Social media optimization (SMO) is the use of social media networks to manage and grow a business’s message and online presence. As a digital marketing strategy, social media optimization can be used to increase awareness of new products and services, connect with customers, and increase potential demand.

For many years, search engine optimization (SEO) was the standard for digital marketing efforts. While social media optimization and search engine optimization have similar goals—to generate web traffic and increase awareness for a company’s website—search engine optimization is the process of increasing the quality and quantity of website traffic by increasing the visibility of a website or a webpage to users of a web search engine, especially Google.

More recently, social media marketing has come to the fore, at times converging with SEO and in some instances replacing it as the most effective way to strengthen a brand, conduct lead generation, increase a company’s visibility in the online space, and connect to an audience. Various social media platforms can be used for digital marketing, including Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat, YouTube, Pinterest, and Moj.

Social media optimization often directs the public from these social media platforms to the company’s website, where more information can be provided. For example, a campaign to raise awareness about a new Mobile Phone on social media may direct the visitor to a company webpage that provides information about where local dealerships are located and how to reach the showroom to check it.

Social media platforms allow users to share content on the internet almost instantaneously. Because of this, many companies try to create content that users will pass along to their friends and connections. This strategy, called viral marketing, attempts to achieve a broader reach by getting engaged users of social media platforms to share content rather than relying on users to find the content on their own.