Life at the Intersection of Search and Social

When it comes to Twitter, engagement is key, says Peter Greenberger, Twitter’s director of sales in Washington, DC.

“Followers is somewhat of a vanity metric,” Greenberger said Wednesday, during a Social Media Week panel on Life at the Intersection of Search and Social in Washington. “You are who you follow and you are who you tweet.”

For brands, the vehicle for Twitter engagement is simple. Case in point: 50 percent of this year’s Superbowl ads had hashtags, he said.

Greenberger was joined by a couple heavy hitters from the search and social industries – Trevor Madigan, formerly of Facebook and founder of The Vision Lab, and Tripp Donnelly, founder and CEO of RepEquity.

The group discussed how social media is changing search and what this means for one’s social presence.

“Google has always been – at its essence – a social network,” Donnelly said. “We as humans trust what’s on Google Page 1 to the tune of 90 percent. What’s in your social profile? It’s something we need to consider.”

Greenberger agreed, admitting he recently searched for himself on two platforms – Google and Bing. He added that taking care of one’s social profile is critical when people are trying to find you or your company.

“Think like a search engine,” Donnelly said. “You dominate most of your page; people will land on a property that’s controlled by you. That’s important from a marketing side and for reputational reasons as well.”

The future of search and social looks like this: A real-time aspect, especially with regard to Twitter, geocentric and with more customization and relevancy, said Greenberger.

“We’re probably going to see the 50 pages and millions of [search] results going away,” Madigan said, adding that Facebook and your social network likely will come into play, advising and impacting your decisions. “It’ll be more simple.”

Christine Cube is a media relations manager with PR Newswire and freelance writer. You can follow her @cpcube or see what she’s up to @PRN4Bloggers.