Social Equity: Social Media and SEO

Social Equity stands to increase significantly as a result of the benefits social media has with regards to SEO.

The secrecy surrounding search engine algorithms has resulted in a great deal of conjecture when it comes to social media factoring into SEO. That said, allusions made by executives, such as Matt Cutts at Google, have led to inferences that social media is a major factor when it comes to optimizing your content for search engines. As a result, your brand’s Social Equity stands to benefit greatly due to the fact that SEO is still one of the most successful means of getting found.

In today’s Social Equity segment, we aim to show where Social Equity is derived from the incorporating of social media into your SEO.

Where Are the SEO Benefits from Social Media?

In order to understand how an intertwining of social media and SEO add value to your business, it is first crucial to understand where SEO stands to benefit as a result of social signals.

The chart on the left was derived from research conducted by Searchmetrics. What the data shows is how heavily social signals (data from activity on social media channels) weigh into rankings on search engines. (For the graph on the left, rankings in the U.S.) Last year, traditional link-building, one of the cornerstones of conventional SEO, had been surpassed by Facebook shares.

Essentially, social signals and sharing register with search engines as links (if, of course, what is being shared contains a link to your content or a landing page). Thus, as the popularity of social media continues to grow, the importance of factoring SEO into your social strategy grows with it.

This is where Social Equity comes into the mix.

Social Equity Derived from Social Media and SEO

A properly formulated SEO strategy that incorporates your social media will result in a tremendous value added with regards to Social Equity. This holds true for two reasons.

First, traditional SEO is an ongoing process that requires numerous man hours and ongoing expenses. With social media factoring as heavily as it does into the equation, you stand to save quite a bit of resources when it comes to your investment in SEO. Considering the strength of social sharing, the link-building process is both faster and collaborative. So there is a two-fold benefit here: both your audience and your search rankings are being built up as you invest in your social media strategy.

Second, for many verticals, SEO is still a major focus when it comes to determining market share. In fact, a study conducted by Optify showed that the top result on Google receive over 35% of clicks from a search. Social media activity allows you to rise through the Google ranks, and when you stand a chance to generate more than a third of all traffic for a given keyword (or better yet, multiple keywords) the value of your website and business as a whole stands to rise.

Traditional SEO is still of great importance to your business’s value. But when it comes to Social Equity and the value added to your business as a result of social activity, it is essential that you incorporate social media into your SEO strategy. Your shareholders will thank you.

Have you seen your search rankings rise since beginning your social media program? Tell us in the comments below or on Twitter!