The Role of Social Bookmarking In Optimization

Social bookmarking hit the scene in 1996, but it wasn't until 2003 that the phrase was officially coined. It’s taking the world by storm, and leaving an impressive mark on internet optimization.

When it comes to Search Engine Optimization (SEO), social bookmarking is opening the door for newer websites, and those websites that are not mainstream. Previously, SEO relied upon automated resource location and classification software, most commonly search engine spiders. Unlike the spider, social bookmarking allows websites to be categorized by actual users who understand the content of the source rather than relying on certain fixed parameters for classification. This allows website ranking to be based on actual consumer traffic, which is more useful to both internet and traditional marketers.

Social bookmarking also plays a role in Social Media Optimization (SMO) and Social Networking Optimization (SNO). SMO's largest purpose is to generate user traffic from sources other than a search engine, so it allows for another large source of traffic. SNO is integral to this source of traffic, because social networks, such as MySpace, and Facebook, allow for people to share reviews across both a primary and secondary audience. This makes sharing more productive, as the secondary audience peruses the site and then may follow on to links that didn’t interest the target audience.

Marketers will benefit greatly from this growing trend. They have the ability to reach more potential consumers than ever before, and with preceding reputation. There's no better advertising than personal recommendation, which is the heart of social bookmarking.