Social Media and SEO: How to Use Social Media to Improve SEO Rankings

Contents

• How Does Social Media Affect SEO Rankings?
• 5 Tips To Use Social Media To Boost SEO
  1. Move Away From Creating and Sharing Mediocre Content
  2. Master the Art of Social Media Optimization
  3. Make Your Content Shareable
  4. Connect With Your Audience
  5. Leverage Social Media to Craft a Pristine Brand Identity
• What Are The Best Social Media Sites For SEO?
• Wrapping Up!

Is on-page SEO the only way to boost Google rankings?

Is there a link between social media marketing and SEO?

In this blog, we want to talk about how social media optimization can help you become more visible on the web.

How Does Social Media Affect SEO Rankings?

Over 4.57 billion people use social media around the world.

Now, let’s get to the question that’s on everyone’s mind: Is social media marketing one of Google’s ranking factors?

So, for most of this blog, we’re going to talk about how you can leverage your presence on social sites to boost your online presence. But it’s important to note that social media marketing isn’t a direct element of SEO; in fact, it supports elements that impact SEO.

For example: sharing engaging posts on Facebook, Twitter, etc., can make your content shareable, which increases your content’s visibility, which in turn boosts Google rankings.

So if a blog was shared over 10,000 times and generated over 1 million likes and 30,000 comments, it may bag the first spot on Google for several of its keywords.

There’s absolutely no denying that social media and SEO have a meaningful and powerful link. Now let’s jump right into how you can leverage that!

5 Tips To Use Social Media To Boost SEO

1. Move Away From Creating and Sharing Mediocre Content

Curious about how many U.S. businesses have a social media marketing strategy in place?

90%. And it’s easy to see why.

While taking things into your own hands may sound compelling, it’s very likely that you’ll fall short of the high standard set by the leading brands today.

Most top-tier businesses have a winning social media SEO strategy that helps them speedily climb ranks.

Take a quick look at Longines’ simple yet unmistakably engaging Facebook post:

From using their signature hashtag to reach the intended audience to painting a vivid picture of the client’s admiration for Longines watches, this post makes a lasting impression on the audience.

And the more it resonates with people, the greater the likes, shares, page views, and sales.

These factors collectively play a fundamental role in increasing your search visibility and improving your rankings.

Nordstrom’s social media posts expertly follow the same recipe of creativity, uniqueness, and storytelling at its best:

When it comes to using social media for SEO success, you have to stand out from the crowd by creating and sharing content that’s a cut above the rest.

An experienced social media marketing team will help you post gripping, moving, and impactful content that compels casual social media users to get immersed in your brand’s story and visit your website.

2. Master the Art of Social Media Optimization

You’ve heard about content optimization.

You’re also familiar with webpage optimization.

But what on earth is social media optimization?

This is where social media and SEO cross paths. In essence, social media optimization is the process of “optimizing” your social media activity to build a wide audience and become more visible on SERPs.

How do you go about this?

Here’s a roundup of the top strategies:

• Use high-ranking hashtags for your industry and location
• Set up your profile on the leading social media platforms (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, and Pinterest)
• Integrate your social media links in your site architecture
• Post high-quality content on a regular or semi-regular basis
• Post media-rich content (e.g., blogs with engaging images or concept illustrations, infographics, videos, etc.)
• Determine the optimal posting times for your business based on your demographic
• Optimize your social media profile by posting a professional cover photo and profile photo, writing an engaging bio, and using an uncomplicated username
• Monitor your campaign and make changes accordingly

As you optimize your pages, you’ll engage more social media users and increase your chances of establishing link building partners.

This is one of the most impressive boons of social media optimization!

As more non-competitor businesses come across your profile and engage with your content, they’ll become familiar with your presence in the industry.

The outcome?

Better chances of earning a lucrative backlink from high-DA businesses.

And it should come as no surprise that high-quality backlinks are power-packed juice shots for fatigued rankings! If you’re stuck at the back end of SERPs, you’ll manage to climb your way to the middle and eventually the top.

But leveraging social media sites for SEO isn’t enough. Make sure you turn to on-page SEO strategies as well.

Recommended Read: How to Get More Likes on Facebook in 2020

3. Make Your Content Shareable

Sure, you’ve created a winning social media campaign. You’ve also written the perfect social media post to get your content out in the open with a bang!

But did you make the post shareable?

While every social media post features a “share” button, it’s very likely that your audience won’t use it unless they’re prompted to. And losing potential shares will ultimately cause your SEO efforts to self-destruct.

Go for damage control ASAP.

Here’s an example:

We now have plenty of Feather Edge Panel in stock for immediate collection or delivery!!!!

Call us now on 01553760000 or email us sales@timberservices.com

Please share!! #featheredgepanel #kingslynn #timber #instock pic.twitter.com/vvnjXUcfu2

— Timber Services Ltd (@ServicesTimber) November 10, 2020

Requesting your audience to “share” your posts is a great way to prompt action and get the most out of your social media content.

You can also experiment with different CTAs like “visit our website for more,” “feel free to give us a call,” “check out our services/products,” and “sign up for our newsletter,” among others.

Make sure you prioritize creativity; the more unique and compelling your posts, the better the outcome!

4. Connect With Your Audience

Social media isn’t a lecture hall; it’s a seminar room that involves active discussion.

If you plan on posting content and exiting until it’s time for a new post, you may want to rethink your strategy.

To improve your rankings and get people talking about your products/services, actively converse with your audience and initiate mini conversations between them.

Let’s take a look at how Starbucks puts this strategy into play:

If you scroll down, you’ll notice that they’ve engaged with the large majority of people who have left a comment. And the responses aren’t lackluster and generic; they’re witty, creative, and a breath of fresh air!

And if you so much as enter “pumpkin cream” on Google, Starbucks shows up as the second most relevant search result.

This, in a nutshell, is a masterclass in how to use social media for SEO. It shows you how social signals help your SEO strategy succeed.

5. Leverage Social Media to Craft a Pristine Brand Identity

Branding is at the core of successful SEO.

If your business has a weak brand identity, it’s very likely that your audience will gradually begin to lose interest and turn to your competitors.

Mediocre branding also reduces brand recall, resulting in dwindling audience engagement and retention.

So how do you turn things around?

You create an immaculate brand identity through social media.

Portray your business as an empathetic, attentive, and accommodating brand that actually cares about its audience.

Posting meaningful content, engaging with customers on a frequent basis, responding to queries with care and concern, and going the extra mile to ensure a seamless user experience are a few of the many ways to make a mark in your industry.

When executed with consistency and quality in mind, these strategies will help you become more visible on the web and rank your way to the top SERPs!

What Are The Best Social Media Sites For SEO?

Believe it or not, there are several dozen social sites you can choose from, but we want to focus on a few popular (read: powerful) ones in this blog:

Source: Statista

1. Twitter: Most brands really overlook this powerhouse social media site. Twitter is huge. It has a great audience (over 330 million monthly active users) that you can tap into.
2. YouTube: If video marketing isn’t part of your SEO strategy, it’s time to rethink that plan. 22% of the social media traffic in the U.S. is on this platform.
3. Facebook: Definitely the most popular, Facebook allows you to direct your advertising to your target audience and attract major traffic straight to your website. In addition to attracting traffic organically, there are paid options like Facebook sponsored content.
4. Instagram: Over a billion people use Instagram on a monthly basis; it’s more than just posting images; think stories, video sharing, etc.
5. LinkedIn: If you’re operating under the B2B model, you need to be on this professional platform. This is where you connect with potential clients, engage with existing customers, and build your brand. 53% of B2B companies that look up clients here have 50% chances of making a purchase from them.
6. Pinterest: The future is imagery. There are over 50 billion pins on the site, with over 175 million users.

 

Wrapping Up!

And so, with that, you’ve understood more or less about SEO and its relationship with social media. But there’s so much more to it! And we’d love to talk to you about it!

If you want to get your business’s social media marketing off the ground, let’s talk! Call 855-444-4777 now to speak with a strategist or fill out the form below!