There’s at least one thing we can say about the social media space with a fairly high level of confidence: it’s here to stay. That said, looking ahead to the next ten years, it’s incredibly hard to predict how we’ll use social media — let alone which services will still be relevant — when we get to 2025? 2030?.

Already this decade we’ve seen the dramatic rise and fall of numerous social media services. This year’s Facebook could be next year’s Friendster, and even as I write this, there are signs that 2009’s media darling — Twitter — may have already peaked. (it hasn't)

But there’s one innovation that in all likelihood won’t only endure, but thrive, in the decade ahead. It’s also the innovation that has most embodied what we’ve come to define as social media since 2000, while at the same time, showing absolutely no signs of slowing down. That innovation is YouTube.

YouTube didn’t even exist for more than half the 2000's, but a perfect storm of increasing bandwidth, advances in Flash, and the rise of social networks (where YouTube content could be embedded) made 2005 the perfect time for the site to make its debut. The growth was meteoric, and within 18 months, the website became one of the most trafficked on the web and the company was sold to Google for $1.6 billion.

Many smartphones already make it exceptionally easy to view YouTube clips. As smartphones become more widely available and mobile broadband speeds increase around the world, the audience for YouTube will continue to expand — many times over in markets where mobile is more important than the desktop.

Let's take this one step further. Let's now reveal how a business owner may take the use of video, YouTube & combine this with a positive message, and how one would deliver that positive message to his company as well as potential consumers and distributors.  Gary Kirtley of Owens Products stresses being positive with your employees.

For those in search engine optimization, it seems that the industry and the world is perennially changing. That makes sense when you think about it, of course; after all, technology constantly innovates and things improve and change in their delivery over time, meaning SEO experts need to constantly be on their toes to take on this change and know how to use it in their businesses, and for their clients.

One change that doesn’t get enough focus, though, is the idea and fact that social media optimization is fast supplanting and overtaking simple search as THE destination and component when it comes to quality and thorough search engine optimization. But what is driving that factor? And aside from social media simply being popular, why does it matter to understand how social and search mix together in time?

People are Searching… on Social

People aren’t done with search – and not by a long shot. But instead of doing it in the traditional way (Google, Bing), they are now doing it the new way – on social media. That means they head to Facebook or Twitter to search and find information about products, services, vacations, companies, and more – all based on knowing what their friends are doing, and seeing what people on social media have to say about these companies and organizations, implying word-of-mouth marketing is making an impact on their decisions.

The power of friends and connections

Related to that idea is this power of friends, connections, and word of mouth marketing. See, when people search through social media, they aren’t just sifting through random results that have been gamed to target SEO; instead, they are sifting through what their friends have to say about a company or product. Friends don’t like your company? You’re in trouble, because that will impact how their friends see you, and whether or not they buy from you, in this new era of smart search mixed with social media. 

Smart search and geo-location!

Finally, social media optimization is the new era of location-based marketing services, and “places” check-ins on sites like Foursquare and Facebook. By allowing users to check in at places, and have their geo-locations tagged on their smart phones, you can see not only where people are, but what they do and how they shop and spend their time relating to brands and products. That’s a very enticing thing for marketers to use, and it only comes about through thorough social media optimization and best practices.

In all, search engine optimization obviously isn’t going anywhere – but you will be run over if you’re an SEO expert who hasn’t yet taken into account the power of social media, social search, and the semantic web as they relate to people searching for people, products, businesses, and services. Embrace social media as the new search engine, because in many ways, it is and it will continue to be for the foreseeable future!

Making your mark on the internet!

Webcentric Communications highly recommends using search engine optimization (SEO), internet marketing, and website design specializing in local search, local SEO, website optimization, as well as social media marketing (SMO) and management solutions for customers based across the United States. We are a web-centric company that will seamlessly integrate your business, the internet, and your clientele.

Today’s internet is a vast and far-reaching ocean with a boundless client base. To tap into these prospects, you need the infrastructure, marketing, and navigation tools to increase your exposure, drive leads to your business, manage and track those leads, and produce conversions. Webcentric Communications has the resources to drive that train.

Webcentric Communications strategically partners with companies best suited to fit your business solutions. Together we are so confident in our web design, search engine optimization, and social media services that we offer our potential clients the opportunity to hear directly from existing clients!  Get the best ROI today with Webcentric Communications and its SEO partners.