=\"10\" data-mobi=\"8\" data-smobi=\"8\"><\/div>[vc_column_text css_animation=&#8221;fadeInUp&#8221; css=&#8221;.vc_custom_1619770027047{margin-bottom: 15px !important;}&#8221; el_class=&#8221;styled-pstyled-p-16px&#8221;]<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">If any of this is overwhelming to you. Simply book a Clarity Call. It&#8217;s free and we promise we won&#8217;t sell you anything. Talk to a human being that actually listens to you to see if we can help you.<\/p>\n<p>[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner width=&#8221;1\/4&#8243;][\/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner el_class=&#8221;center&#8221; width=&#8221;1\/2&#8243;]<div class=\"button-wrap icon-right wow fadeInUp\" style=\"\"  data-wow-duration=\"0.75s\" data-wow-delay=\"0.3s\"><a href=\"https:\/\/karasu.design\/contact\/book-clarity-call\" target=\"_self\" class=\"prelude-button btn-2125766452 medium no_icon custom custom\" style=\"border-radius:3px; box-shadow: 0px 10px 10px 0px rgba(110,123,131,0.2)\" data-background=\"#0575e6\" data-text=\"#ffffff\" data-text-hover=\"#0575e6\" data-background-hover=\"#ffffff\">\r\n\t\t<span style=\"\">Book Clarity Call <\/span>\r\n\t<\/a><\/div>[\/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=&#8221;1\/4&#8243;][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][\/vc_column][\/vc_row]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>[vc_row fullwidth=&#8221;yes&#8221; el_class=&#8221;styled-p-16px&#8221;][vc_column][vc_column_text]You took the leap and launched your website. Now you sit back and wait for the customers to roll in, right? Unfortunately, these days there are billions of websites fighting for views. The days of \u201cif you build it, they will come\u201d are long gone.\u00a0 To stand out<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":15861,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[18,65,1],"tags":[71],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/karasu.design\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14748"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/karasu.design\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/karasu.design\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/karasu.design\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/karasu.design\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=14748"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/karasu.design\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14748\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/karasu.design\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/15861"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/karasu.design\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=14748"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/karasu.design\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=14748"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/karasu.design\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=14748"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}