Earlier this month, it was reported that Twitter and Google reached a new agreement that would once again give the search engine giant access to Twitter’s firehose. This deal will allow Google to soon access and integrate tweets from the micro-blogging site’s 284 million users into search results.
This will be the first time tweets are integrated into Google’s world since the last agreement between the two companies ended in 2011.
What This Means for Businesses and Marketers
Twitter CEO Dick Costolo reported that the company re-entered an agreement with Google in the hopes of increasing non-user traffic to the site, but what does this mean for businesses and marketers? Here are a couple key takeaways of how the new agreement will affect you:
Real-Time Marketing is Changing
The role of real-time marketing on Twitter will become more important, but also more risky. Tweets will become visible in search engine results, allowing posts to be viewed without the consumer following the brand’s Twitter account. This can help with product discovery or even brand recognition, but the potential downside is that any failed or embarrassing attempts to engage followers will also be available for viewing, so tweet wisely.
Engagement is More Important Than Ever
We already know that engagement with our audiences is important, especially on social media, but now it’s even more important. Retweets, favorites and replies will matter even more with both Google and Twitter’s algorithms analyzing our posts. While having a presence on Twitter and posting often is a great way to get your brand out there, we need to make sure we are sharing worthwhile content and maximizing our opportunities to engage with followers, and now, potential followers.
