Whether you aim to be a top influencer, you have a brand to promote—or you are the brand you want to promote—or you want to push your online or offline business, you may wonder what the formula is to be an online success. The answer is that there really is no single formula for success, but there are best practices that can increase the likelihood.
Have a Budget
You will probably need to spend some money to be a success online. How much that will be and what you spend it on will vary according to your goals, but among your expenses may be a website domain and designer, boosting posts on social media and promotions that you run yourself that include free giveaways. You may want to consult with a social media strategist.
If you are on a tight budget, you may want to look at how you could save on your monthly expenses so you can put more money toward your online presence. There may be some fairly easy and painless ways to do this. For example, you might want to consider refinancing your student loans. With a lower interest rate, you may have lower monthly payments, and you can put the difference back into your online marketing campaign.
Let Your Personality Show
It’s okay to be quirky, and some big brands have found that allowing their social media presence to develop a funny online presence has great dividends.
Whether or not you delve into controversial topics or say anything about politics at all will depend a great deal on your brand, but you should make a conscious choice about whether you will or will not tackle certain topics since this can greatly influence how you are perceived online.
Keep in mind as well that if you stay away from controversial topics and current events, some people will welcome this as a break from everyday worries while others may react negatively.
Be Genuine
If you are the brand that you are selling, it’s important to maintain some privacy online, but coming across as a genuine person will serve you well. This means engaging with the audience in a sincere way and showing a real interest in your followers. Being genuine will also take you a long way if you make any missteps online. Warmth and sincerity will increase the interaction that you get and will make people feel more loyalty toward your brand. When people have questions about your brand or a product or service you are promoting, try to be as transparent as possible.
Be Persistent
Persistence is key. Online influence and success are rarely built overnight. You need to play the long game and prepare to take time to build your following. It’s hard to predict what kinds of posts will go viral, so while this can be a fast track to success, counting on a viral post to drive your popularity is a risky strategy.
On top of that, even if you do get a lot of attention for a single post, you’ll need to give your new followers a reason to stay with you. Months or even years of quietly building a base will give you the skills you need to do this.
