Easy and Practical Tips for Brand Awareness
by Eliece Hammond
No fluff! Here are 88 things you can do right now, with varying levels of complexity, to promote your brand on the web. Get to it!
- Create a Facebook page
- Create a Twitter account
- Create a Google+ Business page
- Create a LinkedIn account
- Create a Pinterest account
- Create a YouTube account
- Claim your Foursquare listing
- Create a custom app for your company
- Create a blog
- Write an email newsletter at least twice a month
- Write a blog twice a week
- Create an Instagram account
- Check out MySpace if you’re in the music industry
- Check out ThrillOn.org if you’re into outdoor adventuring or physical fitness
- Create a Goodreads account if you’re in writing, reading, books, or anything copyediting related
- Create a LinkedIn business page – especially if you’re a recruiter
- Write reviews on Yahoo
- Write reviews on Yelp
- Get listed with AngiesList.com
- Check your listings on yellowpages.com and whitepages.com
- Verify Google Places and Google Local listings
- Verify Facebook local listings
- Local.com
- Bing.com
- About.me – create a landing page for each member of your company
- Moo.com – get a business card with a QR Code to bring people to your website and social channels
- Post at least 2-3 times a week on Facebook
- “like” and comment and repost from local businesses on Facebook
- “like” and comment and repost from followers on Facebook
- Launch a Facebook contest
- Do a poll on Facebook
- Link your Pinterest account to your Facebook profile with a custom tab
- Link your Twitter account to your Facebook profile with a custom tab
- Link your Instagram account to your Facebook profile with a custom tab
- Upgrade your account to Facebook’s new GraphSearch format
- Tweet at least 3-4 times per week
- Retweet interesting people and businesses on Twitter
- Schedule posts to Twitter on TweetDeck
- Get on Klout or Hootsuite and measure your business engagement
- Schedule Facebook, Twitter, Google+, LinkedIn, and other posts on HootSuite
- Create a Google+ Group around your business’ core interests and circle relevant businesses
- Find Google+ Communities to circle and interact with
- Post interesting local news articles and events on Google+
- Verify your business listing on Google Places & Local Listings
- Create a FAQ with a blog entry for each question and link each new entry on social media channels
- Answer and ask questions on LinkedIn – don’t mention your business, just give great expert advice for free
- Post interesting articles and business updates on your Business LinkedIn profile
- Find other businesses that are local or in the same industry to connect with on LinkedIn
- Endorse your employees’ skills on LinkedIn
- Write recommendations for current and past employees on LinkedIn
- Ask for recommendations from previous vendors and employees on LinkedIn
- Create a shared Pinterest board and invite customers and potential customers
- Comment on and repin customer pins that are relevant to your community and business
- Search for your products or services on Pinterest and ‘like’ pins that are relevant
- Follow customers and businesses in your community on Pinterest
- Search for keywords on Pinterest to inspire new boards and pins
- Cherry pick your best pins on Pinterest and post them on Twitter and Facebook
- Cherry pick your best images from Instagram and pin them on a special Pinterest board
- Find great blog posts and images from industry leaders to pin to Pinterest
- Pin images from your company website on Pinterest with interesting descriptions – have them link back to different pages on your site
- Comment on interesting publisher and industry leader blogs
- Join online forums geared toward your industry on MeetUp and LinkedIn and attend events
- Tweet from conferences and MeetUps – tag the attendees or presenters you are networking with and find or create a hashtag for the event
- Follow-up with interesting though leaders by inviting them to your company profiles or your newsletter
- Create a newsletter template that includes social media badges prominently in every new message
- Schedule a public Google Hangout and record it, use it as a forum to garner customer engagement and feedback
- Do an online survey of existing customers and offer a random drawing prize
- Do a contest on Facebook
- Do a Poll on Facebook
- Post your Google Hangout video on YouTube
- Record a weekly vlog on YouTube – use titles from your blog posts to create an interactive video that highlights your business
- Post customer testimonials everywhere
- Respond to comments on TripAdvisor, Yelp!, Yahoo, Bing, Google, wherever you can find them. Turn your most vocal critics into Brand Champions by giving them a chance to improve your business as a trusted partner. Usually the people who complain the loudest need your solution the most.
- Create an event in your local community, or sponsor an existing one, and post regularly before, during, and after the event to record your business efforts
- Donate to at least two charitable organizations each year and highlight your company’s involvement – giving back will benefit everyone.
- Put your brand and social media badges on business cards, stationary, pens, t-shirts, wherever you can and send out prize packages to your top 100 most valued customers with special coupons or deals. Make sure you are choosing these people from your email newsletter list, your Facebook followers, Twitter followers, most avid Pinterest followers, and Google+ circled friends to encourage their engagement.
- Throw a black tie fundraising event at your business – invite small business owners and promote your favorite non-profit organization – do all of your promotion on the internet: RSVP, PR, event planning, feedback from attendees, and the non-profit that is being promoted. Record interviews of key people and businesses involved for your YouTube channel.
- Invite followers to create a commercial for your business, run a contest for the top 3 and post entries to social media channels, asking for viewers to vote.
- Create an app for your business – a ‘points’ tracker, mini game, special effects video editor, photo editor, collection game, check-in counter, something that gives users a special deal at your business if they keep playing.
- Make your website mobile and tablet friendly.
- Make your email newsletter mobile and tablet friendly.
- Offer special deals for Foursquare check-ins and for the ‘mayor’ on Foursquare
- Offer a special deal for the 5th, 10th, and 50th check-in at your business
- Create a community promotion for Small Business Saturday online, offer a special deal in conjunction with other local businesses that is exclusive to subscribers to your email newsletter.
- Interview your favorite customer, post it on your blog, then push it out to all of your social media channels
- Interview a thought leader in your industry and write a white paper about the state of the industry
- Profile a major national or international company in your industry
- If you aren’t famous by now, reposition your company based on feedback from your customers
