Social Media and SEO Explained
Social media accounts and their metrics of success aren’t direct factors in Google’s search rankings. So, just because you have 50,000 followers doesn’t mean your page will rank in a particular SERP (search engine results page). However, they do help the indirect effect of your digital marketing strategy!
Example: Someone finds you from a Google search…but instead of clicking to your website, they decide to click on your Google My Business Social Media links instead to “see what your company is about”. Upon searching, they see that you haven’t posted in weeks and the posts don’t appear professional- What do you think is going through their minds? Do you have any reviews? People make judgements based on what other people think and say about you. Your business can’t afford not to have a multi-channel pressence that isn’t consistent and professional.
Even though their may not be a major direct impact on your SEO from your Social Platforms, there’s no denying that having a social media following helps your ability to draw traffic. Once traffic starts flowing in, different metrics on your site will contribute to the success of your rankings.
Your website is also trying to build something called “domain authority”. This is how Google ranks your site as a source for trusted information against other competing websites. When another website that they consider high in domain authority links back to yours it gives your website a small boost. If they trust sending traffic to your site, then Google can trust sending traffic too.
Social media management is its own ballgame, but there are some simple things you can do to allow your social media accounts to feed your optimization.
The first thing to do is to spread your content through social media. The keyword-optimized content you create for your site can easily be shared across social media platforms.
Traffic also can help build your SEO. By providing high quality, targeted traffic that stays on your site for longer periods, it shows Google that you have good content, and that they should send more people to you. There are many ways to accomplish this, social media marketing being one of the most popular and producing articles that are shareable, clickable and exciting or informative to read is another.
Any time one of your followers goes through the link to your website, they’ll engage with your page and Google will see that engagement as an indication of your relevance.
Another way to boost your SEO using social media marketing is through strategy. Your digital marketing plan should always be in a circular cycle to push out content with a specific purpose and directed to a target audience, then you analyze your results (reach, engagement, clicks, etc…), develop an after actions of how you could have improved on that content by creating new A|B tests, then push out new content and start the process over again. A|B testing allows you to create 2 items with only 1 variable. In social media, you can do this with ads, boosts, and campaigns to see which one(s) your ideal consumers relate and react to the most. Once you begin to see what is working, you can apply that to your website and other digital marketing to increase their results too! Social media is one of the easiest and quickest ways to test and see what your audience craves and will allow your website to keep visitors on your website longer…and hopefully converting.
Almost all social media platforms, though, offer an exceptional tool for you to reach thousands of people: PPC.
PPC Advertisements & SEO Simplified
The last fundamental piece of SEO that we’ll discuss today is pay-per-click (PPC) ads.
Social media and search engine platforms allow you to market your content with a very limited budget and will also produce quick results that you can apply to the rest of your digital marketing strategy. A small investment of $100 could put any piece of your content in front of thousands of people.
Additionally, you only pay when your content gets engagements. You get exactly what you pay for, and you can target very specific groups of people to see your content.
When you utilize Google or Facebook, you can implement a tracking pixel that will allow you to re-market to those visitors in the future with a more specific message. This allows you to develop a funnel journey where you can direct prospective customers into the phases of earning their trust, showing your authority in the industry, and eventually closing the sale. As people are evolving, so are marketing methods that work. For most industries, people need to see your brand more often before they will make the decision to trust your company to solve their problem. So marketing funnels have become more complex and can now create a customized experience for each visitor in order to stay with the trends.
As you market more, you’ll streamline your process and you’ll see more results. Those results translate into traffic on your site, and your rankings will slowly increase as a result of that traffic.
Want to Learn More about SEO Marketing?
There’s a lot to learn about search engine optimization. We covered the fundamentals above, but a great campaign requires a little extra effort and knowledge. We’re here to help.
Contact us for more ideas and insights into SEO and what it can do for you.
