Facebook Surpasses Google In Directing Traffic (To Certain Sites)
By Chris Weiss
There’s many search engine options out there, but none can really come close to the market leader. Perhaps that’s because they don’t use a friendly face to direct you around the Web in search of information and time killers. According to research by Web measurement firm Compete Inc., Facebook now directs more users to major sites such as Yahoo and MSN. In the month of December, Facebook directed 13 percent of traffic to the sites, while Google accounted for 7 percent. Facebook also made gains in other categories including movie and video sites.
If you hadn’t already heard, social networking is kinda a big deal in Web circles and is clearly having an impact on the greater Web landscape. No wonder Google’s getting involved.
Facebook influences traffic through links shared by its users. Instead of a faceless algorithm, social networking sites like Facebook provide peer-to-peer suggestions and linking, placing more stress on socialization of content and less stress on search engine optimization (SEO). [via SF Chronicle]
