Social media is huge in the business world. It allows companies to keep their followers updated on information in a timely manner. It also creates a strong connection between the brand and its fans. Implementing social media on your site can prove a valuable move.

It can serve as a funnel for visitors to engage or subscribe with your brand. By integrating it, you can improve your search engine optimization (bumping up in search page rankings). It can also serve as a means for visitors to share your website on their social media. What are the best ways to include social media on your website?

Connect Buttons
Make sure your social sites are in some way displayed on your home page, such as through social buttons. This is the most visited page and your central hub for those navigating through your site. You want those social icons to get as much exposure as possible so try to put them in an obvious place, like by the navigation bar or right at the top of the page. Somewhere that gets repeated across all of your pages would be ideal.

Additionally, since social media has become the latest form of customer service, make sure it is included on your contact page. Many visitors prefer to communicate through social channels now rather than phone or in person. Try to enable these buttons to open a new page so visitors don’t have to exit your site in order to follow you.

Share Icons
Incorporate social sharing buttons surrounding your articles, blogs, or ecommerce items on your site. You want these items to be shared in order to generate more visitors back to your site. Blogs or articles can be given Google Authorship badges to enable readers to subscribe to that author and join their Google+ circles in addition to sharing their information.

Mashable does a great job with its social share buttons by conveying how many others have shared via that social platform and even shows a graph illustrating how quickly people are sharing the content being viewed. This sharing option is very prominently displayed at the top of the article so visitors can’t miss it.

Live Feeds
Another key element you could include are live feeds on the side of your site. Only do this if your organization consistently interacts through their social channels. Having a stagnant feed displayed on your website could reflect poorly on your business. Twitter feeds and Facebook posts along your site can not only draw in more followers from your site visitors, but also get them engaged in current events or promotions you may market through there.

However, it will take up some prime space on your website and may direct users away from your site. It could also serve as a distraction from your content if it is too active. Keep in mind what you are trying to promote or sell and focus on that in your site. There are a lot of pros and cons to this live feed addition, but it appears most people are moving away from having the live feeds directly on their site. There is more buy in to the share and follow buttons.

Whether you choose one or all of these options, keep in mind what your organization’s goals are. Overwhelming site visitors with your social sites can drive visitors away, but it is important to let them know that your company is out there; especially with this new social customer service age.