It might not be public knowledge right now but numerous Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) Companies and Social Media Firms are talking to each other. Previously, SEO and Social Media Marketing were seen as opposites. Experts in the industry themselves didn’t see the need to cooperate and coordinate until now. The driving force behind this initiative is Google Caffeine and its focus on “real time” search. Many fail to recognise that SEO and Social Media Marketing have commonalities. First of all, the main objective of both is to increase the number of visitors that goes to a site. Second, it strives to build visibility and establish brands online. Lastly, user experience is dramatically improved if both are exercised appropriately. Their distinction lies in the platform utilised. Looking deeper, the difference between the two platforms emerges as:

In Increasing Traffic

• SEO – builds traffic by increasing the website’s PageRank and improving a site’s
Search Engine Results Page (SERP) using certain keywords.

• Social Media -it enhances a site’s popularity through third parties and other platforms like blogging, Twitter, FaceBook, community forums, bookmarking, etc.

In Link Building

• SEO – efforts are concentrated on getting inbound links
• Social Media – outbound content is prized

In User Search Experience

• SEO – the objective of SEO is two-pronged. One, it wants to improve the experience of web users while at the same time increasing the site’s ranking.

• Social Media – in the case of social media marketing, spreading interesting or informative content is the focus. This strategy is aimed at providing useful
information while enabling the site to derive profit.

The Role of Google Caffeine

As was mentioned earlier, Google Caffeine is the catalyst that has encouraged the practitioners of both SEO and Social Media Marketing to come together. While Google Caffeine has not made a big impact as of now, search engine experts believe that it will be a critical component in search especially because Google itself is pushing it hard. Google Caffeine is probably most notable for its “real time” search features that mix the unique characteristics of SEO and social media. This push is not only a good strategy for Google; it also enables internet marketers to aim for more relevant results. In turn, searchers will ultimately benefit. In time, “real time” search results may replace traditional search because of its real time relevance.