In the world of SEO, there’s a new tactics that may, at first glance, look more like social media than traditional optimization. That tactic is Google+.
For Google, search is a product, and its driving objective is to deliver relevant search results. But since “relevant” is different for of us, the challenge is deciding what might be relevant to you personally.
It follows, then, that the more Google understands your preferences, the better it can do its job. And in pursuit of this “personal relevance,” the search giant is making some big changes that you need to know about.
So today, I’d like to talk about what’s going on in Google Land and how Google+ can help you as a digital marketer and content creator.
Something new in Google Land
As mentioned above, Google is after a personalized search experience — so when you do a search, the page-one results are relevant to you.
Old-style SEO didn’t allow that to happen, which is why SEO itself is changing.
Relying on key words didn’t deliver a good search, so Google is now trying to focus more on what’s important to you as opposed to someone else.
One of the best ways to understand people’s preferences is through their social media connections, the people they interact with online, and the Web pages they share with friends.
That’s one of the reasons Google+ was created.
It allows Google to see each user’s preferences so it can then deliver search results that are customized for that particular user. This concept has been dubbed “Search Plus Your World” and was launched with these iconic words by CEO Larry Page:
“This is the path we’re headed down – a single unified, ‘beautiful’ product across everything. If you don’t get that, then you should probably work somewhere else.”
I found this in a post by Sarah Lacy on PandoDaily.com. If you want more background on why Google is making these changes, click over to read it.
Of course, there’s a dark side to Google’s objective. We have yet another social media site collecting data about our Internet usage.
But in this case, the data is being used to personalize our Web experience, which is something we can agree is valuable. We’ll see how it pans out. But for now, I don’t see a problem with the search giant’s agenda.
Relevance is a personal thing
There are two important ranking signals that help Google determine whether a website is worth ranking well: Authority and Trust. That’s why high-value content is so important.
But Google is pretty smart. It understands that what’s authoritative to one person may be totally irrelevant to another.
That’s why it developed “Search Plus Your World” and “Author Rank.” Think of them as Google’s shortcut for determining what content will be perceived as valuable to you.
It’s based on how people connect in social media.
So let’s say, you love Opra Winfrey’s take on living a meaningful life. How do you keep up with what she’s saying and doing? You follower her in social media.
In other words, you raise a hand to say, Yes, I like this person; I’m interested in what they have to say.
The people you follow don’t have to be celebrities. The very fact that you’re connected to them indicates that you want to hear what they have to say.
And by looking at your social circles, Google can get a better picture of who should show up in your searches.
Social media meets SEO
That’s why Google+ is valuable to you as a marketer.
Social connections indicate relevance.
So when people in your circles do a Google search, you could rank higher than someone who is a recognized leader in the search term. Simply because you’re connected to that person in Google+.
Seriously. Social media is now a powerful SEO tactic.
It’s time to get on board, folks. Google+ isn’t just another social media site. And it’s definitely worth the time to get involved.
