Since the 10th of July 2025, any public Instagram post, reel or video from a professional account now has the potential to be visible in Google and Bing search engine results. As a result, the relationship between social media content and search engine indexing will change. Instagram has made this change to increase discoverability, and to compete with other social media platforms, such as Facebook and LinkedIn, that are already indexed by search engines.
Instagram posts that you previously needed an account to see can now appear in search results; however, if you want to interact with these posts, you will still require an Instagram account.
Any content that was posted prior to January 1st, 2020, will be exempt, and users can prevent their content from showing in search engines by:
- Changing their account from professional to personal
- Disabling indexing through privacy settings.
Check here for Instagram’s guide on how to opt out of appearing in search results.
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What does this mean for digital marketing?
Social media strategy is a crucial part of digital marketing, and now that Instagram posts will have visibility on search engine result pages (SERPs), this will allow more people to see these posts outside of Instagram.
Social media content is often seen as a tool for brand awareness rather than a conversion-driven strategy. With social media updates being visible in search results, it could prompt social media managers to make changes to their marketing plans. Social media posts may become more informative and appeal to a wider audience that can be accessed via search engines. There will also be more competition between social media content from Instagram and traditional web pages. Using keywords in social media posts may help this, as well as incorporating content in SEO and
When tracking data related to search results, marketers now need to use both search engine analytics and social media metrics. This includes tools such as Google Analytics and Bing Webmaster Tools, as well as engagement data from social platforms. These insights help to better understand search intent.
Content agencies planning social media strategies must now consider both engagement and search intent. They should ensure posts are optimised for search engines. This means including alt text, using relevant keywords, and choosing hashtags carefully.
One challenge is striking a balance between keyword use and the right tone of voice. Social media content must be tailored to the target audience and the platform, while also being search-friendly.
How we can help
As a full service strategic digital agency, we offer SEO, social media and content marketing services to businesses wanting to improve their presence online. With 16 years of expertise in all of these areas, we have the resources and knowledge to create social media content strategies optimised for the best chance of appearing in search engine results. We also stay on top of social media channel changes and make sure we adjust strategies accordingly.
If you would like to chat about how we can help you improve your social media content strategy, please contact us.
