Reference Guide: Managing Your Online Presence
Get Online: Process Overview
I imagine that many individuals and small businesses know that they should have a presence online but are unsure of the overall process and how to proceed. This series walks you through main pieces of the process, in the order that will make it run more smoothly. There are several main phases and details for each phase. This is the TOC for the series and includes links to each article.
Phase 1: Set Up Infrastructure
This phase requires much research. It’s worth all the time you put into it. Decisions made in this phase affect everything else. It’s the foundation and should be set up carefully.
Get Online: Naming Considerations
Get Online: Email Configuration Options
Phase 2: Create Social Accounts
You can start setting up your presence while your website is in development. There’s no need to wait. In fact, because your online presence takes time to build, it’s best to get started as soon as possible. Definitely review the Naming Considerations post before setting everything up. You really should consider all the social platforms as much as you can right from the start.
Components of an Online Presence
Phase 3: Create Website
This will likely take the most time. While you may hear periodically that blogs are becoming less important, they’re still a critical piece of your online presence. That’s because you “own” that more than any other platform. Blogs are also often referred to as the “hub” of your online presence; all social accounts can point people back to your site. It also provides a way to potentially generate more income. Plus audiences are more likely to look for a site for you, I think.
Phase 4: Manage Online Presence
Once everything is set up, the real work begins. You need to maintain your presence and update as frequently as possible. You also have to monitor it to make sure it remains a positive reflection of your own or your company’s reputation. Here are some posts that may help you with your planning and determining a strategy.
