Discover How To Build Authority Online And Position Yourself As The Expert In Your Field
When you appear credible to your customers, they will trust you so discover how to build authority online and become the expert in your niche or industry.
Hi Trish Davies, here from Build Your AU. In my previous post I announced that I am starting a new highly intensive 9-week training program. It will help you create an online training business so that you can share your expertise and profit from it at the same time.
In that post I covered authenticity and why it is important for you to appear real to help you attract customers. Today I want to take it to the next step and focus on positioning yourself as an authority in you chosen field.
What you must realise is that when people have problems, they go online to find solutions. What happens though is when they search online, they are presented with hundreds of thousand of solutions.
That is great for them as they know there are solutions available but sometimes too much choice is a headache. They are left wondering which one to go for or more importantly who to go for. Who should they put their trust in, to serve them, to give them the outcome they are desperate for?
They are looking for a person with expertise, who is credible and oozes authority. Someone with a proven track record and someone who they can form a trusting relationship with. Someone like you!
You have expertise, credibility, and authority within, you just need to learn how to build authority online. I am going to show you how to do that today and through my program!
Focus On A Specific Niche
To become an authority online you must be a specialist on one specific niche. That niche can have more than one aspect to it which are closely intertwined. Take myself for example.
I am a personal branding expert, but I am also a professional trainer/coach/presenter. So, I can show you how to create your personal brand along with showing you how to position yourself as an online coach.
My ideal clients are highly talented individuals and business owners who ant to create their personal brand. Also, they want to share their knowledge through creating online training packages which is what Build Your AU is all about.
When you are able to narrow down what you are specialised in then this will become your niche. The benefit to clarifying what you are good at means that your message will speak directly to your ideal clients. When you can connect with them emotionally you will position yourself as an authority in their eyes.
People are looking for that personal touch so that puts you at an advantage over bigger brands. Emotional needs are often overlooked by so called bigger brands and with Covid-19 a lot of them are disappearing. This is a great opportunity for you to establish authority online.
So how can you choose your niche? Here are some things you can ask yourself.
- What skills and value can you offer people?
- Your ideal customers have needs and challenges, so how can you help them?
- Is there a gap in the market that you can step in and fill?
How To Build Authority Online Means Creating An Online Presence
To command authority online you must appear online when people are looking for solutions. People will find you in two ways. They will either look for solutions to their problems and you will appear in the search results. Or they will specifically look you up through being recommended.
The first point is very important because you must appear alongside your competitors. The second is arguably more important because if you have been recommended and don’t have an online presence, what impression does that give?
Your first task is to create an authority website similar to the one you are on right now. This is your home on the internet, and it will be full of valuable information on what you do and how you can help.
Then look to other channels online such as social media. When it comes to social media you must know exactly who your ideal customer is and where thy hang out. Create you presence on the social media channels that are aligned with your ideal customers.
I have profiles and business pages on most social media channels but my favourite one is YouTube. Here I can share my expertise with the most impact, so I invite you to check out my channel and subscribe here.
Another favourite one of mine is LinkedIn because it is full of professional people. I have skills and talents that appeal to all levels of management and small business owners and entrepreneurs.
So, define which channels of publication you can leverage the most. Your authority website is a must and be strategic about the social media channels you want to set up.
You Must Provide Value To Be Seen As An Authority
You will provide value through the content that you create and publish. The channels I mentioned previously are your publishing channels and where you will connect with your ideal customers.
Your content or value must be focused on the person reading, watching, or listening to it. Always adopt the mindset of what’s in it for them when creating content because that is the value.
The purpose of this post is to give you information on how to build authority online. I have mentioned what I do but the emphasis is on you, how can I help you establish your authority online. I am thinking of your needs and not my own, this is what you must replicate when speaking to your ideal customers.
So how can you share your value? Here are some examples of the content and value you can provide to your ideal customer.
- Blog posts
- Infographics
- Podcasts
- Checklists
- Reports
- eBooks
- Videos
- Webinars
When you create value with any of these formats it means you must always share your best information and knowledge. Don’t hold back because when you audience sees the value you are creating, they will come back for more. This is where you monetize your expertise and they will happily pay for it.
The more value you give the more reward you will receive. Money is the biproduct of the value to give!
Always Be Consistent
You must be consistent in creating your content and value. Don’t just think you can put up one blog post or video and then it’s job done. You must regularly create value, and this means publishing multiple times every week.
If you check out this website you will see that I regularly publish articles or blog posts. The same can be said for my YouTube channel and that content or value is republished throughout my social media channels.
What you must understand is that your audience will have their consuming preferences. You will have people who like to watch videos, people who like to read and people who are focused on social media platforms.
You must feed their desire for information and value day after day, week after week and month after month. It takes a lot of dedication and commitment to build authority online, but it is something you must be prepared to do.
One last thing is that your message is crucial to establishing authority. It must be consistent also, congruent if you like so that people are clear on what you can do for them.
Build Authority Through Engagement
When you consistently create value, you will automatically receive feedback. What you must do is engage with the people who are taking the time to connect with you. Answer their questions and comments but also take the leading role by asking them what they want and need.
Straight away they will see that you care, you are approachable and focused on serving them. This is how you build relationships and establish you authority online.
Build Relationships With Other Authority Figures
Within your industry and ones that are closely related there will be experts and influencers. What you must do is reach out to them to build relationships and expand your own network.
This opens up the world of collaboration, endorsement and opportunity and it works in two ways. The first is that you are introduced to other highly talented people which build your personal network. The other is that you can then reciprocate and refer people you know to other people.
Reach out to people through their websites, social media profiles and at live events and seminars. You must be proactive, don’t rely on people making the first move. Put yourself out there and start building your own network, circle, of influence.
This Is A Matter Of Urgency
I started of this post mentioning a brand-new program I am creating, and it starts in just a few days. If you want to show your authenticity which I covered in my previous post and establish your authority, then this is the only place you want to be.
The last cog in the Build Your AU program is building an audience for your business which is what I will cover in my next post. Make sure you look out for that in just a couple of days.
Then it is all systems go and ready to launch this exciting new program. Contact me here now and I will do my very best to get you onto the program but time is critical so you must act now.
I have shared with you how to build authority online and invited you to join my program. This is your time so don’t waste this opportunity to showcase your authority. I look forward to meeting you on the program, it is going to be epic!
Helping you build your authenticity, authority and audience.
Trish Davies
Build Your AU
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