Welcome to the next part of our SEO for architects series (you can find part one and part two here). In this blog, we’ll be focusing on social media for architects and how it impacts their website’s SEO. You might be wondering: what does social media have to do with SEO? Well, quite a lot, actually.
Social media is a great way for architects to repurpose their content, expand their reach, improve their website traffic, and strengthen their branding: all factors that lead to higher engagement with your website and, therefore, higher rankings.
In this blog, you'll learn how your social media presence can impact your SEO, how you can use social media to improve your SEO rankings, and some of our tips for strengthening your social media presence. Let's get into it!
How social media improves SEO
Some people in the architecture industry underestimate the power and importance of social media in general, never mind as a tool to fuel your SEO rankings. So let's have a look at five key ways social media can positively impact SEO, along with some steps you can take to help maximize that impact.
1. Promoting blogs on social media gives them an SEO boost
Even though Google doesn't want to admit there's a connection between social media and rankings, we firmly believe there is, and a recent experiment by Hootsuite proves it. In this experiment, Hootsuite concluded that SEO articles with top shares on social media produced an average 22% increase in Google rankings for the duration of their investigation.
Think of it this way: if you spent hours putting your blood, sweat, and tears into a blog post - don't you want to expand its reach and show it to as many people as possible? By taking what you've written and repurposing it into bite-size social media posts, more people will click on the link to your blog from social media channels - increasing engagement, views, and most importantly, rankings.
Not sure how to promote your SEO content on social media? Don't worry, here are our pro tips:
- Write a strong caption that makes your followers want to read more. For example, you could summarize exciting points in your blog, invite followers to see the full story on your website or mention the invaluable lead magnet you have locked safely in the blog.
- Design a strong graphic for your post. Maybe you could use your blog's title and an engaging picture to draw your followers in or create an infographic with a summary of key talking points in your blog.
- Post at a time you know your followers are active. You can find this out by going into your social media analytics which you'll find in your social media profile settings (you must be logged into your business account, not your personal profile).
- Use a social media tool like Missing Lettr to automatically create repurposed posts and schedule them to go live at predetermined times. Many architects find this easier to do in their busy schedules than remembering to post on the fly.
2. Social media increases your chances of getting backlinks
Let's say you've hit the jackpot, and one of your SEO-friendly articles goes viral on social media. Since people are reposting the link to your blog on their social media platforms, you're automatically increasing your juice with Google.
Pro tip: Encourage your followers to share your post if they think others in their circle might find it interesting, this will help to expand your reach. Don't forget to support others in your industry by sharing their posts, they might be kind enough to return the favor.
3. Social media helps increase the time spent on your website, which boosts your SEO
Even though Google says it doesn't take social media engagement into account, it definitely looks at factors like the amount of time people spend on each page of your website, click-through rates, and how people engage with your website.
By driving traffic to your architecture firm's website via your social media channels, you'll undoubtedly see your overall website rankings improve because people are staying longer on your website to read your insightful articles.
4. Social media profiles show up in Google's search results.
A key objective of most SEO strategies is to build authority and trust within your industry by climbing the ranks and appearing for key search terms your target audience is typing in. In this social media-driven world, you'd be surprised by how much your prospects consider not only your website position but also your social media presence when deciding which architect to work with.
Having a solid social media presence offers more opportunities to show up in the results. For example, you can optimize your LinkedIn bio with the keywords like "architect in San Francisco" or create Pinterest boards with the latest architecture trends your prospects want to know more about. By optimizing your social media profiles to your audience’s interests, you'll expand your reach, appear more trustworthy to prospects, and ultimately build a connection with them.
5. Insight from social media helps you write content your audience will love
Think of your social media channels like a think tank for SEO content ideas. Maybe your followers ask similar questions about your architecture services or projects in the comments section or your DMs, or you notice they're following specific hashtags or accounts.
These can all provide insights into what your prospects are talking about, interested in, and want to know about your business - the perfect material for creating blog posts and lead magnets they'll find valuable. And the more relevant and useful your content is, the more engagement you'll have on your website and (you guessed it) the more your Google rankings will increase.
What social media platforms should architects use?
LinkedIn is one of the best choices for architects on social media. It's the perfect platform to showcase your industry expertise, authority, and professionalism while connecting with high-value prospects and decision-makers.
Don't forget to add relevant keywords your audience is searching for on Google into your LinkedIn bio and add them as hashtags to relevant posts to gain even more traction and boost that SEO content you worked so hard to create.
Instagram is fantastic for architects because it's very image-focused. It's a great place to humanize the people behind your brand, show behind-the-scenes work, establish your brand personality, and give your prospects a taste of the beautiful designs you create.
If you'd like to see an architect who is successfully using Instagram, check out Javier Fuentes' profile, where he regularly posts the stories behind his projects, amazing before and after shots, and his designs.
Tik Tok
If your architecture firm is new to social media, you might be wondering what platforms are most suitable and effective for architects. If you ask Adam Steiner, he'll tell you Tik Tok is most definitely one of them - yes, you heard us right, Tik Tok.
This may not seem like the obvious choice, but bear with us here: imagine short videos showing a home remodeling project before and after, or a sped-up process for building 3D designs, maybe even short client testimonials.
The age demographic active on Tik Tok isn't just 12-year-olds anymore; it's also affluent couples ready to build the home of their dreams, corporate leaders interested in architecture who use Tik Tok to unwind after work - the list goes on. Your audience is out there, and by creating content they like, you're increasing your brand awareness, strength, and SEO value.
Enhance your SEO skills in our free webinar
We hope after reading this blog, you've realized just how important developing a consistent social media presence is for boosting your website's position on Google, increasing authority, and ultimately, getting more leads.
If you'd like to learn more about SEO for architects, we invite you to take a look at our brand new SEO for Architects online training course where we give you the ultimate step by step guide and personal coaching to put your website in a great position online. If you'd like a taste of what to expect, you can also attend our free online masterclass where you'll learn:
- The 3 key steps to creating a system for high-value content which positions you and your firm as an authoritative resource for your ideal future clients.
- How to focus your content and social media marketing efforts to be more effective, and less time consuming.
- Which content to write about, share, and post to improve your website SEO, get found online, and engage visitors.