Experts say that video search will be the wave of the future for search engine optimization (SEO) professionals, who have thoroughly explored the world of web search but are still relative newcomers to online video, despite the popularity of sites like YouTube.

Steve Baldwin, a search marketing CEO writing a guest column at MediaPost, says that he was surprised how quickly videos gained rank on Google’s video search page. And although Baldwin says that calling YouTube a totally untapped market is an "overstatement," the paucity of search engine optimization (SEO) professionals plying their trade there is still a clear opportunity.

Baldwin says that shorter videos are better than long ones, and recommends dividing longer content into bite-sized segments for easier consumption. He also insists that "inexpensive productions don’t have to look cheap," and marvels at the robust features available on even low-budget video editing programs.

Others agree with Baldwin’s analysis, even if the lion’s share of headlines in the search engine optimization (SEO) world in recent months have related to real-time and social search.

Katherine Griwert is Brafton's Marketing Director. She's practiced content marketing, SEO and social marketing for over five years, and her enthusiasm for new media has even deeper roots. Katherine holds a degree in American Studies from Boston College, and her writing is featured in a number of web publications.