The Power of the Platform (or How to Build Your Online Empire)

If you're an active user of social media, there's no doubt you'll have seen articles being shared by thousands of people. But many times, the originator of the articles comes from the same pool of savvy companies. They've taken the time to build a platform for their business from which they can deliver informative content or, more importantly, sales propositions. Today we'll show you how to do the same. 

Step 1: Optimise your social media presence 

You can't build an online platform without the right foundations, which in this case will be your social media profiles. The entire point of creating a platform for your business is to also nurture an audience to which you can promote content, special offers, and more. The two big-hitters in this regard are Facebook and Twitter, both of which you should already have under your wing. If not, what are you waiting for? It’s a good idea to ensure that you’re posting at least two or three times per week on each of these to start with, this should at least show visitors that you’re active. Then it’s time to start building.

Step 2: Develop your content strategy

Without content, your online platform won’t have any legs – even if you start out strong. One of the cornerstones of the platform concept is that people see you as an authority within your niche: an experienced organisation with insightful and valuable tips and advice. To achieve this somewhat lofty goal it's an excellent idea to have a content strategy in your toolkit. Essentially, a content strategy is a timeline that lists all upcoming content items that will be released via social media or your blog. Your strategy could include a couple of videos a month combined with four blog posts and a poll, or any other combination of content that you think will engage your audience.

Step 3: Make the most of your platform

To build a platform the right way, it’s recommended to avoid pushy sales posts or any type of content that comes across as ‘salesy’. But that’s not to say you should never use this stuff. Once you’ve been publishing quality content and building up a good reputation in your niche, you should see your audience start to grow. Once you reach a total audience that makes sense for your business, for example between 500 and 1000 followers, you can start to slip in offers, deals and more product-focused content. The idea is that your followers already see you as a valuable source of free info, so they won’t be averse to being ‘advertised at’. It’s all about give and take.

Are you ready to start building your online platform? It could be the best decision you ever make as a business. And once those new customers start rolling in, you’ll want the best tools to manage them, so check out AutoVu today to find out more.