As of December 2025, social media posts do not directly influence Google’s organic search rankings in Australia, but they contribute to a broader ‘web of relevance’ that can indirectly benefit SEO. This indirect influence stems from increased brand visibility, referral traffic, and the creation of brand signals that Google’s algorithms assess.

Currently, Google’s indexing primarily focuses on crawlable web pages. However, Google’s Knowledge Graph, now including more social entity data, uses information from platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and X (formerly Twitter) to understand entities – brands, people, places – and their relationships. In 2026, this understanding is expected to further refine search results, particularly for branded queries. Platforms like Facebook Business Suite and Meta Business Platform, widely used by Australian SMEs, allow for structured data markup (like Open Graph tags) which helps search engines understand content when shared. Google Business Profile integration with social media, common practice for local SEO in Australia, also strengthens this connection. While social signals aren’t a ranking *factor*, increased brand mentions and engagement on social media can lead to more backlinks and direct traffic, both established ranking signals. Google has announced in late 2025 that the SGE (Search Generative Experience) will increasingly incorporate information from multiple sources, including social media, in its AI-powered summaries.

Essentially, social media activity builds brand authority and drives traffic, which Google’s algorithms recognise as indicators of a valuable online presence, indirectly supporting SEO efforts.