Who Is Looking For You? What Will They Find?

I realized I needed a website a long time ago. I was really pleased when I had the first one designed, and we actually put a bid out on a tech site to get my latest one done by a real live graphic arts studio.

In fact, that company did all of the PR so that my press packet, stationary, and website all had the same graphic quality and images.

Well worth the expense. I thought that was all I'd need to do. Heaven's above but I was wrong!

That did not make me excited to do anything else!

 I had zero interest in writing a blog.

In fact, When Sue O'halloran first suggested that I do it, I thought, 'no way'.

I didn't want a Facebook Page, and put off getting one until a few years ago.

I didn't want a You Tube Channel, but I have one...I don't post much there, but that will change this year.

I don't want to do an original 'show' for my YouTube Channel, but I will be putting the thing together, and if it goes well, I will be marketing the heck out of it by fall.

I didn't want to have a Twitter account. I have one all the same. You can follow me  on Twitter @dlwstoryteller. I still don't really get tweeting, and I'm not one hundred percent sure how the whole thing works, but I'm in there like everybody else!


I even joined Linkedin, but I'm not one hundred percent sure what to do with that either. Though, I'm happy to connect with you over there!


There are, in fact, a whole host of things that I don't find particularly lovely about the maintenance of my on-line persona, but, if I want to work, these are important things.

All of this on-line stuff started because of an epiphany I had some years ago.

There was lots of footage on youtube and in other places of me, but I didn't put any of it on-line, had no way to encourage or discourage people from finding it, and none of it was catalogued in any way shape or form.





Then, there are all of the random pictures, the on purpose pictures, and the 'Good Heavens I hope nobody ever sees that one' pictures.

 I wanted to make sure that if someone were looking for me, they found the information I wanted most prominent, and not the work of someone who was standing a quarter mile from the event while recording the backs of half the audiences' heads.



I decided that the only way to make sure I was putting my best foot forwards was to take control of my various on-line bits, and combine them into something that helped me funnel people and traffic to things that helped my career.

In the last couple of years I've realized I need to get into some more video posting online. My learning curve for this is horrible, but, I will figure it out with tutorials and the occasional mocking laughter of my children as they say things like, 'Just click this, mom'.

Luckily, there are new videos coming online all of the time, and that helps, but I still need to get my own stuff out there.

This newest piece is from Kentucky and is part of their PBS Learning Media. It is called A World of Stories.  I'm doing Anansi and the Hat Shaking Dance.

Those stories are going to become part of my marketing strategy going forward into the year. There are some good ones by Megan Hicks, Carrie Sue Ayvar, Dan Kedding and Mary Hamilton, so, if you have a moment, go and give it a look!




So, here is the question: When someone is looking for you...what do they see? What sites come up first? What links will they encounter? Where does Google send them? What is the overall impression people get of you when they search for you online?

That's why I write the blog.
That's why I have a Youtube Channel.
That's why I tweet.
That's why I'm on Linkedin.
That's why I'm working on a short video series.
That's why I post on Facebook.
That's why I market all of my preferred links to schools in my online marketing material.

Driving traffic to my favorite sites instead of hoping for the best is my on-line marketing strategy.

It requires constant upkeep.

What is your on-line marketing strategy?

What are your potential employers and/or fans seeing when they look for you?

Are you leading that search, or are you being carried along by it like a cork in a river?

Let 2016 be the year you take control if you are still being moved by the current.

Happy Marketing!