Streets Ahead: Google Social Posts, Local Pack & AIO Results

In this week’s Streets Ahead update, SOCi discuss Google expanding social posts visibility in local search results and a new study that finds a correlation between local pack and AI Overview results.

Google Now Showcasing Social Posts More Prominently in Mobile Search

The News  If you haven’t already added your social media URLs to your Google Business Profile, now’s the time.

Google has begun featuring recent posts from linked social media accounts much more prominently in mobile Finder results. While some business profiles have shown social posts since early 2023, they were previously buried further down the SERP—typically below organic results.

Now, these “Social media updates” appear in a higher-value placement: directly beneath Review summaries and, when available, the Popular Times and About This Place sections. This shift suggests Google increasingly views social content as part of the customer experience, helping users get a feel for the brand before they even click.

We’ve seen up to 10 posts displayed in a carousel format, pulled from various social networks and ordered by recency.

Important note: To activate this feature, businesses must manually link their social profiles in the Business Profile dashboard. For multi-location and enterprise brands, Google has confirmed that the same social URL can be reused across multiple listings—even if localized profiles don’t exist for every location.

Why This Matters  Linked social profiles do more than boost local search visibility—they give potential customers a dynamic view of your business that can tip the scale in your favor. Brands that don’t take advantage risk falling behind, both in visibility and in engagement, as this feature becomes a new consumer expectation.

New Study Reveals Link Between Local Pack Rankings and Google AI Overview Visibility

The News  As questions continue to roll in about how businesses should optimize for Google’s AI Overviews, one principle remains constant: Be the best answer. While AI and traditional search use different algorithms, they often rely on the same foundational data—reviews, websites, citations—so top performers typically show up more often across both.

Now, a new study by William Furcolo of willdoseo.com puts numbers to the theory. By analyzing 1,000 restaurant-related queries, the research compared visibility in the Google Local Pack with appearances in Gemini’s AI-generated responses.
The most striking insight? A strong correlation between Local Pack presence and AI Overview visibility: Businesses ranked in the top 3 local positions had a 25.9% chance of being mentioned by Gemini.

However, that also means nearly 75% of top local performers didn’t show up in AI results—suggesting a notable divergence between the systems.

Even more intriguing was a U-shaped visibility pattern. Businesses ranked 4–6 had significantly lower AI inclusion than those ranked either higher (1–3) or lower (7–10). The statistical anomaly hints at deeper ranking mechanics driving AI responses—beyond straightforward local order.

In contrast, the correlation between organic search rankings and AI visibility was far weaker. Just 5.1% of businesses in the top three organic positions were included in Gemini results, with match rates remaining mostly flat across positions 1–10. This may reflect the local intent of restaurant searches, where AI prioritizes proximity and relevance over traditional SEO authority signals.

Why This Matters Platforms like Gemini are shifting focus from traditional SEO signals and Google Business Profile rankings to local relevance and contextual depth.

For marketers, this means AI isn’t just another search layer—it’s a new discovery channel altogether. Winning visibility now requires rethinking local strategy, strengthening relevance signals, and understanding how AI platforms interpret business information.