DISQUS

Brett Borders · 10 months ago

SEO requires real analytical thinking and technical proficiency. I struggle with the intermediate and advanced concepts on large sites.

Social media is more right-brain thinking and emotional / social intelligence... lightning fast reflexes, linguistic skills, social savvy.

A lot of people who knock SEO don't have the skills to even take a stab at it, or stay on top of it...
Same with the people who bash social media.

Stuart Foster · 10 months ago

Thanks for the comment Brett. It really is just a matter of understanding both sides of the coin. I'm far more skilled in the social media/marketing side but I do understand the challenges involved with running a complex SEO program. Both are invaluable.

Jeff Flowers · 10 months ago

Great post!

I think there is a very fine line between the two - SEO's & Social Media Guru's. The two basically go hand-and-hand. A good SEO guy knows how to successfully wage a social media campaign, or will learn so very quickly because they value the amount of in-bound links they'll receive as a result.

The problem I have, is that I can't find the time to juggle the two.

Stuart Foster · 10 months ago

Definitely, it's a difficult process to manage both. I think you have to commit to one or the other in order to be truly successful. Also, SM bookmarking sites are more of a SEO haven while SM gurus hang out on Twitter and blogs primarily.

Skip Shuda · 10 months ago

Interesting commentary on the different cultural perspectives between Social Media and SEO gurus. I believe that both are important - with SOcial Media requiring finetuning based on your audience. However, you CAN get metrics for both SEO and Social Media - and you should... but the metrics must be tied to your specific goals and objectives. Followers on Twitter, Friends on Facebook and referral rates from social media sites are some simple metrics. What have other people used in tracking Social Media effectiveness as part of Web Strategy?

neal · 10 months ago

hmm; link bait tactics on social news sites actually help a site's search engine ranking; so you can leverage social media marketing as link building strategy for seo. i do agree most seo purists are more tech-oriented; however, seo pragmatism can do a lot in choosing which communities with which to build relationships.

just 2 lincolns

randy · 10 months ago

i know a lot of true seo techies and true social media experts on digg and the ones I talk to the most have mutual respect for what each does. There are several who are very talented at both. I think the bigger difference lies in the "Internet marketers" - internet marketers are not all seo experts but they often are the ones who are pegged as the gamers because they usually are trying to game everything they can. There is a big difference in an internet marketer and a true seo or social media expert. The "internet marketers" are usually the ones giving both the seo and social experts the bad name by pretending to be an expert in either or both fields. The "internet Marketers" are the ones I hear laughed at on digg and reddit the most because they come onto both sites without understanding how to participate on either one correctly.

Eric Pratum · 10 months ago

Honestly, I see them being highly entangled going forward, and while I do not currently see SEO work needing to have an SM component, I believe that the reverse is not true... Successful SM does need an SEO component.

For online marketers currently coming up now, SEO and SM should merely be two sets of tools in the same bag. Of course, different types of people will gravity to the more technical side or the more, let's say, "creative" side, but realistically, as SM processes become more codified, it will be easier to teach and learn them alongside those of SEO.

underdown · 10 months ago

In a sense all sites are trying to game social media. I can promise you I never wrote/submitted anything hoping that 2 people would see it.

Search Engine Optimization · 10 months ago

Stuart whether you use SEO, Social media or a combination of both to drive traffic to your site. The most important task is to find out which one works for your site and your users. You can always preform tests to see. In the end the only think that matter is getting the right recipe for your success.