Why Your Online Community Matters to Your SEO Strategy
Social networking has become an emblem of the digital age. And whether you conduct it on your own website or on a social platform such as Facebook, social networking has also become a vital part of all good SEO and online marketing practices.
The Benefits of Community Building
In the old days, building a successful business was all about building a strong customer base. Regular customers were the lifeblood of many small businesses and companies, which depended upon regular custom to survive.
These days, brand building is a global activity which often takes place online. Even small businesses are now incorporating social networking and international SEO into their overall marketing strategies.
The benefits of community building are much the same as they ever have been. Strong communities confer loyalty, a stronger identity, and more regular business. They improve the public standing of a brand, and will support their favourite brand through tough times. And in today’s digital age, this can be anything from a lack of new custom to a penalty from one of Google’s algorithm updates.
Source: eblogcamp.com via WebMarketing on Pinterest
Social Networking and SEO
The most common way to build an online community is via social media networks such as Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. Social networks themselves are capable of playing an important role in your SEO strategy, providing you know how to use them. For example, Twitter is indexed fairly quickly by Google, so publishing blog posts to twitter will help them to get indexed quicker in turn.
Platforms such as Twitter can also be used to push content out to your community as it gets published. And, despite the constant debates as to exactly how important likes and shares are to SEO, it’s impossible to deny that they do have at least some weight. Sharing content with your social media community, then, is a great way to build brand awareness and improve your SEO at the same time. And when it comes to your online community, as with your SEO strategy, the more invest, the more you’ll get back.