Social media is an important part of a company’s marketing mix. Engaging with customers on a regular basis not only adds brand value, but it can also have direct impact on Search Engine Optimisation (SEO). Hiring an SEO agency is important, but when you select a company to handle your SEO activities, make sure that they are on top of social media promotions as well. These are an integral part of digital marketing strategy.
According to a study conducted by SEO Moz, any post on Twitter that gets re-tweeted three or more times gets indexed on Google Search 50% faster. So social media has a positive impact on SEO and hiring an SEO agency that can handle both SEO and SMO can be a great way to increase the ranking of your brand’s website.
Social media helps SEO initiatives by helping your brand build credibility. Social media profiles on many social media platforms can help increase recognition and trust. Mini profiles for your brand can also easily communicate your brand values on social media pages. Social media also opens the door to use influencers that can create a buzz for your brand. Although several celebrities can tweet a recommendation for free, you can also hire a celebrity to provide an endorsement for your brand. This in turn will get your content viewed by thousands of fans that are following the celebrity which will significantly increase your ranking on Google. As a result when embarking on a campaign with an SEO agency, it’s important not to forget the impact of social media on SEO.

The Domino Effect!
From the early days of SEO strategy in building websites, SEO agencies have known that individuals reading and linking to content had a “domino effect” bringing in more people to the site to read and respond to the content. As a result it is imperative to have link building as part of any SEO strategy. Social media becomes important again at this juncture as it is the easiest and fastest way to share links while adding value to your SEO ranking.
When setting up a social media page for your brand there are important things to consider, so ask your SEO agency to handle it for you. When setting up your profile page, it is important to have prudently selected keywords on the social media page. This will ensure that when the customer searches for you on Facebook or Google, your Facebook profile page will come up first in the search results.

Keep your Page Fresh
Whenever a company shares content on social media platforms like Facebook or Twitter, the company website will receive a ping which is an indication that the website is updated and relevant. As a result the website will also fare a lot better when it comes to search results and in turn have increased traffic over a period of time. Further, adding a blog to your company website will also help with your SEO targets. However it is important to update blogs on your website regularly to keep it fresh and relevant.

Managing your SEO and social media activities can help develop your brand’s local footprint. Google recently gave importance to social media platforms like Foursquare, Urban Spoon, and Yelp with their latest Google Pigeon update. By having an established presence on these sites, you can increase traffic at your retail locations. Further, positive reviews on these social media platforms increases your rank on Google.So it is easy to see the importance of handling both social media activities along with your SEO initiatives.

A SEO agency can also help you understand your search metrics in your social networks. Social media sites like Twitter and Facebook allow you to ascertain what content is popular and what just doesn’t work. By being aware of what works on social media platforms, you can ensure that your content is shared by many, increasing your visibility and SEO ranking.
So at the next meeting when you discuss social media campaigns, don’t forget about SEO and vice versa. Combing both SEO activities with social media campaigns can ensure that your ranking increases organically and has the best visibility online. Positive social media campaigns will ensure positive SEO ranking on Google, so it’s important for your company and the SEO agency to manage both effectively.

By Kar

Dr. Kar works in the interface of digital transformation and data science. Professionally a professor in one of the top B-Schools of Asia and an alumni of XLRI, he has extensive experience in teaching, training, consultancy and research in reputed institutes. He is a regular contributor of Business Fundas and a frequent author in research platforms. He is widely cited as a researcher. Note: The articles authored in this blog are his personal views and does not reflect that of his affiliations.