Just as the marketing community begins to digest the notion of search engine optimization and the need to game Google's master algorithm, it seems that search as we have come to know it is about to change again, and quite dramatically so. By combining the realms of traditional search and social media, a new phenomenon is emerging: the "social search".
The idea is simple: Google is great, but it still only ever delivers the result that is most relevant on average for all users -- it almost never generates the ideal result for any individual user. And how could it? After all, it has little user- and situation-specific context to draw on. But what if via Facebook, Twitter, blogs and your Gmail account they knew who your social circle was and what your friends were talking about? Then, the theory goes, the engine would be able to deliver more personalized, relevant and specific results.
So with Google developing its social serach product and Bing announcing deals with Facebook and Twitter, where does that leave SEO and digital marketing? At the very least, it elevates the importance of a brand's presence in the world of social media. While in the past "social" was just another channel in which to disseminate a message, it now could become the very heart of any digital campaign. Without a carefully managed online "social footprint," a brand or organization could become increasingly limited in its ability to reach its target audience. On the other hand, the more people in my social circle talk about a brand, the more likely I am to see it, click on its listing, become a client, and further the conversation.
Search is evolving. Now marketing departments need to evolve in order to effectively follow, influence, and take advantage of their social media and social search presence.
Patrick Busse
Marketing & the Internet
Based on an article in Adage
http://adage.com/digitalnext/post?article_id=141737
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