Good Karma Socials

Instagram has announced a significant update: public photos and videos from professional accounts will soon be indexed by search engines like Google. In other words, your Instagram content could start appearing in regular web search results, not just within the Instagram app.

For small businesses, this represents an exciting opportunity to increase visibility and reach new audiences outside the platform. If someone searches for “organic skincare in Wiltshire” or “b-corps in Bath,” your Instagram posts could now appear in those results, helping more people discover your brand organically. It’s essentially free SEO, and for local and independent businesses, that’s a real win.

What Are the Risks for Artists and Content Creators?

If you regularly share original artwork, photography or designs, this broader exposure can present challenges. With your content now more easily discoverable, it becomes more vulnerable to being saved, shared or reused without proper credit. Instagram doesn’t currently offer watermarking or licensing tools, so if protecting your intellectual property is a priority, this update requires careful consideration.

A key concern is whether content made publicly visible could be accessed by third parties, including those developing AI tools.

Could Your Content Be Used for AI Training?

This is a growing concern in the digital world. Currently, Instagram content indexed by search engines is not automatically protected from being scraped or used by AI developers.

• Meta (Instagram’s parent company) claims it does not use public Instagram content for training its generative AI models at this time, but terms of service are always subject to change.
• Once your content is visible on the open web via search engines, it becomes more accessible, not just to potential customers, but to anyone, including data scrapers.

If you’re an artist or creator sharing original work, this could increase the risk of your content being used in datasets or AI systems without consent.

What you can do to protect your content:

• Turn off indexing: Head to Settings > Account type and tools > Search engine visibility > Toggle off if you’d prefer not to allow your posts to be found through search engines.
• Use watermarks on your images to signal ownership.
• Include copyright language in captions to assert creative rights.
• Share lower-resolution versions of your work if high fidelity isn’t necessary.
• Monitor for unauthorised use and report it when found.

Want Your Content to Be Found? Optimise It for SEO

If you choose to enable indexing, here are a few easy ways to help your content show up in relevant search results:

• Use keyword-rich captions: Be clear and descriptive. Phrases like “eco-friendly candles handmade in Frome” are much more discoverable than vague or purely emotive text.
• Mention your location: This supports local SEO, especially for service-based businesses.
• Use relevant hashtags: While hashtags don’t directly impact Google search, they still add contextual value on Instagram.
• Add alt text: Instagram allows you to manually add alt text to describe your images. This helps both accessibility and search engines understand your content.

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At Good Karma Socials, we believe digital visibility should go hand in hand with ethical growth. Whether you’re a small business hoping to expand your reach or a creative looking to protect your work, this update is worth understanding. If SEO writing is new to you, you can learn more about the differences between Content and SEO Writing here.

Need help navigating your content strategy or adjusting your settings? Get in touch. We’re here to support you every step of the way.