Building a strong online presence and promoting your work online is crucial for attracting clients and opportunities in today's digital age. Here are some strategies to help you achieve that:
1. **Create a Professional Website:**
- Your website is your online portfolio. Make it visually appealing, user-friendly, and mobile-responsive.
- Include a portfolio showcasing your best work, client testimonials, and a clear description of your services.
- Create a professional portfolio or Media Kit with all of your brand deals and current illustrations. You can use a website like Canva to do so.
2. **Content Marketing:**
- Start a blog or regularly update your website with high-quality, relevant content related to your industry or niche.
- Share your expertise, insights, and tips to establish yourself as an authority in your field.
3. **Leverage Social Media:**
- Choose the platforms where your target audience is most active. For visual work, platforms like Instagram, Pinterest, and TikTok are great.
- Facebook is also a way to get to interact with your followers on a more intimate level as you can create your own community with your business page on Facebook.
- Don't feel pressured to manage all of these platforms. Choose 2 and hone in on raising engagement on those. Automate post to other platforms to spread awareness but don't try to split your energy with all of the platforms.
- For instance, I am way more active on Instagram and then Facebook. I use Tailwind, to automate my Facebook and Pinterest post. This gives me more time to interact with my followers on Instagram.
- Post regularly, engage with your audience, and use relevant hashtags to increase visibility.
4. **Email Marketing:**
- Build an email list of interested prospects and clients. Send out newsletters, updates, and exclusive content.
- Personalize your emails and make them valuable to your subscribers.
5. **Search Engine Optimization (SEO):**
- Optimize your website for search engines to increase its visibility in search results.
- Use relevant keywords, meta tags, and create high-quality backlinks.
6. **Guest Posting and Cross-Promotion:**
- Contribute guest posts to reputable blogs and websites in your industry. This can help you tap into their audience.
- Collaborate with influencers or complementary businesses for cross-promotion.
7. **Online Advertising:**
- Consider running targeted ads on platforms like Google Ads, Facebook Ads, or Instagram Ads to reach a wider audience.
- Use retargeting ads to engage with visitors who have shown interest in your work.
8. **Collect and Showcase Testimonials:**
- Encourage satisfied clients to leave testimonials or reviews on your website and social media profiles.
- Positive feedback builds trust and credibility.
9. **Consistency is Key:**
- Maintain a consistent online presence. Irregular posting or updates can lead to a loss of followers and potential clients.
- Instagram is known for shadwbanning. So to prevent this, don't just automate post and never interact on the platform. Make sure you are actively liking, sharing and saving post as well.
10. **Monitor Analytics:**
- Use tools like Google Analytics, social media insights, and email campaign metrics to track your online performance.
- Adjust your strategies based on what works best for you.
- If you have a business Instagram page, you can view the insights on each post to see how it's performing.
- You can see the time of day your followers are most active, the average age and sex of your followers and their location.
- These insights help you to better plan your content.
11. **Continual Learning:**
- Stay updated with industry trends, tools, and technologies. This will help you remain competitive and relevant in your field.
12. **Engage with Your Audience:**
- Respond to comments and messages promptly. Engage in meaningful conversations with your audience to build relationships.
- If they tag you in certain stories, share them to your feeds.
- Follow followers who share similar interest or those who may inspire you!
13. **Personal Branding:**
- Define your personal brand and ensure it's consistent across all online platforms.
- Showcase your unique skills and personality to differentiate yourself from others in your field.
Remember that building an online presence takes time and effort. Be patient and persistent, and over time, you'll attract clients and opportunities that align with your goals and expertise.