2025 marks a period of major transformation for digital marketing, as the boundaries between SEO (Search Engine Optimization), SSO (Social Search Optimization) and SMO (Social Media Optimization) are blurring due to the joint effects of artificial intelligence (AI), conversational search engines and the rise of video content. If you want to fully understand this evolution and develop your social media strategy, this blog post offers a few practical tips 😉.
The transformation of social media, which has evolved from a simple personal communication tool to a key pillar in strengthening brand content online, has radically changed the way businesses interact with their target audience.
This evolution, driven by the rise of the Internet and smartphones, offers them instant connectivity and a wide range of features, enabling more direct and engaging interaction with their target audience.
What is SMO or social referencing?
Let us first define what SMO is.
SMO refers to the use of social media such as X, LinkedIn Facebook or Pinterest, to optimise online visibility, i.e. boosting the impact of a brand or a person on social platforms. It involves adopting strategies aimed at increasing engagement, creating quality content and efficiently using the features offered by social media.
The changing role of social media in natural referencing
The social platforms of 2025– namely TikTok, LinkedIn, YouTube Shorts, Threads, Instagram, Pinterest and X –have become powerful semantic and visual search tools. Just like on Google, users simply enter queries, and algorithms prioritise content that matches their search intent.
According to Reuters Institute’s Digital News Report 2024, social media is now the main way of finding information online, outperforming both search engines and media applications.
Brands must therefore ensure that their social media posts are optimised as rigorously as their web pages, from keywords to captions, metadata, contextual hashtags and consistency of tone.
The impact of GenAI on SEO and SMO
The integration of GenAI into search engines (via Google SGE – Search Generative Experience), Bing Copilot and ChatGPT Search) has deeply changed the way content is analysed and displayed. These tools now favour content that is contextually rich, reliable and contains strong signals such as quotes and social interactions.
SMO drives credibility. The more content is shared, commented on or used by opinion leaders, the more likely it is to be included in AI engine results. Brands must therefore produce content designed to be naturally reshared by generative engines.
Leveraging new platforms and formats
In 2025, the boundaries between search engines and social media progressively disappear. Social platforms are becoming spaces for organic discovery, where users are no longer consuming content, but actively searching for information, just as they would on Google.
This evolution thus unlocks new opportunities for brands, provided they adopt a ‘‘Search Everywhere’’ approach, i.e. optimising every piece of content, whatever the platform.
Here is an overview of the top four environments to focus on: TikTok Search, YouTube Shorts, LinkedIn Articles 2.0 & Newsletters and Instagram SEO.
TikTok Search
TikTok Search refers to TikTok’s built-in search feature, which allows users to enter keywords into the search bar (via the magnifying glass), explore results for videos, users, hashtags, sounds etc., and discover content that relates directly to their search intent.
TikTok no longer relies on a “For You” feed based on preferences and recommendations: users can now perform an active search to find specific content. TikTok Search’s role is thus becoming increasingly central in content discovery.
YouTube Shorts
YouTube Shorts is YouTube’s short video format (less than 60 seconds, in a 9:16 vertical format). Launched in 2021 to compete with TikTok, it has become a key pillar of the platform’s content strategy.
Nowadays, more than 2.5 billion monthly users watch Shorts on a monthly basis; YouTube claims that more than 70% of active creators use this format in their overall content strategy, and 55% daily active users now interact with Shorts. This feature has undeniably become a core element of the YouTube Experience.
LinkedIn Articles and Newsletter
Both formats benefit from improved indexing on Google, with a high authority score. It is therefore in the brands’ best interest to publish content regularly on this platform and focus on their optimisation.
SEO & Instagram: entering a new social visibility era
Since July 2025, Meta has been more flexible with its policy: public posts from Instagram business accounts, including photos, videos, and Reels, can now be indexed on Google, as long as the account is public, business-related, and managed by an adult user. This change applies retroactively to all content posted since 2020 and turns Instagram into a truly SEO-friendly platform– provided certain best practices are followed.
This change offers brands a great opportunity to generate organic traffic directly from their social media posts.
Social SEO or SSO: the new face of social referencing
SSO consists in optimising content to ensure it can be found both on external search engines and social platforms.
To do so, you need to:
- Incorporate keywords into captions, subtitles and descriptions,
- Add automated subtitles to improve accessibility,
- Pay attention to the main artwork, as search AI can now read texts within images.
Therefore, Social SEO enhances a brand’s “discoverability”, i.e, its ability of content to stand out and be easily found online, even by internet users who were not specifically looking for it. This specific criterion is now integrated into AI search engines’ indexing algorithms.
5 tips to boost your online visibility
1- Choose your social media with an ‘‘ecosystem’’ approach
As Facebook, X, Instagram and LinkedIn offer different opportunities in terms of features and audience, choosing the social platforms that best suit your target audience and business objectives is the most crucial step.
–> Identify your target
Conducting a thorough analysis of your target audience’s demographics, interests and online behaviour will therefore help you choose the most relevant platforms.
You also need to check whether the selected social media are aligned with your business objectives– keep in mind that each social platform is different and not all will suit every content strategy.
2- Optimise your profiles for visual search
Let us remember that your social media profile is your digital business card: you must make sure it contains a professional profile picture, a clear description of your business or brand, as well as a direct link to your website.
In 2025, online search is no longer limited to entering a keyword into Google. Users can also use their voice, an image or a conversation with an AI tool such as Google SGE, ChatGPT or Perplexity.
Brands must therefore adapt their profile to these new multimodal search methods by:
- Using descriptive profile and cover images, with readable text containing the brand’s name, a tagline and a keyword.
- Using natural and conversational keywords in their bios and descriptions.
- Adding contextualised links, such as a clickable link to their website, newsletter or key resources.
- Keeping their information (opening hours, location, contact details) up to date, as conversational AI favours reliable and recent sources.
Your profiles can become optimised entry points in AI searches and Google’s enriched results, which can help you boost your visibility without making you rely only on your website.
3- Create interesting content
When you want to share your content on social media, the first question that should come to mind is: “What would best interest my followers?”.
We advise you to regularly post noteworthy content, such as videos, images and articles related to your area of expertise.
You thus need to promote sharing and interaction by asking your followers stimulating questions. The more interesting your content is, the more likely it is to be shared and noticed by search engines.
–> Pay extra attention to your visual content
Visual content does not only capture the audience’s attention: it also facilitates engagement and sharing on social media. If you incorporate visually appealing elements such as images, infographics, and videos, your efforts will quickly pay off.
Moreover, user-generated content (UGC) is a major driver of trust. Authentic testimonials and collaborations can thus significantly improve your organic visibility.
4- Interact in a conversational way
Algorithms value authentic and rapid exchanges. You can absolutely use conversational AI tools, but you need to maintain a human approach in interactions, as automated responses and generic comments can now be sanctioned.
You can also turn interactions into content opportunities. For example, a comment that appears several times under certain posts can easily be turned into a brand-new post.
- Do not neglect cross-promotion between platforms!
In 2025, siloed strategies no longer work; pieces of content must ‘‘talk’’ to each other. You thus need to connect your social media accounts, newsletters, and web pages to create a coherent digital network. Furthermore, each social media post should be linked to SEO content, and each article should be linked to the corresponding social media profiles.
For instance, each blog post should include links to related LinkedIn posts or YouTube videos. TikTok or Shorts videos should be linked to detailed resources such as guides, white papers, and articles. A newsletter should include links to the brand’s website and social media channels to boost traffic.
These interconnections create a network of trust so that search engines can now recognise the consistency between the different channels and see your brand as a reliable source.
The goal is no longer to achieve a top-ranking position on a single social platform, but to build an integrated digital ecosystem where each piece of content feeds into the next.
3 complementary pieces of advice
1- Define relevant hashtags
The use of hashtags is becoming increasingly complex given the constant changes to the algorithms of different social media. We still recommend using a couple in your posts.
2- Work with influencers
Influencers have considerable power over social media. By collaborating with them, you will be able to reach a wider audience and benefit from their credibility and engagement. We advise you to identify relevant influencers in your area of expertise and explore partnership opportunities that can benefit your online presence.
To learn more, read our comprehensive blog post regarding this topic 😉.
3- Measure your performances
If you truly want to understand what works (and what does not) on social media, measurement is key. To do so, you can use analytics tools to measure the performance of your posts, your audience engagement rate, and emerging trends. By fully understanding this data, you will be able to adjust your strategy and boost your online impact.
–> Using AI for analysis and performance
In 2025, performance analysis is currently based on predictive tools. Platforms such as Hootsuite, Metricool, SEMrush and HubSpot provide automated recommendations on the most appropriate times to publish, high-potential topics and the most interesting formats.
When digital marketing becomes sustainable and ethical
As AI engines incorporate ethical reputation into their ranking criteria, users now expect brands to be responsible and as transparent as possible regarding their processes. After all, a website reported for plagiarism, misinformation or misuse of data will suffer from reduced visibility.
If you intend to implement a sustainable strategy, you then must prioritise accessible and inclusive content, avoid misleading titles, and communicate clearly about your use of AI. It is no secret that responsible brands will be viewed more positively by the public and tend to rank better online.
Towards an integrated and conversational strategy
In 2025, online success no longer depends only on SEO or SMO, but on their intelligent integration with AI and conversation. Successful brands publish human content, adapt to conversational engines and attune their messages across all their digital channels.
In today’s digital world, active engagement, creating quality content, and optimising one’s profiles are key to success. Thanks to these tips, you will be able to boost your online visibility through social media in next to no time 😊.
Keen on increasing your online visibility and making better use of your social media channels? Our team of experts is here to guide and advise you at every stage of your project 😉.
Contact us now at hello@onechocolate.fr and visit our blog, where you will find practical tips on mastering the finer points of Press Relations, exclusive interviews with major players in the media and tech sectors, and analyses of the digital trends that shape our industry.
By Camille Clanché