What's this Social Media Optimization (SMO) all about?

Hark, a new Internet acronym is born! What was once a facet of a solid SEO program is now being discussed as a major branch of Internet marketing in general.  Like SEO, SMO is the practice of publicizing your site and business online ... the difference is that SMO is not search engine-focused (although search engines (and other Google products) can and should play a significant role (and proper SMO could likely positively influence search engine rankings). Mainly, social media optimization requires brand and visibility-building via 3rd-party apps and content syndication. The idea is simple: Visibility yields popularity and popularity yields more visibility, so start today.

Some examples of SMO activities:

• Blogging or Journaling (You're reading one!) -- Your industry knowledge is valuable. While a spartan website can get by on an "about" page, product listings, and a contact form, going the extra mile and generating content is what end-users demand these days ... because end-users are want to talk about what you said on their blogs. In short, talk about what you know and people will follow it and spread it around.
• RSS and content syndication -- If there's any kind of content you can create on a regular basis (news, events, product listings, blog entries, etc.), syndicating that info via RSS or social tagging sites like ShareThis will allow fans to keep tabs on you (and link to you on short notice) and acquaintances to become fans.
• Embrace community -- Media sharing sites like Youtube.com, Flickr.com, and hundreds of big-name blogs can deliver traffic unlike anything you've seen before. But more than that they can help you craft your brand's personality if you can invest the time and spirit.
• Share links -- Much of blogging SMO boils down to sharing. If you have something to share, people will come to you. And people will be much more apt to pass your content around if they know you'll do the same for them.

Feel free to pick our brains on what social media opportunities might fit with your business.