The recent announcement that the major search engines Google and Bing will incorporate social media content into their search results will place the onus on brands to make the most of the online marketplace according to Reality Digital, the leading provider of social networking software for brands and businesses.

The integration of the huge amount of content found on social networks (such as Twitter) into search results is set to have a significant impact on the online marketplace, and Reality Digital has indicated that as a result, brands will now need to be much more in touch with social media and what their consumers are saying about them.

Brands can greatly benefit from adopting a social media presence as part of their overall marketing strategy. Social media provides brands with an outlet for consumer interaction on a much more personal level than traditional ways of getting information to target audiences. Brands can also use networks as a valuable crowd sourcing tool, enabling them to attract more consumers to a brand whilst also giving the ability to portray campaign messages in a much more direct fashion.

Robert Proctor, Head of EMEA for Reality Digital, said: “Reputation management in the online public sphere needs to be at the top of any brands priorities, certainly as we go into 2010. This new deal between the two major search engines and social media networks means that brands must make an effort to engage and please their key audiences, as way of ensuring that their online image is positive.

“Those brands that employ brand focused social networking applications will stand to benefit from these deals hugely, as through this they not only have the benefit of heightened consumer interactivity, but they may also start to see some of the great content from their networks appearing within search engine results.”

Reality Digital’s Opus online community software allows brands and businesses to harness the power and benefits or social media as a marketing tool. Incorporating all of the latest cutting edge social network functionality, brands can use the software to create a community dedicated to their brand and engage their members through the user generated content tools and high quality rich media facilities provided by the video platform.

To find out more about Reality Digital and the Opus Platform, please visit realitydigital.com, or call 0203 1785 883.