The news: Social media pulled ahead of search as the main traffic driver for small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs), reflecting a broader move in how buyers discover brands.

• 64% of SMBs cite social as their No. 1 traffic source, topping organic search at 52%, per WordStream by LocaliQ. 
• 35% of businesses without a website say social and marketplaces generate enough leads on their own. 

With limited budgets, no marketing teams, and often no websites, many entrepreneurs default to platforms like Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook as their key channels for discovery. 

Zooming out: SMBs are embracing social platforms as a remedy for increasing volatility from genAI search updates. The rise of AI summaries adds another twist: Competitors appear in automated overviews, a leading frustration for SMBs.

• 29% of brand marketers say Instagram leads creator marketing ROI, followed by TikTok at 27%. 
• Facebook (18%) and YouTube (17%) round out the top tier—showing that the same platforms delivering ROI for brands now anchor SMB discovery, per CreatorIQ.

Among Gen Zers and millennials worldwide, 51% cite social networks as the top place to research brands and products, overtaking traditional search engines at 48%, per GWI.

The challenge: As SMBs lean more heavily on social channels, they face an increasingly unstable landscape marked by algorithm dependence, rising pay-to-play pressures, and fragmented analytics across platforms.

And although social reduces dependence on Google’s search volatility, it introduces its own: fluctuating engagement, opaque recommendation systems, and escalating competition for attention in crowded platforms.

What this means for brands: The emergence of social over search boosts signals across high-ROI platforms but also intensifies competition in high-engagement places.

Brands looking to reach SMBs should prioritize Instagram and TikTok, where engagement and creator ROI lead. Short-form, tutorial-style content that tackles real SMB pain points performs best on these platforms, especially when delivered through creators trusted within the small-business community.

SMBs should double down on social strategies as their primary discovery engine while strengthening content so AI summaries surface their brands before competitors’.