Optimising for Facebook?

When referring to search engine optimization, that you are optimizing for Google is inherently understood.  While there are moves to gear keywords and pages for Bing and Yahoo, Google remains the dominant force.  In the number two spot is Facebook.  In fact, Facebook is the second largest referral source for video.  If the video is an integral component of your business SEO strategy, gearing up for Facebook is a great idea and a potential wellspring.

Putting videos on Facebook, whether recording directly from the site or uploading, has a number of benefits, not the least of which is the incredible exposure that is possible with 500 million users.  But these videos also offer a great opportunity for social media optimization and keyword tagging.  When considering video on Facebook, you have a few options.  One is to record directly from Facebook via webcam.  The downside of using Facebook’s application is that the quality is not great; it does allow for instant and spontaneous reactions, which can be beneficial.  You can also provide a link to a YouTube video. This will appear in the feed so Facebook users can watch from there without having to be redirected.

You can also upload to Facebook, which is beneficial because Facebook allows for longer formats than YouTube.  Facebook allows 5 more minutes per video, five more than YouTube.  Many businesses create a fan page with the uploaded video.  A Facebook user, fan or not, can watch the video.  If they move their mouse over the video, they can “like” it and become a fan without any further ado.  This is often referred to as the “secret sauce,” and can be useful in gaining fans.

Keyword tagging, creating a video landing page, embedding video into a profile, and other strategies can help businesses and sites gain much-needed exposure and get more “likes.”