This is my story of how I started to build an online presence for my brand. In 2014 when I was looking for an article writing job on the internet I stumbled upon the word weblog which was intriguing and sounded interesting, after a little research I came to learn more about blogging and how people were using blogs to communicate to people and share their stories. By reading books and listening to my favorite personal development speakers, I was inspired and I began writing short articles.
This triggered my desire to learn more about blogging and how I can use it to post my articles and share them with people. I also learned that I can start blogging for free and that I can create a free blog and publish it within a few minutes. I researched the different platforms that provide free blogging services and compared a few then settled for one that I felt I was comfortable with. With a few tutorials on the internet, I was able to learn more about the site and how to use it to create a free blog and build an online presence.
Within a few days, I was able to start my first blog and I published it after posting a few of my written articles. While my passion for blogging grew bigger, I then came across Search Engine Optimization also known as SEO, how to build an online presence and how to optimize your blog to appear on the Search Engine Results Pages (SERPS). By that time these names and processes were too great for my mind to grasp but with further research and reading I started to understand their importance and how they are being utilized to build an online presence.
Learning to Build an Online Presence.
My curiosity led me to learn more about blogging, search engines, and how to build an online presence, then I started to apply these new skills to my blog and I saw the results of my efforts. The more I learned and practiced the new skills, the more I would come across new concepts and tools. Then I started to realize that the platform I was using was limited and didn’t allow creativity. I would read so many articles about WordPress and how the writers compared it with these other sites but I was not ready to leave my current free blogging site.
I got a job as a Bancassurance officer at Barclays Bank in 2015, with my background as a blogger I thought about using the knowledge I have to look for insurance customers online. I started creating a website in order to build an online presence and use it to get leads and sales, but unfortunately, I was unable to complete the website. This was my first time trying to create a business website and I encountered a lot of setbacks since my knowledge and skills were limited in that area.
Then in 2019, I launched another blog where I was blogging about Personal Development and Leadership. This time I decided not to use the free option but to upgrade to a paid version by the same platform that I used earlier. I bought a domain name and then linked it to my blogging platform but still, some features were not available for that paid plan. To get more features I was required to upgrade to a higher plan for added features.
I only used it for a year and would pay for the plan every month, it was a bit expensive but I couldn’t turn back since I had invested so much time to build an online presence by writing blog posts for the blog and optimizing it for SEO. The blog was also monetized and I didn’t want to lose everything that I had worked for. Unfortunately in early 2020 when Corona hit the whole world, my company was affected and my income went down and I couldn’t afford to keep up with the monthly payments.
After my last month of paid subscription, I couldn’t renew my plan since my income was reduced and I channeled it to basic needs only. That was the last time I blogged in 2020. Fast forward to 2021, I lost my job since I couldn’t renew my contract and I went into retail business. I started selling footwear online and I borrowed some skills I had learned during blogging to find clients. I utilized Facebook and Instagram ads to find clients for my business.
Then an Idea comes to mind, “Why don’t you create a website for your footwear business?” I played with the idea in my mind for a while and eventually, I started a project of creating a website for my footwear business. Back in 2019, I launched a clotheline by the name: “Incredible Official Wear” where I used to sell branded apparel. I had created a website for the business but it was an informational website, not an ecommerce one where I could sell products online directly from my website. The business was also affected by Corona and in 2020 the business failed and I had to close it for a while.
With the skills I had learned earlier, I was able to set up a website very quickly but this time I went for an e-commerce site. I found the platform that I was using to be very limiting in terms of features and lacked room for creativity. I just couldn’t get to make the e-commerce site have the look that I desired, I would browse through my competitors’ websites and get amazed at how advanced their e-commerce websites looked with modern looks and tools which boosted their efforts to build an online presence for their businesses and brands.
Eventually, I gave up my fear of trying out a new content management system. I settled for WordPress, and to be more specific I settled for WordPress.org. This opened up a whole new world of web design and creativity. I started to look for tutorials and blog posts so I could read more about WordPress. What I learned about WordPress blew my mind and I couldn’t sleep for a few days since I was busy learning and practicing how to fully utilize WordPress to build an online presence for my brand.
The first project I started was to create an e-commerce site for my footwear business and also build an online presence for it. It was a satisfying project since everything that I was not able to do previously with the platform I used earlier, I would find a way to do it with WordPress. After a few weeks, I was able to complete the ecommerce site but I did not launch it because I felt that was not the direction I wanted to go. I still plan to make the site live but not immediately.
While working on the ecommerce site, I learned a lot about making blogs, creating websites, and developing different types of ecommerce sites. I came across so many different themes and plugins and experimented with various to come up with the e-commerce site I desired. This is where my knowledge and skills increased and I learned much more about how to build an online presence.
I was forced to go deeper into SEO and Social Media Marketing so that I could put all these things together. This introduced me to Digital Marketing, a new concept to me by then. Then I learned more about Digital Marketing and how it ties all these things together. In the process, I also learned more about Personal branding and how to build a strong personal brand online.
I would say that my blogging journey has allowed me to learn a lot of things and develop skills in so many areas. While creating websites you find yourself learning more about graphics design, copywriting, how to sell online, marketing, and very many other skills. Right now I am confident with my writing skills and improved web design skills. I have specialized in web development using content management systems and to be more specific I use WordPress to create different types of websites.
The journey that I have now started is sharing the knowledge and skills I have learned throughout my blogging journey. Through Digital Marketing, I am teaching people how to build an online presence for their brands by optimizing their digital presence. I am doing this through blog posts which I publish on my blog and podcasts. I plan to make use of various content formats to share my knowledge and help more people build an online presence for their brands.
Digital marketing is simply selling products and services using technological devices. Digital marketing covers various areas such as Search Engine Optimization (SEO), Content Marketing, Social Media Marketing (SMM), Search Engine Marketing (SEM), Affiliate Marketing, Email Marketing, Video Marketing, Native Advertising, and the use of Online PR sites. When all these areas are creatively utilized and made to work together, they produce remarkable results in building a strong online presence.
So I will be sharing various tips, techniques, and strategies for optimizing your digital presence. I will also talk about various tools and resources that you can use to make your work easier and help you stand out from the rest. My deepest desire is to help brand owners and SMEs navigate through the murky waters of Digital marketing and help them optimize their digital presence to achieve their goal of building a strong online presence for their brands and businesses.
Join me on this journey today so that together we can make a difference in our brands and businesses. Whether you have an existing brand or you would like to build a new one from scratch, this is where I will hold your hand and guide you through the steps so that you can build an online presence for your brand. Make sure you join my weekly newsletter so that you don’t miss updates on newly published content on my website. I am looking forward to having a wonderful journey with you full of joy, growth, and success in digital marketing!
