Hilda Mateiu
Social Media Marketing is a term which designates the process of increasing the traffic of a particular website by using social media sites. Theoretically if a user finds a webpage useful enough to recommend it for his friends, a third party might find the original site more trustworthy, as such references come from satisfied clients and are not commercials controlled by the company. Of course there are several ways in which businesses can use social media sites in their favor, the question is just which sites are worth investing time and money and how the campaign should be done.
Social media sites are easily accessible for anyone and their popularity is rapidly increasing. For example Facebook, the most popular social media site, has more than 800 million registered users, but other sites like Twitter, Google+ or Tumblr are also frequently used by millions worldwide. With such potentials all businesses can benefit from these sites. Social media can be used for several different purposes. It is efficient in spreading the news about a business; it can offer companies an accurate idea about what customers believe regarding their products or services; it can be used to increase the credibility of a company through enthusiastic customers or simply to get feedback from clients.
The basic idea behind companies joining social media sites is that they give their clients an opportunity to express their ideas. This can have positive results by increasing the popularity and credibility of a company but it might also harm a business in case of negative feed backs. So before going social all companies should have a carefully designed plan and be aware of advantages and risks. If used properly social media sites can make a business more accessible, can generate more exposure and ease connection with potential clients.
Besides the above mentioned benefits, social media can help increase the ranking of a particular website and therefore automatically generate more traffic. Since 2010 Google officially sustains social media, meaning it considers social factors like shares, likes or tweets when establishing the page ranking of a website. Likes and tweets are indications of a high quality, unique content, so it is normal they are considered by Google. We should also remember the fact that if a post is Re Tweeted, it will get more attention, more natural back links and automatically higher ranking.
Since Google Penguin Update sites should acquire links in a natural way in order to gain a high ranking, meaning webmasters shouldn’t intervene in this process whatsoever. However certain procedures can still be performed. For example webmasters can use social media sites to discover what exactly are their clients interested in and build their content accordingly. Creating a Facebook and Twitter account is also recommended, as more users mean more opportunities for link sharing. These accounts should be tied to the original website, so links would appear on the profile. In order to increase social media traffic, webmasters can include social sharing buttons at the top or bottom of every blog post or add a direct requirement for readers to share the content in case they found it useful.
As shown above, social media can lead to the rapid growth of a business but it can also affect it. During a social media marketing audit SEO specialists can analyze the way your website is using social media, identify potential problems and recommend solutions. If you are not yet using social media, planning an efficient strategy is recommended, so you should contact a professional for support. Having a well developed, strong and reliable social media campaign will not just increase your sells but it can also protect you from future Google Search Engine Updates.
