Ranking Instagram Content on Google Search | James Dooley & Jesper Nissen

James Dooley: How to rank Instagram URLs in Google search. Today I am joined with Jesper Nissen, who has been growing a large following using strategies for ranking different social media platforms. Today we are covering how to rank Instagram posts in Google. How do you do it? Jesper Nissen: Last year, Meta Platforms changed their indexing rules for Instagram. That is something you need to be aware of. If you post to Instagram, your profile will be crawled and, in most cases, it will also be indexed by Google without you needing to do anything. Jesper Nissen: Instagram posts can rank relatively well. They do not perform as strongly as Facebook or X, but they still rank well for long tail keywords, especially for local SEO. Jesper Nissen: What you need to do is have an Instagram account and start posting. When you publish a post from a browser, you can click into the post and grab the URL. That URL is what you send to an indexer. I use Prime Indexer, but any indexing tool works. You need to make sure Google crawls it quickly. Once indexed, it can appear in search within minutes or hours. Jesper Nissen: When it comes to content, you can write about your services, products, or brand. You can include links, but they are not clickable inside Instagram posts. That limits direct traffic, but the ranking value still exists. Jesper Nissen: The most important part is the first 7 to 12 words. That becomes the SEO title in Google. If you want to rank for a keyword, you must place it at the start of the caption. Once that is done, you publish and send it for indexing. James Dooley: Instagram is more visual. Does the image matter more than the text, or is it still the first 7 to 12 words doing most of the work? Jesper Nissen: That is a good question. We know that Google reads text inside images, so there may be value there. Personally, I always upload something relevant. I often use screenshots because they are quick. I save them as JPEG files and optimise them with metadata before uploading. Jesper Nissen: I have not tested blank images because I prefer to post useful content. But including readable text inside images could be beneficial for image rankings. James Dooley: That aligns with what we have been doing. We have been focused on improving online reputation. When we get five star reviews from Google Business Profile or Trustpilot, we turn those into branded images and post them on Instagram and LinkedIn. James Dooley: Then we also include the review text in the caption. What we have seen is that those images start ranking in Google Images. Previously, there was nothing there, but now the image results are filled with strong reviews and testimonials. James Dooley: Do you think that helps the Instagram post rank as well? Jesper Nissen: Yes. For image search, Instagram is one of the strongest platforms. That strategy makes sense. I mainly focus on organic search rankings, but for image SEO, that approach will definitely help. James Dooley: So for web search, it still comes back to the first 7 to 12 words, the post URL, and getting it indexed quickly? Jesper Nissen: Exactly. That is the core process. James Dooley: Do likes, comments, or engagement affect rankings? Jesper Nissen: No. Instagram is different from other platforms. I have very few followers and low engagement, but the posts still rank. So engagement does not seem to matter. James Dooley: Does account authority or follower count matter? Jesper Nissen: No. It does not matter. I have around 80 followers, and the posts still rank. James Dooley: That makes it simple. Anyone watching this can apply the strategy straight away. Jesper Nissen, if someone wants to reach out, where can they find you? Jesper Nissen: You can find me on X, Facebook, and LinkedIn, or on my website. James Dooley: Perfect. That wraps up how to rank Instagram posts in Google search.