What impact does social media have on your SEO?

The factors in which influence SEO and help you to achieve high rankings have changed quite dramatically over the years and with the internet now being highly social, it has in fact changed search.

Can social media improve SEO?

SEO is centred on great content and authority, but since social media has exploded onto the scene many have debated whether ‘likes’, ‘retweets’ and ‘+1s’ from your social posts actually have an influence on your search rankings.

Does Facebook affect SEO?

Many SEOs have suggested that ‘likes’ do affect your rankings within the search engines and in a way they can do, but probably not in the way you’d expect it.

How many ‘likes’ you have isn’t a ranking factor within Googles algorithm, so it doesn’t have a direct effect but it does have an impact due to how easily you can share your content. If your post is ‘liked’ a lot, then more people are likely to see it, talk about it and possibly even link to it, which will then have a direct impact on your rankings.

Does Twitter affect SEO?

Similar to Facebook, Twitter allows you to be highly engaged with your followers. If you tweet great content, people are more likely to share it, boosting your brand awareness and encouraging links to your website.

A small group of followers is all you need to generate a lot of buzz about your content.

Does Google+ affect SEO?

The impact Google+ has on SEO is definitely more direct then with any other social media platform. If one of your followers enjoys one of your posts and clicks ‘+1’ then it will definitely have an impact on your search rankings and could increase your positioning within the search engine.

This is likely due to Google having full control and access to their own social network, which isn’t the case with Facebook and Twitter.  

Despite this, overall social media doesn’t have a huge effect on your SEO. However it can be a great tool to use to increase your traffic and engage with your potential and existing customers which in turn could help to make an impact on other SEO factors like link building and brand authority.