Social & Video SEO
Ranking on YouTube, TikTok and Instagram — where search is moving.
Search is no longer only Google. A large share of younger users start product and how-to searches on YouTube, TikTok and Instagram — and those platforms rank content with their own algorithms, driven by watch time, engagement and on-platform text signals.
The mechanics differ from web SEO. On YouTube, titles, descriptions, chapters and transcripts are indexable text and retention decides distribution. On TikTok, the spoken words and on-screen captions get indexed, so saying your keyword out loud genuinely matters.
Increasingly this feeds back into Google itself, which surfaces video and social results directly in the SERP. Optimising for social and video search is no longer a separate channel — it is a second front door into the same demand.
Social & Video SEO guides
YouTube is a search engine, and its videos rank in Google too. How to research video keywords, optimise titles and descriptions, and earn rankings.
TikTok is now a search engine, and its clips surface in Google. How captions, on-screen text, keywords and audio drive discovery.
Search is no longer just Google. People search on YouTube, TikTok and Instagram too — and Google now indexes social. How to cover the whole surface.
Small channels don't beat big ones on broad topics — they win on specific searches. How to find low-competition video keywords real viewers type.
Frequently asked questions
Does YouTube SEO work like Google SEO?
Partly. Keywords in titles, descriptions and transcripts help YouTube understand the video, but distribution is driven by retention and engagement. A well-optimised video that loses viewers in the first thirty seconds will not rank.
Is TikTok really a search engine?
For a growing share of users, yes — especially for product research, recipes and how-to queries. TikTok indexes spoken words and on-screen text, so treat captions and the first spoken sentence as ranking surfaces.
Should I repurpose one video across platforms?
Yes, but re-cut per platform. The hook length, aspect ratio and caption style differ enough that a straight re-upload usually underperforms a version edited for that audience.