Social media optimization is an ever-growing buzzword in the online marketing world today. Otherwise known as SMO or social SEO, social media optimization is about optimizing your social media presence for optimal traffic. Some of the same rules as SEO apply to SMO, but there are also some important differences you need to be aware of. Here are 10 helpful tips on how to optimize your social media profile.

  1. Socialize – It might seem obvious, but it’s important to spell it out. Every time you create a social media profile, start by spending some time visiting other people’s profiles, adding new friends and commenting. Networking starts by reaching out to others and initiating the relationship.
  2. Multimedia – Don’t be shy adding new pictures, video and other media. Social media sites are designed around media and have plenty of tools for incorporating them in your profile. Working media into your profile makes it stand out and makes the experience more interesting for others visiting your profile.
  3. Share – Incorporate share buttons for all of your social media sites on each of your blogs and websites. These include buttons like Twitter’s Tweet This and Pinterest’s Pin It button. Integrate these as much as possible to leverage the traffic you already have.
  4. Content – Just like a website or blog, you need to add fresh content regularly. With social media, it’s even more important. Posts are quickly archived and disappear within days or hours. Create a schedule of posting regularly, but don’t let quantity outweigh the quality of your posts.
  5. Optimize For Keywords – Work your keywords and target key phrases into your social profiles and posts whenever it’s natural to do so.
  6. Completeness – Search engines will show a preference for profiles with all the details available. It also creates a more professional and comprehensive appearance for others in your network.
  7. Watch Visitor Behavior – Use the analytics tools provided by each of the social media sites and pay attention to what people are doing. Monitoring behavior will tell you what is working and what isn’t. If some features aren’t being used, eliminate them to cut down on clutter.
  8. Share Everything – Create unique, helpful and interesting content and encourage your visitors to pass it around. Viral posts can result in a lot of exposure for your profile.
  9. Timing – Pay attention to the timing of your posts and track results. You’ll find that certain times of day get you a better response. Focus on those high-traffic periods.
  10. Selflessness – Don’t let your posts revolve around self-promotion. While social media has more of a focus on individual opinion, focus on topics that are helpful to your network of friends and offer advice and information that benefits others.

It’s important to be personal and sincere on social media. By consistently providing interesting and exciting content, you’ll inspire others to share your posts and attract more search engine traffic.

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