10 Social SEO Strategies You Can Use to Build Your Authority in 2024

You likely know that social media is an essential tool for connecting with your intended audience. As of January 2023, 89% of marketing experts mentioned they used Facebook in their digital efforts.

But, did you know it can also benefit your SEO?

Some people think social media doesn’t affect SEO much, but that’s not true. Social SEO can boost your search engine visibility, brand exposure, and even conversion rate.

Don’t stress if you haven’t been doing social SEO; this list of nine easy methods will help you get started.

What is Social SEO?

Let’s start with a quick definition of search engine optimization (SEO). SEO means doing things to improve where your website shows up in Google and the kind of visitors you get from Google – all to get on the first page for the words you want.

Social SEO is about using social media to make your Google results better. People often forget about this part of SEO, but it can get you more and better visitors without paid advertising.

Sounds easy, right? Well, not always! Improving your social SEO strategy can seem like a game of hide and seek with the ever-changing rules of social media and the mysterious numbers that measure engagement.

Once you’ve set up a good plan, you’ll see:

1. More people are visiting your website.

2. Better online presence.

3. A stronger brand reputation.

4. More people getting involved.

5. Building important connections with your desired audience.

Using social media for better search engine results may take some work, but it pays off in the long run. Plus, nowadays, it’s not really a choice.

What are The Benefits of Social SEO?

Some of you might have doubts. You may have heard that social media backlinks don’t really help with SEO. For a long time, people have argued about whether social signals impact how your site shows up on Google searches.

In 2010, Twitter briefly stopped Google from using its social network. This happened four years after Matt Cutts talked about a video. At that time, Matt Cutts had to deal with the issue that Google couldn’t depend on ‘temporary’ social SEO signals.

The United States has 302.35 million people using social media, and it’s predicted to go beyond 313 million by 2024. A whopping 90% of all Americans are on social media. We strongly recommend using social media SEO to make sure your brand stays visible to the people you want to reach.

Even if there’s no clear benefit right away, social media can support your SEO in different ways. Let’s discuss why you should pay attention to social SEO.

Are Social Signals A Google Ranking Factor?

Social signals tell search engines which content matters, is liked, and can be trusted. This helps boost the position of the content and page in organic search results (SEO).

Search engines aim to provide top-notch content that aligns with what people are looking for. To achieve this, search engines like Google and Bing assess content using different ranking factors, like how popular or visible the URL is.

In 2010, Matt Cutts, who used to lead Google’s Webspam team, got a question about how Google decides the importance of links from places like Twitter and Facebook to a new website. He said that Google treats all links equally, whether they’re from a.gov, .edu, Twitter, or Facebook.

Based on a study by Moz, having more people visit your website is linked to better engagement and higher rankings on search engines. Therefore, enhancing a site’s visibility and traffic can lead to improved performance in Google searches, no matter where the site’s traffic comes from.

I manage pages with 75K+ followers on social media with active websites on a regular basis.

Social media is an awesome way to get traffic to a page, which means you can get crawlers to ‘take notice’ of a page effectively (in my anecdotal experience).

This improves crawling and can help your content get ranked quicker, and can ‘justify’ a search engine like Google to ‘trial’ your fresh content with a higher search engine ranking.

In the medium to long term, it has no impact. Authority, crawlability, readability, mobile-friendliness and (maybe) how much people engage with your on-page content are the only likely and real ranking factors that you can optimize for.

Social media sites no-follow your links by default so you don’t gain authority from them, and you tend not to get traffic after a day or two of posting.

Social Media is A Search Engine

When most folks discuss improving search results, they’re usually talking about making things more Google-friendly. Other old-school search engines like Bing aren’t as popular. 

Yet, don’t forget about social media platforms like Facebook – they’re kind of like search engines too, and loads of people use them. Take Facebook, for example, with a whopping 2.9 billion people checking in every day.

Now, here’s the real question: Do people search for stuff on social media?

Retail Dive reports that Instagram is the most powerful social media platform for fashion. About 72% of users say they bought fashion items they saw promoted on the app.

Instagram was the top social media choice for people to buy fashion items directly, based on a survey from 2022. 66% of the people surveyed said they use the app for shopping. Facebook and YouTube were the next popular choices, with 43% of people saying they use them.

Surprisingly, when it comes to checking out brands, social media beats traditional search engines, especially for the 16 to 24 age group.

So, having a solid social media presence can steer new visitors to your website.

Social Media Pages Can Rank, But How?

Which results do you see first on Google when you search for a company’s name? Typically, the company’s website takes the top spot. But, don’t be surprised if you find the brand’s Facebook page or other social media pages nearby.

Sometimes, social media business pages can even show up for general keywords. Expect people to find your social media pages through search engines, so make sure they have the information searchers want.

Your social media posts can come in various forms, as long as they grab your audience’s attention. Here are some examples of content we love because it gets people interested and shared on social media:

• Blog posts
• Videos
• PR Releases
• Infographics
• Podcasts

But, if you don’t effectively spread your good content, it won’t have the impact you want. This is where social media comes in. When you share your posts, your audience boosts your content by sharing it more, leading to:

• Improve your brand awareness
• Build Backlinks
• Build authority
• Drive traffic

For example, when you search for Zara on Google, you’ll find its LinkedIn profile right at the top of the page:

The lesson here is that sharing info on social media is crucial for always grabbing your audience’s attention, getting more social shares, and boosting SEO.

Social Media Increases Brand Awareness and Reputation

People are more likely to click on your search engine listing if they know you and think positively about your brand. Social media can help with this. Having a presence on social media boosts brand awareness and makes you seem more genuine and trustworthy.

Social Media Helps You Learn About Your Audience

Connecting with your audience on social media can provide valuable insights. Identify which type of content gets the most likes and shares.

Pay attention to comments—what are people saying? This information can inform your SEO strategy.

For example, if many people are asking a specific question on Facebook, it’s probable that others are searching for it on Google. Capture their interest by creating an article about that topic on your site.

Social SEO Prepares You For The Future

Google’s way of ranking websites is always evolving. It’s possible that things like likes and shares on social media will matter more in the future. Social media is a big part of the internet today, and it’s getting bigger.

Over 3.6 billion people use social media right now, and it’s predicted to go up to around 4.41 billion by 2025. Google knows this, and we expect it to keep adjusting how it looks at social media.

We can’t say exactly how it will change, but making your social media presence stronger will help you be ready for any updates.

Top 10 Social SEO Strategies for 2024

Now that we’ve checked out how a successful social media SEO plan can help your brand’s online presence, let’s explore 10 social SEO strategies to use:

1. Fill Out Social Profiles Completely

Ensure all your business details are filled in on every social media platform you use. This is crucial for a few reasons.

First off, it offers the best experience for the user.

Remember, some people might come across your social media before finding your website or other info about you. They should easily find your phone number, a brief about your company, or a link to your website.

Second, some of this info might show up in search results. For instance, Google listings for Facebook pages can display business location, description, review ratings, page likes, and more. Check that none of this info is missing from your profile.

2. Go Beyond Facebook

Let’s be clear: Being on Facebook is a must. It’s still the most popular social media platform globally. However, other social networking sites and apps are gaining traction, and businesses are putting more into them.

As per the Hubspot Social Media Trends 2023 Report, 25% of marketers think that Facebook is one of the best platforms for building a community on social media.

TikTok is currently the top platform for engaging with your audience because of its highly entertaining content. Specifically, 4.25% of TikTok’s overall audience actively interacts with content through likes, comments, and shares. To give you an idea, as of 2023, Facebook’s engagement rate is only 0.15%.

3. Use Keywords

When creating your website, it’s a good idea to choose the right website address and use words that match the kind of business you have. This increases your chances of showing up in search results for specific questions.

As mentioned before, because search engines check social media accounts, it’s important to use words and phrases that relate to your industry and the people you want to reach in your social media posts.

Use Keywords In Your Business Description

On every popular social media site, there’s a part where you can explain who you are and what your business does. In this section, add one or two of your main words that matter.

This helps people find your social media page. It might even help them find you on Google.

Include Keywords In Your Posts 

A usual strategy for websites to do well in search engines is to center each piece of content around one or two keywords that you want it to rank for.

This also applies to social media posts.

Think about the group you are targeting and what they might type into the search field on Facebook (or Instagram) or Twitter. Make posts based on those words.

Besides the words you use for captions and tags, you can also include these words in these places:

1. Instagram: for pictures, descriptions for images, and captions or subtitles for videos.

2. Facebook: the name of your page, the ‘about’ section, descriptions for images, and video explanations.

3. YouTube: the name of your video file, the title of your post, explanations for your videos, and captions for your videos.

4. Pinterest: Section on pin descriptions and board titles.

Just beware of keyword stuffing. Make sure your final draft still reads smoothly. You don’t want to disrupt the reading experience.

4. Don’t Skip (or Overuse) Hashtags

Hashtags are a really helpful tool for social media marketers. They boost the visibility of your account and posts.

But, using a lot of hashtags isn’t always better. If you have a long list of hashtags in a social media post, it can look like spam and take away from your main message.

It’s better to use a few important hashtags for each piece of content you share. Think about what people might be searching for, similar to how you think about SEO keywords. Here are a few hashtag ideas:

Check Out What Your Competitors Are Doing

Take a look at the popular posts from your competitors or influencers in your field to find hashtag ideas. Evaluate the outcomes for each hashtag. Do the results match your brand’s image?

Explore The Most Widely Used Hashtags

Certain social media platforms, like Twitter, offer a list of commonly used hashtags.

If none of the trends align with your brand, don’t push it. However, if you can find a clever way to include a popular hashtag, it could attract many new visitors to your website.

Create Your Own Hashtag

You don’t have to use existing hashtags. You can come up with something new, like a hashtag connected only to your brand.

But, a unique hashtag won’t be useful if no one is interested in it. The best brand hashtags get social media users involved.

Take Red Bull’s #PutACanOnIt campaign, where people took pictures of Red Bull cans in different situations – a great example.

It increased brand awareness and got social media users to engage with the brand. Making your own hashtag could be a piece of a broader social media content plan.

5. Include High-Quality Images And Video

Some social media sites focus on videos, like TikTok, or pictures, like Instagram.

Yet, images and videos matter on other platforms too. They make your posts more interesting and noticeable.

Moreover, mostly users like images more than text, about 91% of them prefer it that way. 84% of people mention that watching promotional videos convinced them to purchase a product or service.

6. Engage with your audience

Social media is all about being social.

This means you should respond to questions and comments about your company and products on social media. Make posts that encourage your followers to join the conversation by sharing or retweeting your content.

Here are some advantages of interacting with your social media followers:

• You create a positive image of your company;
• You learn about what your audience likes and the issues they face;
• When you engage with them, they’re more likely to remember your brand.

7. Work with Influencers

So far, we’ve talked about how your personal social media profiles can improve SEO.

Social media influencers do the same. These accounts can increase brand awareness, make your company show up in searches, and bring visitors to your website.

Based on the Influencer Marketing Hub’s Influencer Marketing Benchmark Report 2023, it’s not surprising that almost 83% of the people we asked think influencer marketing works well. People generally feel positive about influencer marketing, and this report supports that sentiment.

Over 80% of the people we asked are thinking of dedicating a budget to influencer marketing in 2023. This is a big step up from last year when it was 77%.

If you haven’t started working with influencers yet, the first step is to find the right partners.

The best Instagram influencer isn’t always the most famous person – does Selena Gomez’s following really match yours? It’s someone whose audience is similar to your ideal customer, and whose usual content aligns with your brand message.

You can discover potential influencers by searching for hashtags or phrases related to your brand.

After identifying an influencer, make a pitch to collaborate. Before reaching out, take time to understand their content. What’s their usual style? Unboxing videos? Reviews with pictures?

Let them know what you like about their content and check if they’d be up for working on something similar for you.

8. Track Social Shares, And Boost The Most Popular Content

Keep an eye on how often people like and share your stuff—it gives you info for your SEO work.

Let’s say a Facebook post gets a bunch of likes. You can make more content about the same thing on your website. This can give you ideas for keywords in SEO (or PPC ads).

Share the popular post more on social media. More shares mean more people see your brand.

If the stuff shared on social media is from your site (like a blog post on LinkedIn), you know your target audience likes it. It might be a good idea to enhance the search engine optimization of that article.

9. Listen to Social Conversations

Checking social media conversations is another way to understand what your target audience thinks about you.

Basically, you keep an eye on what other social media users are saying about your company and industry. One way is to search social media networks for specific words and hashtags. 

Social listening tools, such as Hootsuite and TweetDeck, can also assist you in keeping track of brand mentions as they happen in real time.

10. Use Social Listening Tools

Also, you can use tools such as Hootsuite or Buzzsumo to discover topics that interest your intended audience.

This approach, like the previous one, boosts the likelihood of getting a lot of interaction with your social media post. Ultimately, your post is crafted based on what social media users are interested in.

These captivating pieces may result in respected websites linking to your relevant website content. They could also bring visitors to your website.

Final Thoughts

The teamwork of social media and search engine optimization can boost brand visibility, website traffic, and user engagement.

Today, we looked at some effective social SEO methods. These involve using relevant keywords, sharing top-notch content, connecting with industry experts, optimizing your social media profiles, and strategically using hashtags.

By using these methods, you’ll be on the right track to enjoying all the advantages of social media SEO. Good Luck!