30-second summary:
- Brand authority can make a huge difference in whether someone decides to buy from you or not.
- First you have to examine what your current brand recognition is like by seeing how you’re talked about online. This can help you identify opportunity areas.
- Then you can dive in deeper and start researching typical questions your target audience has. Why? So you can answer them.
- Finally, you’ll set out to answer the questions you collected in an authoritative way to start building trust.
Please forgive the fact that I’m tweaking a tired adage, but the message is true: Building your brand authority doesn’t happen overnight.
I was reminded of this fact very recently while scrolling through LinkedIn:
Ongoing marketing efforts are needed to tell an authoritative story and build trust in potential customers. It can always make a difference when someone is deciding between two companies, and it’s even more important with B2B, since those products/services tend to involve a higher cost.
Here’s how you can go about utilizing digital marketing to increase your brand authority.
Note: I’m going to focus on the content itself, but earning backlinks[1] — which is significantly easier to do with high-quality content — is a primary way to indicate to Google that other sites trust you, which signals that you’re more authoritative. Prioritizing your backlink portfolio will dramatically help you in all other authority-building efforts.
Gauge your brand authority level
Don’t assume you already understand how you’re viewed by your audience. Instead, before launching into any marketing strategies, check the data to get a sense of how you’re being perceived.
- Have your branded searches[2] increased or decreased? What search terms are people pairing with your brand?
- How are your customers or leads