The internet is filled with experts on nearly every topic. Some of them make money while others remain unsung heroes. There are some individuals who come online with a real-life celebrity status. Sometimes the real life celebrity carries over to the internet. Becoming an online trusted authority figure takes time and effort but can be very rewarding financially and fulfilling. Many ordinary people become online celebrities based on their interactions in online communities.
Authority figures have certain characteristics. The characteristics center around the golden rule, "Do unto others as you would have done unto you." Being a kind generous person goes a long way with people online, because unfortunately there are a ton of people who are not kind and generous. Because the internet is faceless, people, even people you know, find it easier to be unkind or downright mean. There are several steps you can take to become an online authority figure.
Find
There are many online communities on the internet. Not all of them will benefit you or your business. You'll need to spend some time discovering where your target market lives online. The obvious are Twitter and FaceBook, not because they are particularly focused but because more people congregate on these two sites than any other community sites. After these two, use Google to search for busy discussion boards and forums centered around the topics that are the focus of your service or business.
Join
The next step is to join these communities. You might want to have specific email accounts for each of these different communities. You'll need to keep track of the email coming from each of these online locations. The key is to keep organized. There are ways to connect the accounts so that you can post to one and it gets posted to other accounts. Tweetdeck allows you to post to Twitter and to FaceBook. Look around and listen, you'll find great ways to connect accounts. A word of caution, some of the ways you interact with the two different media require different ways of interacting. Twitter posts can only be 140 characters (letters) long while FaceBook posts can be a bit longer.
Lurk
You might be tempted to jump in and start talking but that isn't always a good idea. On Twitter and FaceBook you'll need to find "friends" and people with the same interests. You'll also need to look for the influencers in the community. Twitter allows you to search for discussions on your topics. FaceBook allows you to search for people you already know which can get you in touch with people you don't know. The key is to identify the most influential people who don't get attacked and get thanked a lot.
On Twitter, look for people who get re-tweeted often. In forums look for people who answer questions and are thanked. Look for the ones who are defended. You can use searches on both sites. FaceBook is a little harder, you have to start with people you know. Good people to start connecting to on FaceBook are current clients.
Another thing to do is watch conversations to identify hot topics. Identify which hot topics are controversial. These will be the topics to avoid. Topics that don't lead to controversy are the topics to answer. Will you need to know the answers to everything? Anything you don't know, you can research and answer with links and information. The key is not to use links to your own website and your own content. This can be considered spam and you will be scolded for it, perhaps banned.
Talk
Once you've found, joined and lurked for a while, it is time to join the conversation. When you start talking, it may seem like no one is listening. Just be persistent. Make a point of responding directly to other people talking on Twitter and commenting on other people's posts on FaceBook. Once you get going, start your own topics of interest. Keep the conversation moving forward just like you were talking with a ground of friends. Don't use it to stand on a podium to deliver a speech. Answer questions other people ask about topics that concern them but don't use it to refer to your services. You use Social Media to show you are a friendly knowledgeable person. You'll gain authority status quickly and have the added benefit of making people feel good because they know you.
Engage
As you move forward in Twitter and FaceBook, you can start broadcasting links to informative content that you provide in blogs and videos. These types of things bring attention to yourself. It also enhances your authoritative status to the community in general.
While working in Social Media is a great way to generate clients, you've got to consider the fact that it is not a post it once and they will be in awe of you. You have to find your target, join their venues, lurk and find out their topics, start talking and engage their attention.