If Google ranked your posts on Twitter, would it change how you tweet?

Andrew G.R. (@jobacle on Twitter) published an article on The Blog Herald this past weekend titled, “Google to Search Twitter?” (great headline, by the way).
Vulture-eying-prey © AlienCat - Fotolia.com

He predicts that if Google ever started prioritizing filtered search results from Twitter, they would be ranked by some of the following criteria:

  • The number of tweets and retweets you have
  • The frequency in which you post
  • Current events
  • Frequently used keywords
  • The number of followers you have

If Google ranked your posts on Twitter, would it change how you tweet?

Would you post less personal, conversational tweet, like mine? Would you do extensive keyword research?

Now, this is just me, but the idea of changing how I use Twitter, just to influence search rankings makes me wretch. The same way the landgrab for Facebook URLs made me and someone else wretch.

Will keywords ever come before kindness?

Since I’ve been on Twitter, I’ve tried to post content that’s useful to my friends. Sometimes I’m on the mark, sometimes I’m not. But I’ve always tried to just be me.

Sure there’s a place for keyword strategy, but what good are keywords if they are put before genuinely connecting with folks? Will keywords ever come before kindness?

By the way, if you’re interested, @TheDailyBlonde and I will be presenting a teleseminar on June 30th called, “How to Use Twitter for Business and Still Have a Personality”.

Would you change how you tweet for Google?

Posted June 17, 2009
  • For the time being? Probably no. Maybe because I don't put much conversational tweets in public. ^^ It's just a matter of preference really. Sometimes I publicize, something I rather keep it between me and another.

    If that day ever comes, it MAY trigger a little 'interest' of testing out the tweets, but I won't force myself into it. Good idea about the RT though; I myself don't retweet much for the already famous RTs; I do think the 'less-appreciate' ones with good content, deserve some pat at the back. Just like Google search, sometimes the gems are on pg 10 of SERP. ^^

    @wchingya
    Social Media/Blogging
    .-= Ching Ya´s last blog ..8 Features You Should Know About Su.pr =-.
  • Thanks, Ching!
  • I think they're two different entities. You don't have a conversation on Google (Google Chat excepted) - you use it to try and position yourself above your competitors. Any business that says it doesn't... well, I don't think they're being quite upfront.

    With Twitter, while what you say is searchable, it's still primarily a conversation tool that can be used in a myriad of ways. While businesses and marketers using Twitter purely as a business tool may think more about keywords, the general user won't bother (or care).

    Just an aside - I have to disagree with both your good self and Mr Brogan about Facebook. It's another tool in your online arsenal - I don't think grabbing a relevant URL is as much vanity as common sense. The point Chris made would have been more effective had he just left his URL as a generic number, instead of going for dotchrisbrogan.
    [rq=44235,0,blog][/rq]Borders and Walls are Man-Made
  • Danny - thanks for adding to the convo!

    When I wrote this post, the keywords were in fact a no brainer. But they fit in so naturally with the post, that I didn't have to put too much thought into them.

    I think it's good if Google did include things like the number of retweets as a ranking factor. Retweets, though they don't convey authority as much as backlinks do, still serve as a validation of quality.
  • Agreed. It does seem bizarre if they already include normal tweets but not retweets. It might even improve the quality of the retweet as well, with more thought going into it instead of having 5 usernames and then the link gets cut off because of it... ;-)
    .-= Danny Brown´s last blog ..Borders and Walls are Man-Made =-.
  • As with many of the comments so far, your post made me chuckle to myself. Honestly my first thought was, "Hell, I don't even consider Google in my website or my blog posts - and Google DOES rank those!"

    The result, BTW, is that many of my articles / posts indeed land in the top 3 on Google (e.g. "founders syndrome") but that's not because we aimed at that. It's because (wait for it) good content rocks! (Duh...)
    :-)
    [rq=34930,0,blog][/rq]Monday Morning Rock Out!
  • Hildy - good point.

    In the end, content that is relevant and useful will win on Google. Call it naive, but I think that, because they have a business to run, they are financially incented to deliver the best content to it's users.

    John
    [rq=43673,0,blog][/rq]If Google ranked your posts on Twitter, would it change how you tweet?
  • I think you already know my answer, John. Last I checked I haven't made many connections by using Google.
    [rq=34865,0,blog][/rq]Three Great Kids
  • I have a hard time changing the way I do anything, including which way the toilet paper goes on the roller thingamabob. I am not interested in key words when it comes to my blog or my Tweets. I have my own set of keywords. One day, they will be bigger than Google's.
    [rq=34444,0,blog][/rq]Twitter: Mixing Business with Real Life
  • I change the direction of the toilet paper roll on both the 17th and 27th of the month. Just to keep things interesting.
    [rq=43672,0,blog][/rq]If Google ranked your posts on Twitter, would it change how you tweet?
  • Trickster! RT @johnhaydon If Google ranked your posts on Twitter, would it change how you tweet? http://tinyurl.com/nhjwj4 (via @tweetmeme)
  • I'll answer your question in the form of a question back at you:

    Did you purposefully fill this blog post title with keywords you hope people would stumble upon in a search engine results page or click from their feed reader? Or did you have no gaming motive with "Google" and "Twitter" in the same question? If not, a blog post title of "Would you change your mind?" would suffice...
    [rq=34206,0,blog][/rq]11 Examples of Newburyport Users on Twitter
  • Ari,

    In truth, keywords did cross my mind when writing the post title, but they were not my primary concern. My primary concern was, "How can I give folks the quickest idea of what this post is about so that they can decide whether to read it or not?"

    Also, because I thought it would be useful to get people's thoughts on the topic, I wrote the title in the form of a question.

    John
    [rq=43657,0,blog][/rq]If Google ranked your posts on Twitter, would it change how you tweet?
  • Fresh post! If Google ranked your posts on Twitter, would it change how you tweet? - http://tinyurl.com/nhjwj4 thanks @johnhaydon
  • Personally - tweet / write for the audience not the search engine: Rule #1....right? It would seem that this rule is definitely changing though.
    [rq=27292,0,blog][/rq]Why Are College’s Behind The Times?
  • If Google ranked your Twitter posts, would it change how you tweet? http://tinyurl.com/nhjwj4 RT @r27 @RiaSharon @johnhaydon
  • Fresh post! If Google ranked your posts on Twitter, would it change how you tweet? - http://tinyurl.com/nhjwj4
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