By Vishal Rajani 

The discoverability of social media has entered a new phase. Major search engines — including, most recently, Instagram, have begun indexing social content. Platforms that were once “walled gardens” are now powerful extensions of a brand’s searchable digital footprint. For businesses, this opens up new opportunities to reach high-intent audiences beyond their follower base.

Search is still where the strongest intent signals live. When social posts surface alongside traditional web results, every caption, keyword, hashtag, and even alt text becomes a potential search asset. This elevates the importance of deliberate content planning. This also means social media posts are almost functioning like micro-landing pages that contribute to long-term visibility.

The longevity of social media posts depends on how well a brand aligns its messaging with user intent, category trends, and platform-specific search patterns. If done right, these posts create compounding value that today’s businesses need to strengthen brand authority over time.

Curating The Right Strategies

Consumer discovery has transformed at a structural level. A Deloitte study found that 63% of Gen Z and 49% of millennials cite social media ads or reviews as the most influential factor in their purchases. In markets like India, nearly half of consumers research products on social media before buying. This is a signal that social media has become a primary engine of discovery, shaping buying behaviour more directly than many traditional touchpoints.

With social media content now appearing in search results, businesses can expand their reach and drive greater impact. It changes the game in three ways: 

From Fleeting To Enduring: Indexed posts contribute to long-term visibility, which means brands must invest in content that informs, engages, and holds value well beyond the moment it’s published. Consistency and depth now matter as much as creativity.

From Passive Reach To Intent-Driven Reach: When social posts appear at the precise moment a user is searching for solutions, the dynamic changes. This means more intent-driven users, higher chances of conversion, and the ability to build communities grounded in purpose and relevance.

From Storytelling To Strategy: Social media presence should be audited, optimised, and aligned with search behaviours — just like a website. Google’s evolving algorithms continue to prioritise user experience, visual appeal, and diverse content formats. Optimising social content aligns with these shifts, positioning it as a credible channel alongside traditional web pages in search.

The New Playbook For Brands

To succeed in this era, brands need to think beyond vanity metrics. Engagement alone isn’t enough; discoverability is the new KPI. Here’s how:

Audit Your Social Presence: Every post now represents your brand to a wider audience. Therefore, it is pivotal to review post archives: Which posts deliver value, and which dilute brand positioning? Refine your profile bio with clear keywords and updated links as it is now the storefront in Google results.

Build A True SEO Strategy For Social Media: Keywords matter. Captions, hashtags, and alt text must reflect real search intent. For short videos, where alt text isn’t available, add keywords in cover frames, subtitles, and descriptions. Treat your Instagram profile like a microsite that must rank.

Create Value-Driven, Evergreen Content: Research shows that 32 percent of global consumers now use social media for product research. In India, nearly half of the surveyed consumers research products on social media before buying. Tutorials, how-to guides, and product walkthroughs have a longer shelf life and will now surface in search repeatedly, driving continuous discovery.

Reframe Influencer Marketing: Influencer content now extends beyond followers. Indexed influencer posts can appear in Google search, multiplying impact. Brands should negotiate rights to repurpose influencer content across channels, ensuring sustained search visibility.

Lean Into Visual Storytelling: Each social media visual-first format, like Reels and Carousels, is a strategic lever for search performance. With tools like Google Search Console, brands can now track social URLs and optimise based on actual impressions and clicks.

Making Social Media The Competitive Edge

The integration of social platforms into search is a fundamental shift in how brands are discovered, evaluated and remembered. For early adopters, this is a chance to turn their social presence into a durable competitive advantage. For those who delay, the consequence is simple: reduced visibility in a landscape where attention is already scarce.

The real competitive moat will come from posting with intention, with the same discipline, keyword intelligence, and audience mapping we’ve traditionally reserved for websites and blogs. Most brands won’t make that shift until the impact becomes too obvious to ignore. By then, the early movers will already own the conversation. The time to act is now. We’re already seeing the impact in real campaigns, and the brands that adopt early will feel that momentum fastest.

(The author is the Founder & CEO of Synergos)