• by Daniella Corredor , January 25, 2024

The internet is haunted by the ghosts of search engines past -- AltaVista, Ask Jeeves, Excite, and Lycos come to mind. Yahoo became the early king of the search hill, and Microsoft made its play with Bing.  However, we all know who rules the sector. To Google has become synonymous with online searches, much as Coke did with soft drinks and Band-Aid with bandages.

As TikTok rises as a leading search engine, social SEO has become incredibly relevant for brands. Users are looking to social media for short-form entertainment. They’re also using the platforms’ search capabilities to uncover genuine testimonials to gain insight on what products are truly worth buying versus those they can live without.

While there are several social listening tools out there, all brands would benefit from a quick TikTok search of their brand name and product. They should be taking note of the type of content that tends to float to the top. Is the sentiment generally positive or negative? Are there common questions or concerns that consumers are posing that the brand should address head on? Having all this information at your fingertips puts you in the position of power to develop a strategy that uniquely fills these gaps.

Creators can work with brands to develop informative content that aligns with their messaging and incorporates their target keywords in captions, posts, and video descriptions, sharing that content across multiple social platforms, adding hashtags, and linking back to destinations such as the brand’s website.

Creators can also help sway search engine algorithms by generating engagement with their content -- comments, likes, shares -- and maintaining a consistent posting schedule. 

Brands and creators can encourage the development of user-generated content by fans and followers, resulting in authentic content featuring the brands’ products and services.

How to harness social SEO with content

• Ensure that video content matches product descriptions to avoid accusations of deceptive content or misinformation. 
• Create authentic, helpful content, such as how-tos and tutorials, bearing in mind that most people are not searching for a specific brand, but instead asking broad questions on how to do or find things. 
• Brands’ keyword strategies for their creator-led social content should match those for their website and other points of presence. 
• Use alt text, both to make visual content more accessible for impaired users, and to inform platforms’ algorithms on exactly what the content is. 
• Links should be included with content on platforms that facilitate sharing, such as LinkedIn, SlideShare, and YouTube. 
• When applicable, ensure that the brand’s business address is included in social profiles, for local search purposes. 
• Keep Pinterest in mind, as its users are more search-heavy than those of other platforms.

In conclusion, the rise of social SEO demands brands' attention. With platforms like TikTok, YouTube, and Instagram altering the search landscape, leveraging creators is key. Brands can optimize discoverability by aligning video content with keywords, fostering engagement, and influencing algorithms. This shift empowers brands to curate authentic user-generated content, reinforcing control over search results.