Meanwhile, AI Search Results Are a Mess Google's Search team recently weighed in on the "GEO" conversation—that's Generative Engine Optimization, for those keeping score on marketing acronyms. Their advice? Stop chunking your content into bite-sized pieces for LLMs. Fair enough. But that guidance sidesteps a much bigger problem—and doesn't offer businesses much to work with. Here's the good news Unlike a year ago, you're not flying blind anymore. The tools to measure AI visib

I'm reviewing Q1 budget proposals from marketing leaders right now, and I keep seeing the same pattern: they're still funding SEO like AI discovery isn't fundamentally changing how buyers find information. Here's what I'm seeing in the data: Organic traffic patterns are becoming less predictable for many businesses AI Overviews are appearing in search results Zero-click searches are increasing And the traffic drops your team is attributing to seasonality? I think many of thos

Adobe announced they're acquiring Semrush for $1.9 billion. If you're using Semrush daily for keyword research, site audits, or competitive intel, you need to understand what typically happens when enterprise software giants acquire the nimble tools you rely on—not because of fear-mongering, but because there are predictable patterns here. Cut Through The Noise The official line is that this deal is about "brand visibility in an agentic AI era." Adobe's president warns that b

I had a VP of Marketing ask me last week if they should "pivot away from evergreen content" because of what's happening with AI search. I asked her three questions: How much of your traffic comes from informational search queries? Could someone get the same answer from five different sources? Does Google distribution drive conversions, or just vanity metrics? She paused. "I... don't actually know those numbers." That's the problem. Everyone's panicking about publishers losing

Are You Still Optimizing For 2023? The Invisibility Problem Here's what's driving marketers crazy right now: your SEO metrics look great on paper. Position 3 for a high-volume keyword. Rankings holding steady. CTR... wait, what happened to CTR? Oh right. The searcher got their answer in an AI-generated box before they ever scrolled down to where your listing lives. Your content might be informing that AI Overview. Your site might be the source. But if the user gets their answ

I got a call last week from a contractor who'd been in business for 15 years. Great reputation. Solid work. Loyal customers who referred him constantly. But his phone wasn't ringing like it used to. "I don't get it," he said. "Our reviews are great. Everyone says we do excellent work. Why aren't we getting calls?" So I did what I always do. I pulled out my phone and searched "eco-friendly contractor [his city]." His business? Nowhere. Not in the map pack. Not on page one. Not

Let me be blunt: if you think SEO is still simple and easy, you're living in 2010. The search landscape has fundamentally transformed into something far more complex and challenging than most marketers realize. Gone are the days when ranking in first position guaranteed the most traffic. Today's search engine results pages (SERPs) are complex ecosystems featuring over 40 different elements competing for user attention—and now, AI-powered answer engines are reshaping how peopl

How Your Business Should Be Using Technical SEO One of the most effective ways to increase organic search traffic for your business is...