The fellas at SEOMoz conducted their own Social SEO study which said,
While all three networks did have a positive correlation, the strength of the relationship was strongest for LinkedIn. So, while LinkedIn may be the least obvious choice for sharing activity, it is still incredibly important for marketers also interested in SEO performance.
The data collected allows us to see that when content is shared and networked through social media successfully the visibility increases. This is apparent considering you'll literally have to share the content, but if the rank increases as well doesn't that mean Google enters the game?
Social SEO is Shareable Content
And if that is the case does this mean shareable links with a Facebook likes, Google Plus 1′s, and Tweets outrank those with similar content? The short answer is yes, but in the end it comes down to the quality of the content and the methods of social media you're sharing it on.
For instance, a Pinterest campaign works well with visual media, but sharing something like this article would probably perform poorly. The social media channel needs to fit the content and the content needs to fit the audience. Some of you I'm sure are already stating this to be an obvious point, but do you allocate SEO into your content strategy?
Awhile back I discussed two different social media campaigns with a colleague which had mediocre content plans. Both needed to be reworked, but one so much so that the plan was scrapped entirely and rewritten. Within this new plan there was a segment for Social SEO.
It was more of a clause; a rule, firmly stating that if the content is not of the highest caliber it cannot be published. It must be tweaked and designed for sharing first and foremost and must always include a link.
This makes sense to me now, but at the time I thought this was common practice. My colleague didn't refer to this as Social SEO, but as a "Viral Media Checklist." Regardless of their namesake the end result is shared across the board - accessibility and visibility.
Depending on the client (or your own niche online) you'll be able to determine, with time, which content can take the cake in terms of the social media audience gobbling it up. That road is going to be arduous one so its worth getting used to creating the best possible content you can.
And, when everything adds together, you'll be fortunate enough to reap the benefits of it with Social SEO.
Image Source: Dan Zarrella of HubSpot