How to use social media to improve your SEO?
Social Media and SEO have a lot more in common than you think.
First, both should be part of your marketing strategy to bring as much traffic as possible to your website.
And even if search engines like Google remain the main way for people to search for products and services, social media is where they go to learn about trends and brands.
In fact, 54% of social media users have already been looking for new brands and products through a social platform.
And social media has a bigger influence on consumers' search behavior and the emotional connection they have to a brand.
Is there a link between social media and SEO?
All marketers know that social media plays an important role in marketing.
But a lot of them don’t see the link between social media and SEO.
And you?
To be fair, there's no proof that active and popular social media accounts have a direct impact on rankings.
Google said on multiple occasions that they don't use social media as a ranking factor for websites.
But that doesn't mean it doesn't play a role in how users see your site and brand.
Let’s see how your social media, despite Google words, plays a key role in your marketing strategy and can enhance your SEO.
Why social media is important for SEO?
It has been proved multiple times that social media doesn't impact directly your SEO BUT it brings more credibility and visibility to your business and your brand.
These 2 things are known to improve the trust and authority of your brand and the way Google sees it.
On top of that, by sharing your content on social media you increase its visibility and the chances to get other websites linking to it.
And, if well maintained, your social media accounts will often appear on SERPs when people search for your brand.
That's a powerful way to take more space in search results.
Key ways social media can give you more space in the SERPs
Search engines like Google are constantly trying to provide their users with the most relevant results.
Your content on social can rank where your website might not.
Think about videos and graphics.
For example, when you are searching for “How to draw” on Google, at the top of the results you see images from Pinterest and videos from Youtube.
That’s an example of why it's important to share your content in different forms and platforms.
This way you increase the probability for it to show in the SERPs.
Whether it's your image, video, or blog post that pops up, the most important is to get people to see your brand.
Every website owner should pay attention to that and create ways to repurpose their existing content for social media.
And even if your social media accounts don't help you to take more space in the SERPs, they still can help in many ways.
Let's discuss some strategies that you should use to influence your social media SEO.
Optimize your social media profiles
You must remember that social media are becoming real search engines.
It’s also very common for people to look up a business’s contact information, product details, and brand values on Facebook or LinkedIn for example.
So make sure your social media profiles contain all the relevant information about your business, your products and services to help people find you.
Google can also use this data to improve the profile of your company on their search engine.
We know that Google can extract data from Facebook, Linkedin, Tripadvisor, and many other websites to enhance search results.
Think comments, notes, and reviews.
All these factors might not have a direct impact on SEO and rankings but they do affect how people perceive your brand.
So, encourage users to leave reviews and to interact with you online.
For example, if people leave comments and you're fast to answer and always provide value, it will probably attract more customers.
The average customer reads at least 10 comments before trusting a brand.
If you make these comments easier to find through social media, you will simultaneously improve the trust they have in your brand and increase your conversion rate.
Link your Business and Personal profile
Your company name has to be everywhere, from your social media accounts to your personal account.
You will gain credibility and your consumer's trust.
If employees use their personal social media to promote their works or if there are opinion leaders, they should also optimize their profile with the company name, services...
For example, they can include a link to their company on their Twitter or Instagram account to help increase brand awareness.
The inclusion of these links and information can also be very useful for Google when users are looking for specific people who work for a company, such as CEO, HR...
Use social media to raise awareness
Social media could have an indirect influence on SEO by strengthening brand recognition, which could increase organic traffic.
Many customers enjoy knowing brands and products directly through social media, whether by looking for a product directly as we can do it on Pinterest, or by following influencers who share brand, products, and services.
If they know your brand name, they're more likely to click on it when they see in the SERPs.
Use as many social media platforms as possible
It's good for businesses to diversify their reach by using multiple platforms to engage your consumers.
Each social media offers a different way to get your message out.
They also have different audiences.
That's why you need to adapt your message to the demographic on each platform.
Some social media are used mainly by people under 25 while others are more widely used by people over 35 (Snapchat VS LinkedIn).
Businesses should create personalized and customized content for each social media to engage with each audience.
Brands need to take advantage of these platforms and see how they can integrate their content into their sales strategy to increase brand awareness and drive more traffic to their website.
And there are many ways to drive traffic to your website via social media.
How to get started?
1) Create viral content that suits each social media
The audience and way to communicate change a lot from one platform to another.
Places like YouTube and Twitter are very interesting to discover new things, while Instagram and TikTok are better to create emotional connections.
To create engaging content, marketers should create content according to each platform code.
2) Partner with influencers
There is no doubt that influencer marketing has become crucial for brands to increase their reach.
But does influencer marketing help SEO?
Once again, there might not be a real influence on your ranking on Google, but this is one of the best ways to increase awareness.
It can also drive traffic to your website if influencers add a link to your website or tag your company name in their social media posts.
They can even write about you on their website.
And that would definitely impact your SEO.
3) Don’t try to sell with each post
Don't focus only on promoting your products and services on social media.
Keep in mind this is the best place to educate your audience and create an emotional connection with them.
Customers appreciate brands they can relate to.
Social media users also tend to share content that supports a cause that excites them and a topic they are passionate about.
Non-promotional content has more potential to have a higher engagement rate and increase your brand visibility.
Conclusion:
While social media may not be a direct factor in SEO ranking, there is no doubt that it could change because social media are direct proof of how popular a brand is.
Why social media is important for SEO?
- Social media content and profile can give you more space in the SERPs
- Optimized social media profiles rank
- Personal profiles on social media linked to business help build trust
- Social media help people to discover your brand/website.
- Repurpose your website content to share it on social media
The perfect time to work on your social media strategy is now!
Do you need help to set up your social media accounts, create a strategy, or manage your social media?
We're here to help. Check out social media management services.
And if you have any questions about this post or social media marketing, feel free to drop a comment below or to send us a message.