Social Media Predictions for 2012

Advertising Age makes 11 Predictions on how Social Media that will affect marketers.

From an SEO perspective, here are the top 3 that predictions that are we are already seeing taking shape in our field.

3. Our interaction with search engines will be different

Real-time information in Google search, e.g. from Twitter, blog results and user reviews, will be more prominent. Google’s Social Search will change the way we interact with search engines by pushing relevant content from our personal networks to the front of search results, making them more personalized. The importance of digital-influencer marketing will increase significantly.

6. Influencer marketing will be redefined

As social media continues to permeate more and more aspects of not only the way we interact with digital media but also other channels such as digital outdoor, commerce or online TV, we will see the significance of influencer marketing grow dramatically. As a basic example, the inclusion of Twitter in Google search results or Google’s soon-to-be-released Social Search will permeate search results with content that will not be managed by Google’s infamous PageRank but by social influence and relevance to your social network. Discovering people that can help you to reach your desired consumer will become exponentially more effective and important.

7. Ratings everywhere

In today’s world, having a commerce site that doesn’t have user ratings could actually prove to be a detriment to sales. In the near future, brands and businesses will more frequently place user ratings and accept open feedback on their actual websites. User ratings will become so common that marketers should expect to find them woven into most digital experiences.

We are already seeing search engines provide Real-Time search results by adding Twitter or Facebook updates to their results pages and it is clear that social influence will become a more prominent ranking signal. And other every day we consult with clients and potential clients on reputation management on Google Local and review sites like Homestars.

So althought the predictions are made for 2012, there is no time like the present to start considering the consequences and planning strategies right now.

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