23 Aug Search and Social Media today and beyond – Guest Post on JyeSmith.com

Close friend Jye Smith, from Weber Shandwick, asked me to write a guest post on the topic of “The Future of Search and Social Media“, which I was delighted to do so as it’s a subject I frequently ponder about.

Post Summary:

• In Google’s Algorithm, Social Media Popularity is now more critical than ever.
• Websites must learn how to integrate themselves with Social Media to leverage SEO
• 2011 will see dramatic changes for SEO and Social Media
• I have recently noticed a large amount of spam appearing in SERPs which leads me wonder why Google aren’t doing anything about it? What are they planning?

Why I think Google weighs social media popularity higher than ever

Given that Social Media usage, in terms of Facebook, Twitter and Niche communities, is higher than ever, Google can now tap into metrics that are in some ways (not all) much less susceptible to influence from spammers & SEO’s – If something, like a blog post, is genuinely popular in Social Media it’s easy to spot.