It’s well known in SEO circles that most links created through social media are “nofollow”—and therefore don’t help sites rank higher with search engines. Some SEO professionals believe there’s no SEO benefit to developing social-media profiles at all.

Not so, counters Derek Edmond in a recent post at the Komarketing Blog. To search marketers like Edmond, “social-media strategies are much more than a method for securing direct links through submissions, posts, and updates.”

Edmond offers five reasons to incorporate social-media tactics into your SEO strategy:

1. Brand-Based Search Results. LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook Pages and company blogs often appear prominently in brand-based search results. Completing social-media profiles at these sites helps ensure the company message you create gets found.
2. Link-Friendly Content Strategies. Even if newly created content gathers few SEO-friendly links, acquiring and evaluating the number of bookmarks and votes helps illustrate how successful your organization is at connecting with potential customers and audiences.
3. Connection with Content Publishers. A social-media presence can open doors of communication and new link opportunities previously unavailable to you.
4. Connection with Connectors. Social-media sites offer greater access to people and organizations that can help your business grow through new business opportunities, partnerships, and strategic advice.
5. Social Media’s Influence on the Search Space. Google, Yahoo, and Bing are all integrating social elements with their respective technologies. Therefore, social media’s direct influence on rankings is certain to increase.

Search engines are already smarter than we think, Edmund adds, and they are likely able to determine link intent and so establish some SEO value—even for “nofollow” links.

ACTION: Make your SEO more social. Adding social media to your SEO strategy is a sure bet these days, Edmond concludes, as the influence of social-media keyword rankings is definitely on the rise.