Treat every post like it's part of your SEO strategy now—because it is. Use clear, keyword-friendly captions and alt text that aligns with how people actually search, not just trendy slang. Also, don't sleep on consistency—posting regularly on niche topics helps you own those search lanes. And keep your brand voice tight; if someone lands on an old post, it should still feel on-brand and relevant. Basically, assume everything's forever searchable—post accordingly.
Aside from the standard hashtags and caption keywords, I've been encouraging our team to think about Instagram not just as a megaphone out to IG community in real time, but as a retroactive, searchable brand footprint! So a few key things: 1 - Adding Alt text -- Of course important to help with accessibility, but it also gives Instagram more context to index your content and serve it via search with high match accuracy. Which then tells the learning models to keep doing that! 2 - Leverage comments -- We reply with keywords and overall brand in mind, not just a "thanks!" or emoji. As a bonus, by subtly guiding our community to use similar language, phrases, etc it ladders up our engagement from just social proof to valuable search context. 3 - Audit your content -- Once a post has played out socially, you can tweak the caption to be more search friendly or evergreen. This allows you to be socially native/organic in tone when posts are capturing reach on IG, but then reframe the post for longevity and searchability later on.
Now that posts can show up in search results and stick around longer, brands need to think beyond just likes and comments they need to treat every post like it's part of their long-term digital presence. My top tip for brands Be intentional with your captions and hashtags. Use clear, relevant keywords that your audience might actually search for just like you would on Google. Instead of writing just for engagement, think about how someone might find your post a month or a year from now. Also, avoid posting anything that could hurt your brand down the line. With content becoming more searchable and permanent, your tone, messaging, and visuals should consistently reflect your brand values. I always tell our clients Instagram isn't just a place to post photos anymore. It's a searchable, permanent part of your brand's presence, just like your website or blog. Future customers, partners, and even journalists might come across it, so it deserves the same level of attention and strategy."
Brands need to approach their Instagram posts more like evergreen content and less like short-lived social updates now that IG is indexing search results. Now, every caption, keyword, and even alt text can help others find your material outside of your followers. One of the best pieces of advice I give companies is to think of their Instagram biographies and post captions as searchable micro-content. Use simple, searchable language that shows what your audience is really looking for, not simply branded words or hashtags. Another big change is consistency. If someone finds your material through a search, they might not know your brand yet. Having a consistent look, pinned items that clearly show value, and a well-planned highlight strategy can help turn casual users into followers or buyers. Also, pay attention to your tone. A "disappearing moment" can now be indexed for months. Don't use language or content that is too reactive or that might not age well. As Instagram becomes more and more a part of your searchable brand history, you should take care of it like you do your blog or website. Now, every post is both a piece of content and a possible entry point. Make it count.
I love how Instagram keeps evolving. Just this summer Google quietly started indexing our posts—yes, even Reels, carousels, captions, bios and alt-text are being crawled and shown in search results. For brands, that means Instagram isn't just about in-app likes; it's now part of your permanent digital footprint. In other words, your feed can double as a mini-search portal. So what do we do with this? First, treat alt text like SEO. Instagram lets you add alt text on every image; do it, and make it descriptive and keyword-y. Instead of "photo of coffee," try something like "latte art from Sunny Day Cafe in Denver" - Google "sees" that detail, and it helps with accessibility too. Next, keep captions both you and search-friendly. Think of the first line as a headline. Instead of a random emoji or generic phrase, start with something someone might actually search for (but keep your tone). For example, "Weekend yoga poses - 3 moves to try" is catchy and searchable. That top sentence is basically your title tag now, and hashtags become bonus keywords to Google. I also audit my feed for evergreen content. Now that older posts can rank months later, I'll refresh those how-to carousels or product demos. Maybe I update a caption with clearer keywords or even pin a useful post - Google doesn't mind that it's a few months old. It's like turning Instagram into a little blog archive. Don't forget your profile! Your username, name field and bio are searchable too, so sprinkle in the key words that describe your brand. Treat it as a mini home page about you. And yes, hashtags are secret SEO tags now. I use specific, relevant ones - think #SeattleCoffeeLovers or #EcoSkincare - instead of broad tags. Google sees them as topic signals (skip #love or #happy). Pick hashtags that match your niche and location so the right audience finds you. This shift feels big, but it's really an opportunity. We're just weaving a few search-savvy habits into our creative routine. Keep it genuine - your brand voice is why people follow you. Now your content can be discovered by likes and by search.
Treat every post like it's evergreen. Use clear, relevant captions with searchable keywords, not just hashtags or trending phrases. Make your bio and highlights answer real search intent—who you are, what you offer, where you're based. And remember, posts can surface long after they're published, so clarity beats cleverness.
When Instagram indexing rolled out, one of the smartest things I did for a local service client was optimize their captions and alt text like I would for a blog post—intent-first. Most brands are still writing captions for engagement ("Check this out!") without thinking about how that post surfaces when someone searches "best pest control New Orleans" on Instagram. I tested this by posting similar photos with two different caption strategies across accounts—one with engagement-first language, the other written like a search snippet. The latter consistently ranked in top post results for our target queries, even weeks after posting. The trick is to treat every IG post like it could become someone's first impression of your brand six months from now. That means using local intent keywords naturally in your captions and alt text, making sure your handle and bio also reflect what you do, and keeping Stories Highlights organized and keyword-relevant. It's about what searchers find tomorrow.