At the time of this writing, the world of self-employment is rising at a meteoric pace. In 2016, more than 15 million people registered as self-employed within the United States alone. With the coronavirus pandemic forcing more businesses to get comfortable with remote job operations, that number might be spiking in the near future.
If you are a business professional already working your trade on the internet, you are already ahead of the pack. If you are not posting your business profile on every high-profile online business directory, you are wasting a prime opportunity to push yourself ahead even further.
From LinkedIn and Crunchbase to Yelp and EverybodyWiki, there are a variety of business platforms that you should take advantage of immediately in order to continually build your business. We’ll perform a short introductory primer on the best of the best business directories so that you don’t have to.
Top Business Directories For Entrepreneurs
The internet is a sprawling labyrinth of websites that spread in every direction at once. It can be impossible to make a name for yourself, your products, or your brand unless you are consistently being seen by people. Online business directories are a callback to the Webrings of yesteryear, only they serve a far more important function. With consumers savvier than ever, the internet has become the ultimate battlefield for brand reputation and management.
Make sure that you sign up for the following business directories to place yourself in a position to succeed.
1) Crunchbase – Crunchbase is an online platform for finding information regarding both public and private businesses. One of the most popular business branding websites on the internet, creating your Crunchbase account is as easy as signing up for a Free Trial. Implement a professional profile on a platform that everybody in your industry will use while continually updating it to drive traffic toward your business. Crunchbase offers affordable subscription programs to get you started.
Key Advantages: Crunchbase is a giant and popular platform that is brimming with opportunity. Your business can be listed right beside the best in the industry, thus ensuring that you are never far behind in the search engine.
2) EverybodyWiki – Wikipedia is the compendium of knowledge that nearly every internet user will rely on at some point in their lives. Unfortunately, it is relatively closed off to most people. Enter EverybodyWiki, the Wiki for, well, everybody. This platform is ideal for creating a foundation to build your brand’s reputation. You can look at this profile that’s similar to Wikipedia to get an idea as to what we mean. Clear information is concisely presented for maximum ease in consumer consumption.
Key Advantages: A sprawling new network with room to grow, get your business listed early to start reaping the benefits. Create a flexible profile for your brand and fill it with key information in an easy-to-sort interface reminiscent of Wikipedia.
3) Yelp – You don’t have to be a self-starting entrepreneur to understand why Yelp is so popular. This platform puts the power back in the hands of the consumer while giving business owners control over their brand. Creating a Yelp profile is simple and it will quickly get your brand higher up in search results. It would be a good idea to hire a social media manager to respond to any and all reviews that find their way to your Yelp profile. A communicative company can craft an amazing reputation!
Key Advantages: Yelp puts your company right where it needs to be to get seen by customers everywhere. A high ranking search engine result with Yelp will drive business while building your reputation.
4) LinkedIn – LinkedIn was established in 2004 as a professional networking website. In the intervening years, LinkedIn has managed not only to survive but to thrive as a resource hub for professionals around the world. With more than 675 million registered users, you almost have to join the platform to ensure that your net is cast as wide as possible.
Key Advantages: LinkedIn is a great place to host a profile that is directed toward colleagues within your industry. Great for generating funding and engineering positive momentum in business talks, LinkedIn is more than just a ‘forgotten’ social media platform.
Get Listed Today and Watch Your Business Surge
Business listings on platforms like the ones listed above are part and parcel of the self-employment experience. If you want to reach as far and as high as your business will take you, make sure to sign up for the aforementioned platforms while maintaining a professional and present profile.
