Online Presence
To add to the foundation of information that helps innovators choose reputable companies: Does your company have a professional Online Presence?
If you do not already have an Online Presence, how do you plan to build one in the near future? What steps are you taking to ensure that it is effective and successful? If your company does have an Online Presence, how effective are your efforts and what results do you see?
Online presence management is distinct from web presence management in that the former is generally a marketing and messaging discipline while the latter has more of an emphasis on site development including maintenance through technical implementation and information gathering. Generally speaking however they are two sides of the same coin when it comes to Internet Marketing as both must be well executed to achieve the desired results.
Understanding of Connectionism
The most effective Online Presence Manager will have a deep understanding of connectionism. Connectionism is a framework for representing knowledge and making inferences based on relationships between ideas expressed as concepts linked by associations and meanings. Knowing how people relate to one another, within social network systems or other forms of human inter-relating is vital for good Online Presence Management.
Creating relationships between people, places and things are the essence of Online Presence Management. Creating these associations also allows for a deeper level of communication and interaction in blogging, social media, search engine optimization and directories which all contribute to achieving a higher ranking in the results delivered by search engines as well as human search mechanisms such as personal references via conversation or otherwise.
The more complex the system of inter-connectivity becomes on the Internet between data points (people, places and things), the more value there is in having an effective Online Presence Manager who can leverage those connections for positive results. It’s about leveraging relationships with individuals and systems online to achieve your goals.
Online content must be continually monitored within corporate so that appropriate action is taken to address inappropriate or controversial content. Online Presence Management covers all disciplines that must be addressed to keep corporate engaged with employees, partners and customers online 24/7.
Online presence managers must also monitor the feedback coming from their audiences and adjust strategies accordingly. Feedback from these sources will tell you what works for any particular audience best, whether it’s employees, partners or customers and how best to utilize internal resources and external contractors who can help build your Online Presence Management capabilities in a cost effective manner.
What does an ideal Online Presence Manager look like?
Having a basic understanding of relationships between things, people and places both offline and online is just part of it. In order to get to the best possible results, that person must also be able to effectively manage content within corporate and by extension online.
Online Content Manager is an emerging role in almost every organization today. The reason is simple; too much content exists on the Internet or on internal web sites to ignore any longer without serious consequences for those who do. Whether this is because of a site redesign, additional storage requirements, or simply content being transferred from Legacy Systems into Corporate owned systems, just a few examples why you would need an Online Content Manager.
Social Media Manager is another new job title found in most organizations today. Depending upon the size and scope of your organization you may need only one social media manager or dozens of them depending upon various factors such as industry, the size of your brand, number of products and services you offer.
Online marketers must also be excellent writers. It is no longer acceptable to use corporate speak in writing online content or blogs, because they are not well read outside of corporate walls. On the Internet writing for an audience is more important than ever before and without effective management of this aspect it can undermine all other efforts made by Online Presence Manager to help achieve a company’s vision and mission. The good news is that the right kind of skill development in this area will enable you to do both; write with clarity when appropriate while using proper jargon or references when necessary within certain audiences who may have varying degrees of understanding on any given subject.
Identifying Relationships
The hardest part about Online presence Management is effectively identifying the relationships between the various aspects that work. Online Content Management alone requires constant monitoring of your corporate and 3rd party content with respect to plagiarism, obscurity (what you don’t want people to find), brand consistency, compliance with company policies as well as industry regulations etc. In order to do this effectively you will need more than just a good eye for detail (all management jobs require this). You’ll also need a wide variety of tools at your disposal in order to ensure that all facets of online presence are being managed effectively in addition to effective communication skills both internally within Corporate, with external partners/contractors, customers, suppliers or any other audience who may be trying to interact with your product or service online.
A wide range of tools are required to effectively manage your Online presence. Some examples include but are not limited to: Blogging Tools, Internal Forum Software, Social Media Management Systems (such as SproutSocial), Website Analytics and much more. If you’re a small business or organization you can get off the ground with little capital investment by utilizing many “free” online resources available today including some of those listed above. Should you require large scale support for multiple brands, robust internal communication systems such as wikis or forums along with complex analytics packages then outsourcing is typically recommended unless you have a large pool of internal resources who meet these criteria already in your company.
Online presence management strategy
In order to provide an effective Online Presence Management strategy you need a solid foundation within Corporate and outside of Corporate to enable you to effectively manage the Online presence on behalf of a company. On the Inside you need sound content management systems, internal marketing staff and resources (sometimes referred to as Webmaster) as well as an understanding of business policy and how it applies or could apply online. You also might consider pursuing advanced level degrees in areas such as: Information Systems, Marketing Communications, Business Management etc. This is a good place to start but there’s no substitute for real world learning otherwise known as “on-the-job training”.
Outside corporate walls there are many facets that must be managed with equal diligence if your organization is going to provide an effective Online Presence Management solution for customers and potential customers including: Bloggers (ex include customers, partners and even competitors), Social Media (for all audiences mentioned above), SEO/SEM Professionals if your organization utilizes PPC or more complex campaigns and various other 3rd party resources ranging from affiliate marketers to online news groups.
Developing the right relationships with these parties is crucial for success as it requires you to know how to effectively manage internal departments while also knowing how outside parties work. Be aware that Online Presence Management is a difficult challenge requiring many skillsets in order to be successful which include: Marketing, Advertising, Public Relations, Writing, Graphic Design Communication (both verbal & written) as well as strong interpersonal skills when dealing with people who are often driven by ego’s both big and small. The good news is there are many examples in both this book and online of companies who have effectively managed to navigate these challenges with the intent of building a solid Online Presence. Study their successes, failures and business models and learn from what they’ve done right as well as what they did wrong.
Online presence management is traditionally associated with marketing and public relations, but the field has grown over the years into a sophisticated discipline that includes business operations, human resources, customer relationship management, information technology (IT), legal affairs, government affairs and corporate compliance issues. It is generally acknowledged within the industry that an organization’s most valuable assets are its employees’ knowledge of customers, products/services and competitors along with internal systems used to manage customer data including CRM software applications. primary channel for managing an organization’s human resources, best practices and compliance within the organization. An effective Online Presence Management strategy should include all of these elements which often requires a highly skilled staff to assure that business objectives are being met in order to maintain corporate reputation over time on a small or large scale. Today many organizations are finding that it makes good business sense to merge traditional marketing and communication roles with Information Technology (IT) disciplines such as Database Administration, web development/web mastering and project management among others in order to deliver more effective solutions faster and at a lower cost.
Conclusion
In reality any company can have an Online Presence whether they want one or not because the Internet is so vast and unmanaged therefore making what we define as online presence nearly impossible to escape or eliminate. However, the term “Online Presence” is most often used in reference to companies who either have a formal online presence strategy or those whose current web presence strategy they wish to improve upon. This book will cover both perspectives using real world examples and case studies of organizations that are currently doing it right as well as those who need some help getting started.
How can you get this brand new Online Presence started? What steps can you take to ensure that it is as effective as possible?
Our experts can not only build you’re a strong online presence website, but we can manage the process while allowing you to focus on what’s most important for your business.
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This article is written by The Trusted Automation Advisory team, provides advisory services for leaders worldwide. If you have any questions, you can contact us via email at inquire@thetrustedautomation.com, from their website at https://thetrustedautomation.com, or phone at (949) 333-7200.
Montfichet & Company’s marketing agency consulting practice, which provides consulting services for Advertising on Craigslist in Phoenix, Arizona. If you have any questions, you can contact us via email at atlanta@montfichet.com, from their website at https://montfichet.com, or phone at (949) 333-7200.
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