If you search for rules on optimization of social sites/properties, you are bound to come a across several lists of guidelines. One of the most straightforward lists that I’ve come across is the one posted below found on blogs.praised.com (posted in November, 2006).  The 16 Rules of Social Media Optimization according to this blog include:

1. Increase your linkability (usually through fresh content)
2. Make tagging and bookmarking easy
3. Reward inbound links (permalink, listing recent linking blogs)
4. Help your content travel (if your content is portable, submit it to other relevant sites)
5. Encourage the mashup (let others use your content)
6. Be a User Resource, even if it doesn’t help you (include outbound links to areas that could help your users, even to your competitors)
7. Reward helpful and valuable users (promote their work, develop a ranking system)
8. Participate (join the conversation)
9. Know how to target your audience
10. Create content
11. Be real
12. Don’t forget your roots, be humble
13. Don’t be afraid to try new things, stay fresh
14. Develop a SMO strategy (define your objectives and set goals)
15. Choose your SMO tactics wisely
16. Make SMO part of your process and best practices

Unfortunately, I haven’t been able to find a more recent post that is as direct as the list above. To enhance the existing guidelines and fill in some holes, I’ve included some other suggestions to keep in mind when using social properties in conjunction with online marketing efforts such as for promotion, traffic driving, link building, etc. These suggestions take a more specific approach at the optimization of social properties online, which I think is something that online search marketing could benefit from.

Additional tips include:

• Deliver a consistent message
• When creating profiles/blogs, keep the best content above the fold
• Don’t restrict social media profiles
• Get inbound links from pages with a strong PageRank
• Always utilize keyword targeting
• Don’t overlook niche sites that involve your target audience
• Create skimable content (use bullets, lists, heading tags, bold, italic, etc.)
• Keep a log of your activity with times and dates of your submissions
• Track your ranking results
• Utilize web analytics to see which sources are driving traffic and conversions

The two lists presented in this post could be just the tip of the iceberg, depending on how specific you want to get. With the number and variety of social sites being developed, more rules and guidelines are likely to emerge.

What it essentially boils down to is creativity and execution, but it’s still essential to have to have knowledge of best practices and online tact. It’s always a necessity to keep up with the trends, but don’t forget to think outside of the box and be original in your execution.