8/7/2019 The 5 NEW Rules Of Social Media Optimization

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/the-5-new-rules-of-social-media-optimization 1/9

The 5 NEW Rules Of Social Media Optimization (SMO)

About a week ago I started seeing a curious number of tweets, links and GoogleAlerts to a popular blog post I wrote 4 years ago. The reason was that today happensto be the four year anniversary of that post which first introduced the idea of Social

Media Optimization or SMO as it is now popularly known into the world of digitalmarketing and on Wikipedia. For many of the readers who consistently read my poststoday, this SMO post may have been the reason they first stumbled onto my blog. Itbecame an unintentionally big idea that captured the attention of a growing niche of digital marketers who saw themselves at the intersection of working in search engineoptimization (SEO) and wanting to branch out into new world of social media.

In the four years since that post I have tried to focus this blog on my real passion of sharing insights that could inspire people to create better marketing to sell their ideasto the world. SMO was a point on that journey and given the interest that this oneidea has sparked among digital marketers around the world, it is one that is worth

revisiting today. As I thought about this post today, I realized that the ideal way torevisit SMO would be to try and answer the one question I have been asked mostfrequently by marketers around the world about SMO: Would you change these "5rules" today given that the original post was written before Twitter or Foursquare or many other big trends or sites that are now becoming a big part of the social web? 

The short answer is yes. The core change I would make is to add and focus on a wordthat I think truly describes the social web today in a way that few people reallygrasped four years ago: sharing. So, based on this, here are my thoughts on the 5NEW Rules Of Social Media Optimization:

1. Increase your linkability Create shareable content - Four years ago I focusedon linkability because the main currency that could drive up your traffic washow many people were linking to your content. Today content can be liked ortweeted and it is about more than links - it is about creating content that isshareable. The better your content is, the more people will want to share itwith their entire social networks whether they link it, like it, dig it or share it.

2. Make tagging and bookmarking easy Make sharing easy - Following from theprevious point, tagging and bookmarking only scratch the surface of the manyways that people can share content with others. They can post a short link totheir profile, embed a video, send out a tweet or create a hashtag for aconversation. Limiting the ways of sharing to just tagging or bookmarking

doesn't make sense anymore. The core of this rule, however, was the pointabout making it easy and that is still at the heart of this new rule. Once youhave shareable content, it has to be one-button-easy so people will do it withminimal effort or thinking.

3. Reward inbound links Reward engagement - In 2006, the main thing mostmarketers were concerned about were inbound links. It was a time whenTechnorati was the standard by which we all measured the performance of ourcontent and many bloggers focused more on their number of inbound links than

8/7/2019 The 5 NEW Rules Of Social Media Optimization

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/the-5-new-rules-of-social-media-optimization 2/9

their readership or traffic numbers. Today the real currency is aroundconversation or engagement. While there are a million definitions for"engagement" ranging from comments and discussion to posting or sharingcontent - this is the behaviour that matters most in the social web and the onethat we should all focus on rewarding when it happens.

4. Help your content travel Proactively share content - This was the weakest of the original 5 rules, as the original rule simply talked about publishing yourcontent in other formats such as PDFs or videos and submitting them to othersites. Instead, the essence of the new version of this rule is all aboutproactively sharing content in a different way. This encompasses everythingfrom creating slides to post on Slideshare or documents to share on Scribd - aswell as tweeting about your content or offering embeddable versions of it, orusing RSS feeds to syndicate it. Proactively sharing even includes posting yourcontent to social networking profiles or creating profiles on video sharing sites.

5. Encourage the mashup Encourage the mashup - The last original rule of SMOis the one that I would leave intact. The concept of the "mashup" where people

take and remix your content by adding their own input and voice has onlygrown over the past four years. The mashup will be around to stay, whetherthe term continues to be used or not. Allowing people to take an ownershipover the social content you publish will continue to be a key way that you canoptimize your content for the social web.

On the original 5 rules, several other smart folks jumped in to add 12 more rules tothe list ... it only makes sense for me to try and invite the same input this timearound. What do you think of these updated rules? Are there others you would add tothe list? 

Posted at 09:16 PM in 5 Rules of ..., Social Media Marketing | Permalink | Comments (27) |TrackBack (0) | View blog reactions | Save to del.icio.us 

TrackBack 

TrackBack URL for this entry:http://www.typepad.com/services/trackback/6a00d8341c4f1253ef0133f2fbad6f970b

Listed below are links to weblogs that reference The 5 NEW Rules Of Social Media

Optimization (SMO):

Comments

I've got two old ones! (I'm no authority, just giving my two cents!).

8/7/2019 The 5 NEW Rules Of Social Media Optimization

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/the-5-new-rules-of-social-media-optimization 3/9

6. Use key words to drive traffic:

Make sure your content uses key words to drive search optimisation. Think about what words

your targets will be using in their searches and make sure you include them in your website or social network.

7. Participate in several different social networks:

Having an account with networks like Twitter, Facebook and Wikipedia will ensure you're at the

top of google searches (or at least in the top ten). Just make sure you don't spread your resources

too thinly and lose your ability to monitor and engage with the networks you participate in.

Posted by: Saxby | Tuesday, August 10, 2010 at 09:45 PM 

What a great way to review the five rules! I am a big fan of doing the simple things right - so

rather than add other suggestions, my recommendation is to excel in at least three of these five.Doing so will help you generate consistent levels of success with your social programs.

Posted by: Gavin Heaton | Wednesday, August 11, 2010 at 09:56 AM 

The first version of this list was great at it's time, but this new updated version is perfect for howwe operate in the social space these days.

Great job!

Cheers,

Sheldon, community manager for Sysomos

Posted by: 40deuce | Wednesday, August 11, 2010 at 11:12 AM 

I don't know that I saw the original post 4 years ago, but these are all great suggestions for today.

It's all about sharing & engagement!

Posted by: Karen McAllister | Wednesday, August 11, 2010 at 02:01 PM 

8/7/2019 The 5 NEW Rules Of Social Media Optimization

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/the-5-new-rules-of-social-media-optimization 4/9

Hello Mr. Rohit,

I am Anandan Pillai, a doctoral student from India. I am planning to attempt my thesis in the areaof social media marketing.

I have closely followed your SMO blog post (the older one) and also read all the other 12 rules

updated by others over the period of time. In fact I have used them in recent time, to support one

of the case study I worked on.

Its really exciting to see you update the rules of SMO, and would like to contribute a few to the

list:

6) Creating consistent and relevant content: Every brand has its own desired set of admirers, who

wish to associate themselves with the brand. The challenge that brand has on a social media is tosustain the member interests and satisfy their expectations. Just, because I clicked on the "like"

button is no where going to get me closer to the brand. However its the consistent effort that

brand puts in to engage me would re-affirm the meaning of my presence.

7) Identifying evangelists and rewarding them: As of now, everyone has realized that just afabulous content cannot travel on its own. It needs the support of few people who could carry it

further and the enthusiasm these people show towards the content and the brand is the

foundation. Every brand should make special efforts to identify these evangelists (also called thenetwork centrality) and encourage and further on reward them for their efforts.

These are the two, which I could make out quickly after seeing your post...But, I am sure I can

add a few more in near future...

It was nice reading your updated post!

Anandan

Posted by: Anandan Pillai | Wednesday, August 11, 2010 at 08:11 PM 

Here's another rule:Don't be a dummy. Respond. Even to negative comments about your product or service. People

will respect you for it, and those who are negative will turn around. Integrate customer service

into your SMO strategy.

Posted by: Yu Yu Din | Thursday, August 12, 2010 at 09:13 AM 

8/7/2019 The 5 NEW Rules Of Social Media Optimization

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/the-5-new-rules-of-social-media-optimization 5/9

Yu Yu has a good one there: Sharing is a 2-way street. The conversation is important, even whenit's a conversation that you don't want to have. When others can see a brand publicly shying

away from responding to a topic, it's more damaging than the topic itself. It magnifies the

damage. Responding appropriately is critical now more than any time in the past based on the

visibility of responses or their lack.

Posted by: Jill Kocher | Thursday, August 12, 2010 at 10:19 AM 

You have provided a list of 5 great tips for anyone interested in increasing their web traffic. It

will be interesting to see how the 5 rules evolve in another four years.

Posted by: Tracy | Thursday, August 12, 2010 at 11:40 AM 

Rohit,

Great stuff and thanks for updating this post. To this I'd add two more: "Make content

significant" (for the recipient), and "Make the content sticky" (meaning, make it worth hangingon to mentally).

Posted by: Gary Bloomer | Thursday, August 12, 2010 at 09:04 PM 

Great information - great for newbies and for the more experienced. Didn't read the original but

this is more in tune with today.

Posted by: Maureen Hamilton | Friday, August 13, 2010 at 06:18 AM 

I agree with all of your 5 rules outlined. How ever there is one rule I like to abide by with Social

Media and that is approach it like a party not a sales conference. Content should begin as helpful

8/7/2019 The 5 NEW Rules Of Social Media Optimization

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/the-5-new-rules-of-social-media-optimization 6/9

and useful to the target market. Earning their trust and gaining your own credibility before

providing a solution of cost.

Posted by: Karn Evans | Saturday, August 14, 2010 at 08:39 PM 

Great post. I love the five SMO rules you have proposed. There is one additional "rule" that I

would offer up - take a sincere interest in others and help them succeed.

Posted by: Jason Sokol | Sunday, August 15, 2010 at 11:01 AM 

Precisely the guidelines we need, but can you answer this inevitable question: where on earth do

we find the hours in the day?

Posted by: Alicia | Tuesday, August 17, 2010 at 04:43 PM 

I agree with the comment "where do we find the time". I have been working to hard this past few

months to devote more time to social marketing but it isn't easy.

Posted by: Tyson | Thursday, August 19, 2010 at 11:31 AM 

Instead of crossing out the old rules, you should just have added the new ones to them to, as I

think the old rules still apply to a large extent. You would have ended up with, The 10 Rules Of Social Media Optimization(SMO).

When I first read the title, it reminded me of  The New Rules of PR and The New Rules of Viral

Marketing, both by David Meerman Scott. Maybe you could write a more in-depth version of 

your New Rules Of Social Media Optimization as a book!

I wrote a couple of posts on the subject myself, you can find them at AssEtEbooks.com.

Posted by: Thomas Retterbush | Friday, August 20, 2010 at 02:34 AM 

8/7/2019 The 5 NEW Rules Of Social Media Optimization

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/the-5-new-rules-of-social-media-optimization 7/9

The 5 new rules are effective, but I will still heed the older rules as well. Creating shareablecontent are crucial, but you still would have to properly tag and link to increase visibility. Why

create something great if you're not sure how to spread the content?

Posted by: Nan Ross | Tuesday, August 24, 2010 at 04:23 PM 

Very helpful! I'm trying to learn more about finding specific creative ways to reward

engagement. Any ideas you or the audience has would be appreciated.

Posted by: Michelle | Thursday, August 26, 2010 at 09:05 AM 

I love the fact that you invite others to do exactly what your fifth rule advocates: Allowing us to

do mashups with your idea.

My contribution jumps off of Jason Sokol's comment of taking sincere interests in others. Here's

how I word it: "If you want evangelists, BE an evangelist yourself."

Other people you follow are trying to get their own content out there. If it is good content,

proactively share their ideas as well. BE the sharer for others, do so unselfishly. In so doing, you

create relationships that will often become foundational when you create content you want to

share.

Posted by: Charles Brown | Thursday, August 26, 2010 at 10:36 AM 

I believe that having an interaction with other users or clients can really draw a positive attentionin social media marketing/optimization.

Posted by: James Francis Web Design For Internet Marketers | Thursday, August 26, 2010 at

12:24 PM 

8/7/2019 The 5 NEW Rules Of Social Media Optimization

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/the-5-new-rules-of-social-media-optimization 8/9

I think also, going back to tip no 1, "The better your content is" - I think key to better content isknowing what the conversation hot buttons are - that can come from listening via a social media

monitoring tool or listening (reviewing) your analytics to see what current content seems to be

real popular.

Posted by: Kevin McIntosh | Friday, September 10, 2010 at 03:16 PM 

Fascinating post its given me a lot to think about. I am an Internet marketing consultant for small

businesses in my area and most of those businesses are brick and mortar that want to start seeing

some results from "this internet thing" that they spent money on. Most businesses that are notdirectly internet realted or National/Global in scale are woefully ignorant of even the most basic

Internet marketing techniques. This kind of information is like gold for small/local market

internet consultants. Thank you so much for the informative post.

Posted by: Michael Ellis | Saturday, September 11, 2010 at 02:10 AM 

nice tips, i am working hard in these things, and i an engage now a days with my website On-Page work, and linking to different social websites.. social media can drive effective traffic if usethem in effective way..

Posted by: social media marketing agency | Thursday, September 16, 2010 at 06:06 AM 

Great post!The ideas and insights are very worth reading. You really gave valuable

information..:)Thanks for sharing!

Posted by: smo services | Tuesday, September 21, 2010 at 05:49 AM 

8/7/2019 The 5 NEW Rules Of Social Media Optimization

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/the-5-new-rules-of-social-media-optimization 9/9

Hello Rohit, this is terrific. By the way, like many of the visitors that you alluded to I found your 

site by way of your 06' SMO post. You're spot on in your breakdown of share-ability.

I think that when you combine the share-ability factor with content that is infused with thepassion of someone who is deeply sincere about the topic that you begin to do what Seth Godin

describes in Tribes-build a loyal community around your content.

Again, this is a brilliant post as was your initial one. Thanks!

Posted by: Benin | Saturday, September 25, 2010 at 12:51 AM 

nice article,thanks for highlighting these points,I will use them for future reference.

Posted by: Peter Dunin | Monday, September 27, 2010 at 11:38 AM 

Social marketing is a powerful traffic driving tool, the more social groups that you can reach, thebetter. Youtube and Twitter for me are still the biggest drivers of traffic and with the use of 

automation software the whole proccess can be done pretty quickly these days. Getting people to

share your info is a great bonus. Thanks for the post!

Andrew.

Posted by: Andrew | Tuesday, September 28, 2010 at 05:44 AM 

Perhaps not a rule, more an addendum: Drop the "I will post every X days no matter what" habit.If your content is not valuable, keep it to yourself.