It is clear the days of spending hours, even days, updating your website copy so it performs better are over.  Yes – it remains important to aim for a high-ranking website on Google, but there’s a more important friend in town we should all be entertaining. 

The power of social media is nothing new…but it’s the way consumers are using social channels that is causing a raucous in advertiser boardrooms nationwide. The new term that is keeping CEO’s and Marketing Directors awake at night: social is the new search! 

Blowing previous communications strategies out of the water, marketing teams and brands alike are now madly re-thinking their previously fail-safe promotional plans - factoring in social channels but from a search point of view…not just as an engagement tool.

Gen Z: The driving force behind this shift

Nearly 50% of Gen Z consumers prefer using TikTok and Instagram to search over Google and we predict this year that this will grow across all the key demographics. 

77% of internet users use social media to find more information on a brand or service they are interested in, which is staggering and we see this trend becoming more and more prevalent throughout millennials, not just Gen-Z consumers. In fact, we are advising businesses to deprioritise SEO as a result.

It doesn’t stop there, social media has become the sole destination for inspiration, tips and tricks on everything far and wide, recommendations for restaurants and books, you name it!

Here are Andrew's top tips to ensure discoverability.

See Where You Land

Type your name into social and see where you are faring.  Are you above or below your competitors?  Are you performing better for different search terms compared with Google.  It’s worth getting the balance right as the more time consumers spend engaging with your content, the more traffic will come to your brand, and then the domino effect begins.

Find Your Niche

Focus on how a piece of content performs on social rather than SEO. For example, if your brand’s niche is restaurants in Bali, then a good tip is to search ‘Bali restaurants’ and see where you end up in the rankings. By benchmarking and creating content specifically designed for a niche, you can see how you can get to the number one spot. And if you are already at number one, then it’s about how to maintain pole position.

Use the Right Tools

​​​​​​​Ahead of a campaign, make sure you have all the tools at your disposal to measure and adjust. This may sound simple but this is where getting an agency to help will definitely be beneficial, as they should have access to some systems you may not. .

Search Influencers

The trick is in the name as influencers definitely can ‘influence’ purchase behaviour. For brands to enhance their likelihood of being discoverable on social media, it’s important to consider collaborating with an influencer that has a loyal following and will represent the brand well. Find the right influencers (not necessarily the biggest)  for your business and start capitalising and growing a loyal fanbase.

Make The Move

Capitalise on two-way communication by harnessing the power of social...rather than the one-way comms you previously had by using SEO rankings.  Once you are discoverable, it’s about maintaining longevity and continuously interacting with your community.  In fact, 71% of consumers who have had a positive experience with a brand on social media are more likely to recommend a brand to others.

With the shift in social media becoming the main search engine for consumers, here at KOMI, we have noticed this change and have applied it to our own brands that are discovered every day by over 100 million and view us two billion times a month.

By noticing the importance that social has on a brand’s performance, businesses can capitalise on the opportunities social media presents and throw away the SEO marketing rule book and focus intently on social media usage. Let’s make social the star of the show, as it clearly is!