by Ruth Belena

Created on: July 16, 2010

When starting in business you should have greater success if you already have some online credibility. If few people have never heard of you, or cannot find out anything about you online, you will need to begin building online credibility for your business. Your personal brand is as important as that of your business. Your expert knowledge, assistance and honesty will give you all the credibility you need for business success.

• Why it pays to be honest

Whether you are responding to a blog post or answering a query in a comment, writing a review or sending a private message, always try to be open and honest. This may mean being critical at times, but constructive criticism can add value when you are building online credibility.

When you have a money making offer to promote, always be honest and clearly state that it does take time and effort to make money online. When you show how it is possible to prosper with some hard work and creative thinking, you will attract genuine followers and have more active referrals than you could gain by making false claims. Anyone who is deliberately dishonest, deceiving or misleading, when posting information online or in a message, is in danger of losing all credibility.

Loss of credibility can also be the result of over-enthusiasm. When people who have only just started in online business start making claims about huge amounts of money to be made from something so simple anyone can do it, they are obviously not writing from personal experience. Those are most likely to be gullible people who believe everything they have read about a program or a website which they have probably only just joined.

• Why it pays to be helpful

Forums, message boards, social networks and bookmark sites should not just be used for self promotion, but for genuinely interaction with other users. Being helpful is one of the best ways to get noticed online. You will attract more followers and become known as a responsible person. Then your online business will be taken seriously, your links will be visited and you will have some online credibility.

• Why it pays to share knowledge

Offering practical help, free guidance and valuable advice will build online credibility for your business. In addition to your networking activities, you could be writing articles, recording podcasts or making videos on topics related to your type of business.

Establish yourself  as an expert, an authority or a guru by creating valuable how-to guides and informative content that can be shared in article directories, posted on your own blog or business website, or published in your email newsletters.

Online videos, podcasts and articles can go viral when they are recommended on blogs and shared in social networks. Each piece, wherever it is published, should also provide a link back to your online business.

These are top tips for building online credibility for your business. Online business success relies on trust and ability to persuade people to join in a venture or to become a paying customer. This is far easier to achieve with a good online reputation. Your business will flourish when you are well known online for your honesty, helpfulness and expertise.

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