Some say with Social Marketing, SEO is dead . . . ???

NOT!

SEO will never die unless the Search Engines themselves die.   (never say never . . .)

SEO = Search Engine Optimization = Optimizing your page/site/video to be presented when a user searches for what you are offering.

What IS changing and will continue to change are the methods you need to use to appear relevant to Google for the search in question.  Google’s mission is to create algorithms that can provide the most relavant results to their visitors.

In the beginning, you used to be able to just “tell” Google “My Site is About This” – then they figured out we could just make that up – (keyword stuffing anyone? )

Then you could make Google think “everyone likes me”.  Paid links, reciprocal link exchanges.  Again, they figured it out.

Social Marketing is the most recent method that Google can and does use to figure out what the masses are thinking about and finding useful.

This is why social media is becoming such a popular topic in the SEO world.  Social Media has some great PR and general marketing benefits, but Google also recognizes that there is a lot of power in understanding what the populations within the social networks are finding relevant and interesting.

And as with all SEO techniques: Use it wisely. Don’t try to "game" Google.  And it will be a useful and powerful technique for you.