Even the most primitive internet users know that having a website in 2014 is an important part of doing business. Without an internet presence, you limit yourself to an audience a fraction of the size of what is possible. Why would anyone voluntarily choose to do that? The truth is that even brands and businesses that operate in an offline capacity need at least a minimum online presence to ensure proper marketing and development. If your brand has yet to venture into the world of online marketing or has just begun, then continue reading to find out about the three most important elements your brand needs to have in place in order to succeed.

A Fully Functional Website

Any brand that wants to be noticed online must have some form of website as its first element of presence. Without a website, you will not be able to associate your cause and brand with the search engine terms that properly match it; your competition will be likely to take the top spots in search under such circumstances. Your website does not have to be overtly fancy if your brand operates in an offline capacity, but it should have ample information about what you do, what services you offer and how you can be contacted outside of the internet. It wouldn’t hurt to leave an email address on there as well – almost everyone uses email these days, even if they are not skilled internet users.

An Analytics Software Package

With a website up and running, you now need a way to determine what the traffic to that website is doing and looks like. When pinging links to search engines, you expect traffic, but what if it doesn’t come or exceeds your expectations? The analytics software package that you configure to work with your website will shed light onto this, allowing you to see which pages are attracting the most attention and what your audience is most interested in this week, month or year. Google offers an analytics platform that is free and detailed enough for most basic webmasters to use and enjoy – in just a few steps, you’ll have signed up for an account and added the analytics tracking system to your web pages.

Mailing/Subscriber Lists

Last but not least, if you want to make a huge impression on individuals and be able to reach out to them in the future about any updates or projects, then you must include fields that allow for the capturing of email addresses from all of your visitors. As mentioned above, including an email address for contacting you is a great idea, but having a mailing list signup feature is even better. Whenever you have a new event or donation drive being launched, you can quickly send out emails to those who care most. From here, they can start pinging links by request through email and social media, adding to your overall reach. It is with tools such as mailing lists and one-click email campaigns that even the least tech-savvy of brands are able to stay in touch with their internet base and maintain a presence on the World Wide Web.