Social and Search Dos and Don'ts
Dear Reader,
Welcome to Performance Marketing, the monthly newsletter for online marketers looking for results.
Social media has joined the three big pillars of online marketing -- search, email, and display – as a key element of an effective strategy. Social media may seem like an outlier, a "nice to have" rather than a "need to have," but data shows that adding this tool to your arsenal can enhance search and display conversion rates, email open rates, and search engine organic rankings.
The correlation between social media and SEO is high. At LSF Interactive, SEO figures into almost every social media engagement we perform. The increasing demand for interactive Web content, as well as consumer expectations, require today's online marketers to complement SEO with social media to stay competitive.
Read this month's feature article for key dos and don'ts of integrating social and search.
All the Best,
Daniel Laury
Founder, President and CEO
LSF Interactive
Feature Article
Social And Search: Dos and Don'ts
As search engine optimization becomes increasingly sophisticated, focusing on standard SEO tactics, such as keyword usage and links, is not enough to remain competitive. Social media marketing can be an excellent driver of content visibility, by helping to keep content fresh and abundant, and also by increasing the number of inbound links a site receives.
The majority of search marketers have recognized the importance of social media to their search engine optimization efforts, according to a recent study from search marketing software provider SEOmoz. The study showed that nearly 71% of respondents said they use social media as part of their SEO strategy.
While search marketers also use plenty of nonsocial techniques to gain stature on engines like Google and Bing, several popular tactics have a social basis. Nearly 53% of respondents had started or grown a blog with SEO goals.
Here are some helpful dos and don'ts of incorporating social media into your SEO strategy.
Do offer social content.
Add a blog, reviews, forum, or even a social network to your site. Provide opportunities for consumers to interact with other brand fans as well as with your company. Adding fresh, interactive, and easily shareable content to your website will help improve online word-of-mouth, stimulate conversations with prospective customers, and expand your market reach.
Don't forget to optimize for natural search.
Optimizing blog posts, tweets, Facebook pages, Linkedin profiles, etc. will help your brand dominate the critical top 10-20 search results for your most relevant keywords. Learn more.
Do engage.
A significant factor in search engine rankings is the number, type and quality of inbound links to your site. If you create or share compelling and interesting content, more site owners will want to link to you.
Don't be put off by "nofollow."
Many links created through social media are "nofollow" and don't help rankings on some search engines that value on incoming links. Google has stated that it ignores the "nofollow" command. But social media is much more than a method for securing direct links. Sharing, voting, commenting and linking gives popular social content exposure, traffic and, depending on the site, can ultimately boost relevant inbound links.
Do share.
Make it easy for users to share your content by including links to networks relevant to your users and "share this" options that make it easy to share content at social sites like Facebook and Twitter. For tips about sharing tools visit addthis.com or kstoolkit.org.
Don't forget about niche sites.
There are many other social networks besides Facebook and MySpace that may be even more relevant to your audience. Find sites where those who are passionate about your product, service or industry spend time and you may hear people talking about your business a whole new way. See ning.com for other social networks.
Do use social media to inform keyphrase strategy.
Listening to customer conversations on social networks, blogs, and forums provides insight into how your customers actually talk about topics that are relevant to your company and can offer terms that your customers actually use when searching for your brand, company or products.
Don't guess.
Tracking your audience via social media monitoring software like Radian6.com that identifies keywords, conversations and influencers will provide crucial insight into your target market.
Do complete your profile.
Linkedin, Twitter, Facebook pages and company blogs often appear prominently in brand-based search results. Completing social-media profiles at these sites helps ensure the company message you create gets found.
Don't rely on your tagline.
Most people don't use your company's messaging to describe your product(s). Your blog posts, status updates, and tweets should reflect how they really talk about you and your industry and how they will search.
Do define your goals.
Working backward from a goal to create a social media strategy is very effective. It ensures that you will execute with continuity from a brand and messaging perspective, and in addition, you'll be more focused on an outcome. Not doing so can result in disjointed content, boring or un-engaging posts, or worst of all, lack of participation or interest from your audience.
Don't forget to measure.
Leveraging both social media monitoring services as well as web analytics can provide you with the insight to improve results. Use specific measurement tools to monitor the effect of your social web participation as well as the search engine performance of SEO efforts.
Do start your own network.
If your customers are passionate about your brand and love to talk about your products or your industry, you could consider starting a social network for them on your site. Connecting these fans can result in conversations that will help inform many aspects of your business. You can start a Facebook page or a social network of your own on Ning.
Don't try this at home.
While the barriers to entry are low, launching a successful social media campaign requires strategy, contacts, tools and experience, not to mention integration with other elements of marketing. Let an experienced agency help you navigate and leverage these opportunities.
Stat of the Month
60% of Fortune 500 companies have a corporate Twitter account with at least one tweet in the previous 30 days, up from 35% last year. 56% of Fortune 500 companies have a Facebook profile.
Source: Center for Marketing Research
LSF Interactive in the News
Paid Search Manager Peter Levin was quoted on the Wall Street Journal's blog, Digits, in an article titled “Google Instant May Provide Instant Revenue Increase.” LSF Interactive handles millions in AdWords spending for brands such as Career Education Corporation, Calvin Klein and SpeedoUSA. Levin said its data showed few changes in the costs for advertisers during the three weeks following the launch of Google Instant.
Read the complete article here
Connect with us socially