Emilia Andrews • July 10, 2025

Instagram Joins the Open Web — It's a Game Changer for Small Business SEO

On July 10, 2025, Instagram officially transformed from a siloed social world into a search-discoverable powerhouse. Google and Bing are now indexing public posts, Reels, carousels, and videos from eligible Instagram accounts.

"This isn’t “social” anymore. It’s part of the SEO ecosystem. And as a small business marketing expert, let me explain why that’s huge." ~ Emilia Andrews

1. The Walls Are Down

Instagram has long protected its content behind no-index rules—limiting discovery to within its app.

But that all changed with Meta's announcement:

Starting July 10, public professional (business or creator) accounts with users 18+ will have their posts, videos, Reels and carousels visible in search engine results.
That means someone searching Google for "Indian restaurant Raleigh" or “wedding florist Cherry Hill” might land on your beautifully styled carousel—straight from Instagram.

2. Why This Matters for Small Business SEO

• A New Channel for Organic Visibility

Instead of relying solely on your website or ad budget, your Instagram becomes a search asset. Someone Googling a product or service and finding you on IG? That’s organic marketing gold without extra spend. Use the keywords we provide to you during your local marketing onboarding and you're connecting even more dots - directly back to your business.

• Social Content is SEO Content

Google increasingly favors visual-first, engaging content formats—like Reels. If your content visually answers a search query (“how to start a new business," "how to lace wedding shoes,” “DIY candle packaging”), it could outrank standard blog posts.

• Search and Social Converge

Consumers already treat Instagram and TikTok as “search engines”. Now Google is catching up, meaning your visual-first IG content can sit right next to website results.

3. Who’s Included—and Who Isn’t

This indexing only applies to:

Professional accounts (Business or Creator)
Users 18+ years of age
Profiles set to public
Content posted after July 10, 2025
Users can opt out manually

Excluded:

Personal or private accounts
Users under 18

4. What This Means for Your Small Business Strategy

✨ Captions = SEO Copy

Your IG captions now wear two hats: engagement and search-friendly messaging. Think beyond aesthetics and into keywords, semantic structure, and real context.

#️ Hashtags Are Now Keyword Signals

Hashtags like #organicsoap, #AustinBakery, or #weddingflorist help Google label your content. They’re not fluff—they give your IG post more relevance in search engines.

🏷️ Alt Text Matters

Alt text was already part of Instagram’s accessibility tools. Now, it’s part of your SEO toolkit. Use descriptive, keyword-rich phrasing.

🎥 Subtitles in Reels

Reels with on-screen text are now indexable. Plus, they work for users who watch without sound. It’s smart for both SEO and accessibility.

📱 Profile Optimization

Your IG bio gets SEO love now. Include who-you-are and what-you-do. Think of your bio as a tiny but powerful homepage, now searchable via Google.

5. The Risk of “Context Collapse”

Once indexed, your IG content lives on the open web. A quirky “Behind The Scenes” snapshot might look odd to a new customer via Google. Mitigate this by auditing your content—archive or delete anything unpolished.

More refined small businesses know how to separate business from personal. In some instances, it makes sense to include perhaps your family, hobbies, etc. But for most businesses - it's best to keep it separate.

For example, if you're a small, local dentist or orthodontist who's actively trying to add on more patients, it makes sense to include smiling images of your children on occasion. It shows your one with the community, sharing more about you personally so they can build a better "social bond" with you. But it won't help your business growth efforts if you confuse your followers. You wouldn't share family reunion photos on a oral care page.

6. Rapid Turnkey SEO Checklist

ACTION -> WHY IT MATTERS

Switch to a Professional account -> Unlock indexing and analytics
Keep your profile public & over 18 -> Required criteria
Audit your past posts -> Ensure public content aligns with your brand
Write keyword-rich captions -> Promote search visibility
Use 5–10 niche hashtags -> Provide context signals
Add descriptive alt text -> Enhance image search discovery
Include subtitles in Reels -> For SEO and accessibility
Optimize your IG bio -> Improve brand discoverability
Regularly monitor Google Search -> Use site:instagram.com/yourhandle
Consider backlinks -> Link from your blog or newsletter to key posts
Track traffic -> Use Google Search Console + IG analytics

7. Small Biz Champion Spotlight

Imagine Mia, who runs a boutique skin care biz in Philly and sells her products online. Her Reels on “lavender body butter" start ranking on Google. Organic traffic to her IG profile doubles. She optimized her captions, hashtags, alt text and kept Reels subtitles on point.

Now Google’s sending her fresh leads via Instagram-first discovery.

And, I can't stress this enough --- ADD A LINK TO YOUR BIO.

Make sure it goes to where YOU want it to go. Update it ASAP.

Even larger brands are taking the "small business marketing approach". Why? They want to connect! People do business with people they know and like.

Your national brand has local stores to help connect local buyers with their products. For example, the local T-Mobile store offers all the bells and whistles of a major brand - but it's the local service staff that help you out. You remember this and will keep going back when you had a good customer service experience.

Now, take that great experience on social media. You're sharing this to an online community who can and will convert to become the buyers your business desires.

A focused, creative approach that's authentic and true to you and your brand is social media gold!

8. Embrace the Compound Effect

Unlike Stories, indexed Instagram content has shelf life. Your content can keep bringing in traffic months or even years later—like evergreen blog posts.

🎯 Post today. Rank tomorrow. Keep climbing. 📈

Use your blogs and generate posts from them. Just keep pointing your followers back to your website, content, etc.

9. Final Call to Arms - Let's GOOOOO

Social and SEO have merged—and it’s happening right now.

If you treat your IG as part of an integrated marketing strategy, not a separate silo, you’re stepping into the future of effective small business marketing.