Does Social Media Have an Effect on SEO?

Social media is instrumental in optimizing your brand awareness and improving customer loyalty, but can it actually impact your SEO efforts? After all, social media platforms are technically part of the internet. Should you be concerned with how your social media content impacts how potential customers might find your business online?

Social Media & SEO 

While your brand’s social media activity impacts search rankings, the effect is minimal. When someone searches for your business, the first results will be your website, not your social media profiles. However, if it contains relevant content and links, your social media page(s) will still rank highly for certain queries. The major takeaway? Content-and more specifically valuable, engaging, relevant content-is your most powerful asset. 

You can even integrate your social media feed into your website. Using a plugin, your Instagram/Facebook feed will appear on the main page of your business website, meaning more people will see that content. You can also utilize this to build up your following, increase your email list, and most importantly, add more value to your customers’ lives. 

You should already know how content marketing impacts SEO. Between organic SEO and paid SEM, customers should be easily able to find your business when they search for keywords related to the products or services your brand provides. But customers should be able to easily find your social media presence as well, especially if it inspires additional purchases!

Strive For A High Level of Earned Media

When it comes to your social media strategy and SEO, your best bet is to strive for a high level of earned media. In other words, instead of investing in paid advertising or PPC, look to optimize customer feedback and mentions of your brand across both social media and the internet. If you can foster tons of interactions and engagement on your social media page, that increase in earned media will boost your search engine rankings. 

If your posts regularly get a lot of shares, likes, or comments, it means more people are seeing that content. Depending on the platform used (not Instagram), shared content can also mean more direct and referral traffic, which can in turn mean more leads and conversions. It all comes back to your ability to utilize your social media as a lead magnet. 

Social Media As A Lead Magnet

Search engine optimization is a lead generator. When customers search for a product or service via a search engine, they want a solution. They have a desire to solve a problem through action: the purchase of said product or service. SEO can link that desire/action with the solution your product or service provides. However, it all depends on whether or not the customer can find your page. The same is true about social media. 

While you may not be able to sell your product or service directly through social media, the content you post can inspire action. Consider this: a Google search won’t show a video of your product solving a problem. Fortunately, social media was built for that very purpose. If the video has relevant alt-text and keywords, it’ll be easier for potential customers to discover it!

Therein lies the importance of integrating SEO into everything your brand does marketing-wise. While even the most robust social media SEO strategy won’t make or break your business, it’s an important part of facilitating a healthy relationship with your customers.

Think of it as making it easier for them to solve their problems.

Whether those problems are solved by buying your product or service or consuming your valuable content, SEO is the tool that helps make contact.