In 3 Ways to Attract Readers to Your Blog, I suggest that leaving comments on other blogs will encourage others to read yours, a strategy that’s worked for me a number of times. That’s how I connected with Dmitriy Ivanov. I commented on one of his posts, he began reading Your Organizing Business, and he’s here as my guest blogger today. I think you’ll find his tips very beneficial!

You’ve got yourself a business and you’re pretty darn impressed with yourself. It’s taken a lot of hard work and hurdles to get it up and running, but somehow, it’s worked. Problem is, you’re a needle in the haystack of a million other businesses fighting for attention in the industry, and you’re not actually sure how to shine that little bit brighter in order to be found.

Consider each step you take as another closer to completely owning your online presence. The team at global digital agency – WME – have put together the following list to help you get started.

1. Get yourself noticed

You can scream as loud as you want but your message is bound to be falling on deaf ears. In the online sphere, being heard depends on having what you’ve got to say rise above the abundance of noise. In a physical world, you’ve got the fallback of putting a big, bold, attractive sign out the front of your shop. In the online world, however, your sign is your website and it won’t be seen unless you’ve got a means of getting eyes there in the first place. How? Utilising search engine optimisation (SEO) and social media marketing.

2. Content is the be all and end all

Ever heard the saying “content is king”? Sometimes being able to scream the loudest isn’t always all it’s cracked up to be. Once you’ve got the attention of your audience, your next crucial step is to make sure you’re handing them useful, quality content. How is what you’re saying going to benefit them? What are they getting from taking the time to read through your website’s blog or video content? With the intelligence of search engines like Google on the rise, knowing how to create pretty damn good content is critical. These search giants are able to identify what is poor and what is going to add to the overall user-experience.

3. That SEO thing

There’s a lot of technical talk going around the net about search engine optimisation, otherwise known as SEO. It’s complicated and requires constant maintenance to ensure a website gains quality rankings that won’t be lost in a heartbeat. Search engines like Google are smart. They’re not stupid and they know all the tips and tricks that businesses are trying to use to get around their algorithms. The best practices, known as “white hat” (meaning following the guidelines), will get you on top of rankings through hard work and effort that spans over a number of months. This is done through keyword research and placement within content, backlink development and a bunch of other necessary techniques.

4. Get a little social

If you haven’t locked into investing time on social network platforms, you’re doing a lot of damage for your business. Consumers who may be actively looking for your brand on the likes of Facebook and Twitter will not be able to find you, thus looking to competitors who they can. Additionally, search engines take these social signals into consideration when it comes to SEO, further increasing your likelihood of ranking. Our pro tip? After reading this article, sign up to all those social giants you’ve been avoiding so far—trust us, it’s worth it.

5. Make your website pretty

If your site is a little like Space Jam’s (circa. 1995… seriously, Google it. It still exists), you’re in dire need of giving it a bit of TLC. Hire a good web developer to give your website a sleek, user-experience orientated feel and the ability to be easily navigated. Make sure its mobile-friendly, and ensure your logo is up-to-date.

6. Know how to convert

If visitors are actually finding your site and filling up their carts, but they’re not getting as far as finalizing their transaction, you’re not giving them enough reason to. Invest in conversion optimisation to ensure all of your website’s features are contributing to encouraging them along in the buyer’s journey, and conduct some A/B testing to see what page designs are working better than others.

7. Monitor what your competitors are doing

While you’re spending time improving your marketing strategy, chances are your competitors are too. Make sure you keep on top of what they’re doing by browsing their site (especially the news/blog section) frequently, and perhaps sign up to their email newsletters. What are they doing that you could do better? Are they doing something you’re not even trying? Think about what their competitive advantage is and then work out how you can improve yours.