Finally: A Way to Make Instagram Work Harder for Your Business
Google, meet Instagram. Instagram, meet Google.
The Marketing Brief
July 15, 2025 • Issue 2
The big thing
Instagram has begun allowing search engines to automatically display public photos and videos from professional accounts in search results, according to new in-app notifications.
Why it matters
Many small businesses, creators, and professionals rely on social media to grow their business, but in the past, that meant optimizing for search on other channels was not a priority. Let’s be honest, optimizing for multiple platforms often takes a team.
Now that Instagram can scan public profiles, it means that this content is more likely to show up in AI Overviews (AIO) and LLM searches.
And, if people don’t have to be logged in, that could also lead to new audiences finding your content.
The bottom line: If you have Instagram content, it can now be optimized for Google, the #1 discovery tool in the world (and grow your business!).
The details
Starting on July 10, 2025, Instagram content will be automatically available for indexing by search engines. This means that search engines like Google and Bing can read posts, images, and videos and connect them with searches. Then, displaying that content to everyone.
A change like this may be a long time coming. Social media is a highly accessible platform for many small businesses and personal brands. While a website can be costly and time-consuming to keep up with SEO trends, social is a much lighter lift for people.
If you have an Instagram account for your business, your content will be indexed, unless you opt out.
Here’s what I hope it looks like for you:
Posts about new products or services show up in relative Google searches
All the location targeting and hashtags give you a leg up with local SEO
Reels content will reach more people, getting your ideas further
If you start noticing this happening, please let me know. I’d love to report back to the group.
Action items
Do this week:
Start curating your content for a wider discovery, not just in-app engagement
If local, check that your bio and content include your location
Use intent-rich captions based on how AIO is showing search results today
Consider for next month:
Content planning: Stop “just posting” and think about it with search in mind.
Review images: Edit the ALT text on your best and most popular posts to include key phrases and business info
What's next
I hate to say this two issues in a row, but this is huge. This is an online marketing game-changer. The buzz around Instagram over the last year or so is that it hasn’t exactly been a key performer. It’s been lagging in reach, and your content doesn't show in front of people who WANT TO SEE IT. So, the ability for Google to send traffic to your content brings back the importance of posting, even if the vanity metrics don’t support you.
Do it. Post on Instagram – with intention!
Worth your time
This week: • AIPageReady.com - This checks one of your pages and how LLMs (Gemini, ChatGPT, etc.) read it so that you can see what needs to be fixed. You get at least one free preview, take a look!
The boys wanted me to scroll back in time, back to the beginning of Instagram. Oh my, what a different world we live in.
Everything, everything, had a vintage filter.
Photos were moody, weird, and had one line (at most).
Let me Instagram like it’s 2012.
Lyndee