How Social Media Can Boost Your SEO Strategy

Social media is an excellent way to grow brand engagement. It is a free, powerful, and often underutilized tool that anyone can master. If you want visibility online, there is no better way to do it. That is why they work seamlessly with SEO strategies, especially for small businesses.

Probably the biggest question here is: which one is best? The answer to that depends on your business’s nature and goals. Regardless of which platform you use, the returns on interacting with your audience are sure to boost your business.

There is a lot to discuss, so get ready to take notes. Here we go!

Table of Contents

3 Ways Social Media Improves Your Content

Although social media is not always covered favorably by mainstream media, it has undeniable utility. It goes beyond connecting and catching up with friends and family. Apps such as Facebook and Twitter help people find businesses and places of interest.

So, how do you benefit from it? Using a platform to its fullest requires understanding its user base, so start by reviewing industry studies and statistics. For example, DataReportal’s Digital 2022 October Global Statshot collects data from different firms and companies.

This article has used relevant data from DataReportal to demonstrate how helpful the stats are. Below are three ways social media improves your content in more detail.

1. Greater Awareness and Visibility

For regular people, social media is a means to communicate with others. However, these apps function as directories for businesses where potential customers can find them. These platforms serve as extensions of your website where people can view and review your offerings.

The more active you are on social media, the better people perceive your brand. Responding to questions and comments shows that you care about your customers, making them think more highly of you.

That is not all, though, because social media users also actively increase brand awareness.

How? Through sharing.

Whether a viral moment or not, good interactions online catch people’s attention. When word spreads about your business, you can generate buzz that draws in new customers or encourages people to check out your products and services.

2. Get Natural Links to Your Website

When people write about you, talk about you, or post a video about you, there is a chance that someone listening to them becomes interested in your business. In other words, you passively convert people into customers through social media.

Connecting your website to your social media platforms also boosts your website’s SEO. More than that, it is beneficial when others link to your content. That is because social media drives organic traffic to your website through links, so more people sharing means more traffic.

According to DataReportal, 47.6% of people use apps to keep in touch, while 36.3% use them to fill in the time. When finding products, 76.1% of users did so through a social media platform.

There is always an opportunity for your business to come up in conversation or while browsing. You pass up on that chance by leaving social media out of your digital marketing strategy.

3. Another Way to Serve Customers

As mentioned, your business’s online profiles are another point of contact for potential customers. Increasing social media engagement benefits your business in many ways.

For example:

Customers volunteer to tell you what they want or need from your business like yours.
You accumulate rich keywords and content ideas from reviews and comments.
Leads are easier to convert into customers the more engaged they are with your brand.

By spreading your availability online, you can tap into more market segments you might not have considered previously.

Which Social Media Platform to Use and Why

According to Digital Authority Partners, social media is a great place to create partnerships. Influencers and online personalities hold sway over their audience’s decision-making, which can help drive customers toward or away from brands.

Before pursuing this tactic, determine which platform has your target audience and if an influencer captures the same market. Partnership or not, though, what is essential is that you connect directly with customers.

Fortunately, social media platforms make it easy to filter by demographics. For example, DataReportal says Facebook caters to middle-aged users, while millennials and young adults populate Instagram. For Gen Z, TikTok is the social media app of choice.

It is also possible to filter by age group or traffic. In the section below, you get a snapshot of what each platform has to offer as a service.

Facebook: The Largest Social Platform

Facebook has 2.91 billion users, making it the largest platform out there. It caters mainly to a more mature audience. It is most popular with women aged 35–44 and 45–54 and men aged 25–34 and 35–44.

Facebook is also one of the busiest social networks, with users spending an average of 19.6 hours per month on the platform.

YouTube: Where People Pass Time

YouTube comes in second, with a total of 2.56 billion users. Activity on this platform is higher compared with Facebook. Users spend over 4 hours longer per month on YouTube, at 23.7 hours.

That is not surprising since 92.7% of users say they watch videos at some point in the week, whereas only 54.2% use the internet to communicate with loved ones.

Instagram: The Home of Influencers

Instagram is the go-to app for young adults. It is most popular with female users aged 16–24 and 25–34 and male users aged 16–24. Although it is by no means the busiest, Instagram still earns a respectable 11.2 hours of average usage per month.

While its 1.48 billion user base is a far cry from the previous two, it holds the distinction of being synonymous with the term “influencer.”

TikTok: The Place for All Things Gen Z

In fourth place is TikTok, which joins the above entries in the billion-user club. Despite this relatively small audience, it still manages to match Facebook in terms of hours spent at 19.6 per month.

TikTok is popular with Gen Z users and is a fantastic platform for short-form videos meant to go viral. Dance challenges and educational videos are two of the best formats if you choose this app.

Twitter: Where News Travels Fast

Last in the top five is Twitter, with a modest 436 million user base. Although the number seems small, do not underestimate the impact of a tweet.

As the platform most synonymous with the concepts of “hashtag” and “trending,” one good tweet can send your business a lot of positive press.

Summing Up

A social media app is not just for leisure; it can work for businesses, too. When used alongside SEO, it can improve your website traffic and help you connect with your customers.

Find the best platform that fits your business, and get started today.