With the recent launch of Google's real-time search engine technology, search engine optimization is poised to have a strong effect on social media marketing.

Sites like Facebook and Twitter have gained leverage by allowing their users to receive real-time updates from their social and professional networks.

Google's real-time search capitalizes on this trend by updating as events and online communications occur. Brands can expand their impact on search engine results while accelerating the speed at which they receive consumer feedback.

Google's Vice President of Engineering, Vic Gundotra, made the announcements during Google's Searchology, an annual review of Internet search technology. At the conference, Google Fellow Amit Singhal described real-time search as "one of the most exciting things I've seen in my career."

The comment was received with a great deal of applause, perhaps an indication that Singhal was not the only person present to recognize the importance of this new technology.

The impact of Google's real-time search on the marketing industry results will be immediate, especially for niche markets like hospitality. Social media conversations will expand in reach, in turn enhancing the effects of positive chatter. Consumer feedback can once again be used in search engine optimization campaigns, and when harnessed correctly can increase the amount of website traffic for a given brand.

In the past, hotels have been limited to optimizing their pages for relevant content. Google's real-time search engine has accelerated the growing trend of brand-consumer interaction. In this new frontier, to stay ahead, hospitality brands will need to actively participate in social media in order to stay relevant and maintain their brand presence.

One aspect of Google's search-engine overhaul will be new modes of real-time searching, such as voice-driven searches or translation. As of today, Google supports translation between 51 languages. During the Searchology conference, Gundotra said that starting in the first quarter of 2010, near real-time translation will begin to be rolled out for mobile devices. "Our goal at Google is nothing less than being able to support all the major languages of the world," he said.

For hotels, who build their brands on international locations and clientele, the addition of real-time translations can widen the scope of consumer feedback. Customer reviews of hotels can be immediately effective, no matter what language the individual is speaking. When combined with real-time searches, hospitality brands can react internationally while optimizing their social media reach.

Social media marketing companies, like CoMMingle, can help hotels stay ahead of the curve. CoMMingle is a division of Lodging Interactive, a full-service Interactive Marketing Agency with nearly 600 hospitality clients and its client base is growing exponentially year over year. By utilizing cutting-edge website tools, tools that have since been replicated by its competitors, Lodging Interactive continues to raise the bar for effective social media services. CoMMingle was the first to deliver a manageable solution for hotels interested in maintaining brand integrity and online reputation via the social media websites.

CoMMingle's management team adds years of hospitality and Internet marketing experience to a brand's resources; ranging from GDS to one of the largest franchiser companies in the world to a leading hotel marketing company. Together, CoMMingle and Lodging Interactive provide a myriad of possibilities for hospitality brands to launch social media marketing campaigns that are highly engaging and effective. CoMMingle is a combination of social media services that are flexible and delivered in a collaborative manner to fit each client's goals and expectations.

For more information regarding CoMMingle, please visit www.commingle.me.

About Lodging Interactive

Lodging Interactive, headquartered in Parsippany, NJ, is a leading provider of Internet Marketing Services to the hospitality, spa and restaurant industries. The company provides a portfolio of effective hotel internet marketing services to hundreds of hotels, resorts, timeshares, spas and restaurants. Clients include branded hotels from nearly every major brand as well as prestigious, landmark independent hotels.

Through its CoMMingle Social Media Marketing Agency operating division, the Company offers hospitality focused and fully managed outsourced hotel social media marketing.
Lodging Interactive is a proud member of the American Hotel & Lodging Association (AH&LA) and a supporter of the Hotel Sales & Marketing Association International (HSMAI). For more information contact Richard Walsh, Vice President of Business Development at [email protected] or at 877-291-4411. The company's website is located at www.LodgingInteractive.com.

About Lodging Interactive

Since its founding in 2001, Lodging Interactive has provided digital marketing services to hotels worldwide, including select service, full-service, and luxury properties.

The Company's social media marketing and guest reviews response division, CoMMingle:Engage, serves a range of hospitality businesses, including hotels, restaurants, spas, and management companies.

Additionally, the Company provides subscription-based website development and digital marketing services. The subscription-based service is based on a 'pay-as-you-go' model and requires little upfront investment on the part of the hotel.

The Company continues to innovate by introducing supportive services that enhance its primary business lines. Recently, it launched Commingle360 and Social Media Amplified, custom landing page services aimed at driving direct bookings through social media content posts.

Lodging Interactive has received numerous awards, including the HSMAI Adrian Award and accolades from the International Academy of Visual Arts, Interactive Media Awards, Horizon Interactive Awards, Web Marketing Association, Academy of Interactive & Visual Arts, and Travel Weekly's Magellan Awards.

For more information, email [email protected], call 877-291-4411 ext. 704, or visit the company's website.

Richard Walsh
Vice President, Business Development
877-291-4411

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