7 Ways You Know You Have Found Your Online Marketing Voice

Writing and marketing online can be kind of like hanging out in left field. You are never sure if you are making a difference to anyone and sometimes you wonder, “Is there anyone out there?”

There are millions of people on the internet doing all kinds of things. They are blogging, social networking, marketing, selling, setting up high school reunions, and putting out corny videos. It’s easy to get lost in that see of online activity.

Among all of that hubbub, one way to be found is to develop a unique “online voice” that people find interesting. If a few people find your voice interesting, they will spread the word about your stuff. Some will link to you, others will reblog you, and still others will email their friends about you. If someone important discovers your “voice,” your online content will go viral quickly.

What Makes Your Online Voice Interesting?

So what makes an online voice interesting? Lots of possibilities:

- unique content
- a funny way of phrasing things
- interesting titles
- shock value (an oldie but goodie)
- new information not found elsewhere (difficult to achieve)
- solid synthesis of information that is found elsewhere (easier to achieve)\
- a unique spin on information available elsewhere
- a consistently enjoyable read
- lack of hype
- sex (in the right context, sex always sells)
- good pictures (Flickr fame?)
- providing answers to questions people are asking
- offering answers to questions people are not asking yet (but should be)
- opinions contrary to the popular
- niche-specific humor (Chuck Norris jokes are a good example)
- the blatant statement of what others sweep under the rug
- personal experiences that other people can relate to

The list could go on for days. There are hundreds of ways to define your own unique voice on the internet. The voice should be one that’s suitable for your personality and the kind of writing you want to do. In other words, if you are not a great researcher, than offering a blog that synthesizes a bunch of information won’t work for you. If you have a strong personality, than a website that’s a purposefully blatant and over-the-top might work for you. You have to figure out what’s unique about you first, then find a voice to match.

7 Ways You Know You Have Found Your Online Marketing Voice

Once you have settled on an online style and niche, here are 7 ways to know whether you are being heard:

1. Comments on Your Blog
Spam aside, comments on your blog are a very high form of praise. It’s a way for someone to say, “Hey, I stopped by and read what you have to say. Here’s what I think about the subject.” You’ve now brought an interested party into your community and into the conversation you’re opening up with your blog. Good, bad, or ugly, the comments are a valuable way to know you are being. While it’s true that some people only comment on blogs for marketing purposes (a link back to their own blog), authentic comments are worth their weight in gold!

2. Trackbacks and Pingbacks
If someone links to your blog, they will often send a trackback or pingback to your blog. This is just a way of notifying you that someone has linked to you. It’s a way of saying, “Heads up! I liked your stuff enough to link to it and I wanted you to know.” It’s a nice courtesy and tells you that someone took the time to drop you a line.

3. Emails and Phone Calls
If someone drops you a line by email or gives you a call, then you know you’re being heard. People tend to use email or the phone when their message is of a more private nature, not for public consumption in the Comments section of your blog. Still very cool. You are being read.

4. Untracked and Unpinged Links
Someone may link to your blog without sending you a track or ping. However, you can still find out about it by using a service like Whostalkin or Backtype. Whostalkin searches the internet for keywords. You can use this service to search for your web or blog address, or your name. Backtype searches for keywords among blog comments. You can use it the same way you use Whostalkin, and find out who is talking about you, and where.

5. Online Statistics
A lot of online writers get a little burst of secret joy when they open the statistics part of their blog control panel. They love to see which blog posts got a lot of reads and which didn’t. They love to see that little spike in traffic. Your online statistics are a very accurate way to track whether you are being read or not. There are numerous free traffic trackers available, including Google Analytics, which works on any website or blog, and tools like StatPress for blogs. Track your stats. See which posts got a lot of hits. See which keywords brought people to you. Your stats will tell you where to go next with your online voice.

6. Mentions in Social Media
If you’re a Twitter fan, you may choose to tweet about certain of your better blog posts. If so, then tracking the number of people who retweet your tweet or who mention your blog in their own tweets is one way to measure your readability. This isn’t always totally accurate, since Twitter can be a cross between a popularity contest and a sci-fi convention, but it is an indicator.

7. Getting Business
Assuming that you are doing online writing to spread the word about your business, one sure way to know that you’ve found your online voice is if you find your business growing as a result of your online marketing efforts. Well, duh, right?