4 Slick Ways to Expand Your Digital Branding Strategy Augment your online marketing strategy by tapping these tools: YouTube, BuzzFeed, Playbuzz and Udemy.
By Te-Erika Patterson Edited by Dan Bova
Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.
Every company leader seeking legitimacy knows that dispersing mentions of his or her brand across multiple digital platforms is vital.
Each digital platform has a dedicated audience of users who prefer that particular method of interaction over others. When your company's brand establishes a presence across multiple platforms, you are essentially meeting potential customers in their neighborhood. And when you care enough to visit their neighborhood, they may care enough to support you.
Connecting with customers on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and Google Plus is standard for social-media marketing but other engaging digital platforms are free to use and can help catapult your prominence on search-engine listings. I've experimented with posting on the following four channels and offer my insights below:
Related: 3 Keys to Developing a Video Strategy
1. YouTube.
Entrepreneurs who do not take advantage of YouTube's platform are doing themselves a disservice.
Yes, the required content seems a bit more difficult to create. Yet if you've already developed a content strategy, simply use the same concepts and add a person and a camera.
Your content doesn't have to be a million-dollar production. All it needs to be is relatable. Choose a person to sit before a curtain and discuss industry-related news and events. Or share interesting and funny stories about things that happened around the office this week.
The point is to be present and visible so that those who favor consuming information through videos will appreciate that you're making the effort to reach out to them, too.
Related: The Video Revolution Will Not Be Televised
2. BuzzFeed.
Recognized for its signature listicles offering humorous snapshots about people's lifestyles and recaps of the news of the day, BuzzFeed is now a household name.
But you might not realize that anyone can create a BuzzFeed channel for free, including you. Try crafting eye-catching listicles that let your target audience know you understand who they are. Your posts may not get front-page placement on BuzzFeed. But fans and supporters won't know the difference when you share a post on other social-media platforms.
When you create your own BuzzFeed channel and posts, some consumers may be delighted to interact with your company through a format they find trendy and appealing.
3. Playbuzz.
Perhaps you on one occasion wasted some time answering a personality quiz, asking a question like "What color is your soul?" Such an activity can add a few moments of amusement to the day. Why shouldn't your company be part of the fun?
Any entrepreneur can create a free Playbuzz channel and create a silly quiz to share with followers. Include quizzes in your digital-content strategy to provide yet another way to amuse and inform customers across all social-media platforms.
4. Udemy
Udemy is a marketplace for online learning. Teachers set up courses for sale and students browse, buy and learn. Why shouldn't your company brand have a presence on this platform as well?
It doesn't cost anything to join Udemy. Meanwhile consumers browse through topics searching for new ways to educate themselves. Promote consumers' intellectual growth by offering free classes through Udemy that will teach them more about your field of interest.
Establishing yourself on Udemy as an instructor sets you up as an authority in your field while introducing your company's brand to a completely new subculture of people who are just waiting to fall in love with you.
Related: Create Side-Hustle Income by Teaching What You Already Know
