Has social media killed SEO?
Hmmm…interesting question because you see all these SEO companies out there, probably in the dozens of thousands now, all vying for their particular piece of the search engine optimization http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Search_engine_optimization pie.
Well, just to make sure we are all on the same page here while analyzing the question, let’s look at what these SEO companies actually do. Generally speaking, they help their clients achieve better search engine result page (SERP http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Search_engine_results_page) rankings over time according to the relevant keywords under consideration. For example, these SEO gurus will make a Google search for ´auto mechanic in Santa Monica´ pop up on the first page of Google, perhaps as high up as the #1 spot, for a given URL. Awesome, huh?! Well, maybe not.
Let’s briefly look at HOW they achieve these results WITHOUT going into all the technical Web speak they love to throw out at their clients. Great SERPs happen with solid external SEO efforts. Among other things, one of the major external SEO factors involves creating strong, permanent, relevant backlinks http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Backlink. When Google magically indexes and crawls through your website, it’s algorithms LOVE to see these wonderful backlinks. These links inform Google that your site may just have something that everyone else needs to see, giving it a surefire increase in rankings for specific keywords.
So getting back to the initial question, ´Has social media killed SEO?´ By utlizing the most popular social media channels, implementing a solid strategy and utilizing some great new tools (applications) while applying good, fundamental SEO tactics, social media may not actually be killing SEO efforts completely, but the need for strong SEO results can increasingly be obtained through your own social media processes without the need for an SEO ´guru´ or company.
To learn more about some of the social media tools I use or just pick my brain in general about all this fun social media stuff, feel free to shoot me an email anytime.
Tim Wagner Web Strategist & Social Media Expert Google ´Tim Dallas SEO´ info@TimothyDWagner.com Social Media Murdered Search Engine Optimization (SEO)!