By 
An embarrassing story from my early days of marketing:
When I started in the content marketing business, I had … well, I had bought into the hype. I learned that companies are desperate for good marketers (which is true) and content marketers can make a living in their spare time.
It’s also true.
So I built my website, optimized it for search engines, and patted myself on the back. Then I wrote some articles showing my knowledge and skills.
And that was it. I was on Twitter and Facebook a bit, but not a lot.
But even if he had polished social media, it wouldn’t have changed much. That’s a common waste of time for entrepreneurs, both established and aspiring.
Either way, he wasn’t overthinking it. The hype was seductive enough to think that I would jump on the internet and people would find me.
I know I’m not alone with that. Many entrepreneurs do the same.
But since we all learn quickly enough, a digital presence is not enough.
You need something else if you want people to find you.
And if you want readers to become customers.
That requires being a digital authority.
Think about it from a potential customer’s perspective. They want help with something and are looking for someone to help them.
Could you be the one?
Probably, but so could dozens of others. If you are a trainer with little more than a website, you are interchangeable with any other trainer … besides hypnotherapists, wellness consultants, astrologers, reiki practitioners, performance optimizers, and anyone else your client thinks could help them.
However, if you are a digital authority, those others fade into the background. People choose you because they can see that you are different.
They see that you know what you are talking about and have the power to solve their problems.
Here’s how to cultivate digital authority:
Frequent contact
Fans always write when they are “inspired.”
Professionals showcase their knowledge in informative, but probably unappealing, blog posts weekly.
Digital authorities, however?
They constantly entertain and inform your market.
To the untrained eye, they are being thrown.
Offering goodies and delicacies to sell.
Which … well, they are.
But they also make sure that they are never far from the minds of their prospects.
Think about it: you and the people you know have problems. And you’ve met professionals who could help you fix them.
But one of the obstacles that keeps you from getting close is … you’ve forgotten them.
Maybe you met the professional at a party two years ago.
Maybe you saw his ad, once, the last fortnight.
I’m not saying that you will never remember some old chance encounter, but it is much less likely that someone you read and enjoy regularly.
This is how experience becomes authority, coming to mind when looking for a solution.
Demonstrations
Anyone can talk about a good game.
That’s what snake oil experts and sellers have in common.
What separates them, and what the authorities do, is that the experts can demonstrate their skills.
Demonstrations are the best form of proof. If you can get your reader to experience what you can do, even just give it a try, it’s even better than word of mouth.
It’s easy for me to demonstrate my marketing skills – by posting every day, I show that I can write a lot and write well.
As for my hypnosis skills …
If my writing isn’t enough to inspire even a small change, which, for most people, it is, I deliver eight hypnotic audios to anyone who wants them. All they need to do is sign up for my email list.
Speaking of …
Valuable gifts for subscribers
Hobbyists give away free stuff, but pros know the value of information. This is why so many sites offer bonuses to anyone who signs up for their email list.
Everything that doesn’t cost money on my websites has a purpose. Articles promote my deals, while bonus reports and hypnotic audios feature people on my lists.
The great thing about this is that it allows prospects to experience it first hand. If they like what they see, they will come back for more. If not, they were never right for you in the first place.
Literary fatherhood
Anyone who is a published author has instant authority. There is a lot of prestige that comes with that.
Although these days, it is absurdly easy.
Take 50 pages of helpful solutions on a common topic, add it to an ebook, and sell it, either as a PDF / epub file on your site or through Amazon’s desktop publishing platform.
You don’t need to impress editors these days.
Although publishing a book is easy, it still requires commitment. Aside from the prestige, it shows that you know enough to fill a book and that you are dedicated enough to write it.
High price offers
This is my favorite.
Not only because it generates authority right away … but it can also make you a lot of money.
Having some high-end product or service instantly makes you an authority. While everyone else sticks to e-books and inexpensive products, you prove yourself to be an elite by charging elite prices.
The only thing to keep in mind:
Your offer has to be worth what you charge.
You could easily put a thousand dollar price tag on a whitepaper … just make sure it offers ten times that value.
And, of course, your marketing must make that value clear.
Inflating your rates makes you look ridiculous and can destroy your reputation.
But charge a lot and deliver even more?
Why, only the top 5% of any field can do that.
So show that you are where you belong by creating and selling something high-end.
Some prospects will buy it, while making your most affordable offers seem … well, affordable.