Social media optimization (SMO) is a group of tools for creating publicity through social media, online neighborhoods and public websites. Techniques for SMO contain adding RSS feeds, social news buttons (like the one below), blogging, incorporating third-party community functionality like images and videos. Social media optimization is linked to search engine marketing, but varies in several ways, principally the spotlight in driving traffic from sources other than search engines though improved search ranking which is also one of the advantages of successful SMO.

Social media optimization is linked as a practice of viral marketing where word of mouth is fashioned not by means of friends or family but with the use of networking in social bookmarking, video and photo sharing websites. Comparably with blogs achieves the same can be said of sharing content through the use of RSS in the blogosphere and special blog search engines.

Social Media optimization is regarded an essential piece of an online reputation management (ORM) or Search Engine Reputation Management (SERM) strategy for organizations or individuals who care about their online presence.

Included in the news video content are RSS feeds from: Blastro.com, EVTV1.com, Forbes.com, GameTrailers.com, PC World and Time4 Media properties including Transworld Skateboarding, Transworld Snowboarding and Transworld Surf.

The new optimized video RSS feeds will be included in America Online’s new video search engine available through the AOL.com portal’s Video tab ( http://www.aol.com/video ), AOL Search ( http://www.aolsearch.com ) and on the AOL service. The content will also be available at SingingFish ( http://www.singingfish.com ).

”We’re thrilled to include these partners in our industry-leading AOL Video Search, stated Kevin Conroy, Executive Vice President of AOL Media Networks. ”With AOL Video Search, we are providing consumers with a faster, easier way to find the best videos on the web.”

AOL is intending to help video producers make their rich multimedia assets more accessible to consumers, and also to allow producers to control the video playback experience in order to help drive traffic back to their web sites.

AOL’s video search engine has become one of the leaders in high-quality video content online – in key categories from entertainment to news. Its database draws from the AOL Video on-demand archive of more than 18,000 licensed and originally produced video assets including popular exclusive and AOL-original programs like AOL Music Sessions, AOL Music LIVE!, Moviefone’s “Unscripted,” the Moviefone Short Film Festival, AOL Coaches and more; over 1.5 million video assets available on the Internet indexed through AOL’s Singingfish; and RSS feeds from top video streaming sites.

The combined approach – which is similar in many respects to a traditional meta-search engine – lets people search from one place for high-quality, current online video spanning popular music videos, movie features, television clips, news coverage, sports highlights, and also independently produced videos.