How to impress search engines and woo audiences online

• Knowing your audience
• Generating interest in social networks
• Cultivating credibility for your message.

At the outset, these three factors appear simple, but there are no shortcuts to building lasting traction with your online audience. To gain a better perspective, let’s delve into the tactics underpinning each.

Knowing your audience

For years, we’ve heard social media gurus cite the value of listening, and they’re right. Our audiences are setting the conversation agendas online. Communicating from their perspective is crucial, because it sends a strong signal to your marketplace that your brand is in tune and responsive.

Additionally, your chances of creating content that “sticks” is much better. Tips for gaining intelligence from your audience include:

1. Use a social media-monitoring dashboard to stay on top of conversation trends.
2. Remember to drill down into focused groups and conversations—such as those that emerge around a hashtag on Twitter—or engage in conversation on a forum or within a discussion group.
3. Survey sales teams and customer service staff to identify key customer issues, desires and recurring questions.

Generating interest in social networks