If you don't think Facebook and Twitter are bringing you sales, you should look again.
Even though the numbers you see in front of you may be low, there are others who are paying attention to your social media activity; namely, Google and Bing.
Both search engines use data streamed from social sites to decide how high your website should rank on their pages.
This means that, even though conversions may not be happening directly through social media, there's still an indirect connection between your sales and your social media activity.
So what is the true impact of social signals on your SEO ranking? Answering this question means understanding social signals as a ranking factor.
Direct ranking factors include the number of people who like the Facebook brand, number of Twitter followers, number of Facebook shares, number of people who have your business in their Google+ circles, and number of tweets related to your brand or website.
Indirect impact stems from an increase in inbound links and citations, an increase in positive reviews, and a decrease in bounce rates mixed with more time spent on a site and more repeat visitors to your site.
Direct and Indirect Signals Picked Up by Google and Bing
It's easy to see why business owners would grow frustrated with the required maintenance to social media, which does not bring immediate results. The direct and indirect results above have one thing in common; they take time to get results.
When a business owner doesn't feel that time is a luxury, the social media marketing strategy quickly becomes a nuisance.
However, if Google and Bing are paying attention, then so shall you. One of the biggest rules in sales right now is to follow the Google and Bing rules. If the top two search engine companies are paying attention to your social media page, and are using that activity to help rank your website, it only makes sense that you follow suit.
Keep Up the Good Work
While maintaining social media is tedious work that doesn't seem to pay off quickly, it is necessary work. Think of social media signals as a small investment made today that will pay off in a few months.
Businesses worldwide are striving to learn how their website can make the first page. Social signals are an investment that will get your website on the first page of both Google and Bing.
