SEO vs SMO

I found that this forum doesn't have any thread related to discussions on the much hyped SMO (Social Media Optimization)

So I am putting this question in front of all the members of SEOchat forum for their respected opinions...here it is:

Which one is better?

SEO or SMO ?

I hope for some good creative debate on this topic

I think actual money making and business-wise SEO is far superior. SMO seems better for certain types of sites and industries but for the most part SEO applies to everything.

The way I see it it is much harder to go to a client that does say Interior Design in Los Angeles and be like, here's our SMO plan for you that will make you money. It's do-able but has less of a chance of actually making real dollars.

SMO also works like a different way from SEO. Like it is in a way just like banner advertising. People are finding you from sites that are similar in theme. Like say you have an article that gets Dugg and gets a ton of traffic. Are most of the people reading the article actually looking for whatever it is you do or did they just stumble upon it like they would any other article?

SEO on the other hand is super targeted and if somebody appears to your site searching for Interior Design Los Angeles you can be fairly sure they know what they want and they made it to the right place.

In short, I think SMO is pretty hyped up and only works for certain cases and for more Internet savvy webmaster type people. That said, if you know what you're doing SMO can have much greater results for the amount of effort applied than SEO. It's also good because it helps with SEO a little bit as well for things like building site trust and backlinks and that type of stuff.

But yeah, SEO is still where it's at IMO.

well i think SMO is more focus on media promotion...
while SEO is on ranking sites in SEs...

I guess it would depend on the type of people you are targeting and the amount of work you're willing to put into it.

Being fairly new to SEO myself, I would say that the project I'm tackling is more of SMO. In the long-run, I feel that this project will have a real staying power. I think by incorporating SMO and developing environments where the users feel as though they are an integral part of the community, you can gather a large base of devoted users who are more than happy to spread the word of your site.

I think another issue, that will be less of a problem in the future, are the not so tech savvy crowd. They may have problems understanding the purpose and the value in an SMO site and will quickly leave for something they find "less complicated". Since SMO requires user participation, these non-tech educated people won't realize what the purpose of the site is.

Moving forward though, I think you'll find that less and less of a problem. SMO'd sites will be so prevalent and more and more people will be expecting these type of sites.

I think that you're even beginning to see these strategies employed by other media sources more and more. Blogging by hosts and encouraging the viewers of television shows to submit news or ideas is now a highly advertised aspect of many television shows.

So, IMO, SMO will in the not so far future be on equal ground with SEO.

Good points being discussed. Looking forward for more of such great ideas...

Which is better, advertising on TV or in a newspaper?
Which is better, riding a motorcycle or driving a car?
Which is better, steak or kiwi?

Without a LOT more context, all of these questions are silly.

As far as marketing goes, EVERY marketing method that has a positive ROI and is in the reach of your marketing budget should be pursued. If you have 10 methods that promise a positive return, but don't have the resources to be able to execute all of them, execute the mix that produces the best return given the resources available. Then count the cost of the additional resources needed to execute the rest in your ROI analysis, and if the others still have a positive return after including that cost, procure those resources and execute those methods as well.

Bottom line, SEO and SMO do not have an either/or relationship, so there is no point in discussing them as though they do. If either can be cost effective for your business, use it. If not, don't. Whether or not the other will be effective should not play into the equation unless you do not have the resources to do both - in which case reread my above statements.

^ yes, I agree with you brandall... both were far different from each other since the two has own different ways on how to incorporate it in a business and how to use it wisely in a business...

I think we're arguing about semantics here. SEO and SMO could be treated separately but quite frankly I see SMO as a very important component of SEO. Marketing companies may have a SMO division, and SEO companies may have an SMO division. I don't think there is a company out there that does JUST SMO. Although perhaps there is a niche market for that service?