One might think that social media marketing and search engine optimization are two completely different things. However, in the last few years the two have begun to intertwine and affect one another. Social media marketing does in fact boost SEO. Both are organic strategies that can be worked on without necessarily having to engage in pay for play! It is worth your time to be building and implementing a social media marketing strategy. By working on social media, you are also working on your SEO and search rankings.
There are many facts to know how social media affects seo.
Social Media Boosts Your Authority Online.
Google ranks your higher when they see that others are verifying that you are a credible source. This usually means that when people link back to your site or blog posts, but it now also includes your social media influence. Google will look at the authority of your content on social media as well as your reach and relevance.
Some things to consider when trying to boost your authority and SEO online with social media are:
- Do you provide content that is relevant to your brand, your niche, and your audience? When you post valuable content rather than fillers, people will be more likely to follow you and engage with the posts. Google will realize this authority, as well as the fact that your content matches what you say your website is about.
- Are people engaging with your content and are you engaging with them? Engage, engage, and engage some more! You can never give too much attention to managing your communities on social media. This means genuine likes, comments, shares, etc. with your audience and other people in your same niche.
- Are you working on reaching the most possible people with your content? This means working on growing your following and getting your content out there. Finding the right communities and posting engaging and shareable content are a great way to get started!
Social sharing is link building.
Because Google ranks sites based on how many backlinks your website receives, many people have started to use black hat techniques like link stuffing, creating fake websites to drive traffic, and writing text that is invisible to the viewer. Because of this, they have had to find other ways to decide how to rank your site. They have now chosen to also include your social media as authority signal links as well. Likes, shares, and posts are now considered as a form of link building!
Some things to avoid when trying to grow your social media and SEO presence are:
- Don’t overuse or stuff keywords. Google knows when you do this! It is great to optimize on page SEO with keywords as well as use them in your social media posts. However, you will be sent on down the list if Google thinks you are overusing keywords or stuffing them. On the same note, your viewers want something of value. They aren’t going to read your posts that aren’t readable because they are stuffed with unintelligible random keywords.
- Don’t buy followers or engagement. If you are looking for social media that actually converts to a higher search engine ranking and sales, then do not buy followers! Numbers aren’t everything. Numbers may look nice, but they don’t convert.
- Don’t spam other users. Do not spam other users! Spam can include automatic messages that might not be warranted or posting content that isn’t what you have advertised. This will only hurt you in the end when it comes to organic engagement.
Social media can be locally optimized.
Social media is a great way to send local authority signals to search engines. If you are trying to build a locally centered business or be recognized online for being in a certain area, this is a great way to tap into free online marketing! Some ways that you can do this are:
- Geo tagging your location on social media posts. Whether it is a brick and mortar store or the city that you are trying to get business in, you will show up when people search that area!
- Engage with the community around you. That means both on your social media channels and in person (but then make sure to post about it!). Tag local companies when you interact with them as well.
Because Google and other large search engines recognize social media as an SEO signal for your business, it is important that you don’t neglect your online presence when it comes to social media. Social media falls under the umbrella of organic online marketing, and it is a time investment that is worth its cost!
These were the social media SEO tips. If you start to follow it carefully, your site will definitely boost in SERP.
Brandon Cox says
I hadn’t even thought about the power of geo-tagging for local social optimization. Great points, Chris!
Chris Dill says
Oh yeah, we have had great success with brick and mortar organic rankings by including local geo in social on their FB and G+ pages!