Google will restart its program that indexes tweets and pulls them into search results sometime in the first half of 2015. This means users searching for different topics will see real-time tweets along with recommended webpages based on their queries within search results.

The agreement between these two online companies is big news for marketers. It makes marketing on Twitter and Google even greater opportunities.

Real-Time Tweeting Becomes Even More Important

Twitter is a real-time platform. The brands that tweet content related to trending conversations and real-time events see more engagement than those who do not. Those are conversations people want to have, and this translates into search behavior. When news breaks, people tweet and they search.

Now, with tweets displaying in search results, it won’t matter if a searcher is following your brand or not. Your tweets still have an opportunity to show up. This means social media and search teams need to be in lock step, following not only what people are talking about but what they are searching for as well to identify opportunities for content and brand exposure.

Branded and Unbranded Content is Critical

The vast majority of the time, people will not be searching for your brand. They’ll be searching for unbranded terms, which means tweets need to strike a balance between talking about the brand but talking more heavily about what people are searching for and discussing. Talk about what people want to discuss and, in the case of search, know more about.

Seeing is One Thing, but Action is Another

The good news about tweets showing up in search is more exposure for brand tweets. But seeing is only one part of the equation. Brands that see real value will spark some type of action. Tweets that are optimized to display in Google search results should include a clear CTA or at the very least link to a web page. Users will see the content but may not follow, which means brands need to get the most from those exposures.

Tweets Live Longer

Tweets having a more prominent role in search means they don’t go away quickly or worse, forever. They have a chance to find new life based on what people search. This includes brand tweets as well as consumer tweets, which means brands need to be responsive to the good and the bad. That way if a complaint shows up in search results, people will see that your brand made an effort to solve the issue.

Twitter Users are Less Important

Tweets have the ability to show up anywhere and everywhere, and this partnership in particular exposes both Twitter and brands to people who otherwise wouldn’t be reading tweets. That means brands aren’t speaking only to their followers. They’re potentially speaking to everyone.