Voices of Search // A Search Engine Optimization (SEO) & Content Marketing Podcast

Will AI search optimization overtake traditional SEO? Dale Bertrand, President of Fire&Spark, challenges this notion with a customer-first approach to content strategy. He argues that successful SEO requires building genuine audience communities rather than simply creating "useful" content without search engine considerations. Bertrand emphasizes that SEO professionals must embrace the end of...

In AI search, traditional SEO tactics are no longer sufficient. Dale Bertrand, President of Fire&Spark, explains how SEO professionals must shift from technical optimization to marketing fundamentals. He advocates for understanding customer behavior through direct conversations rather than relying solely on analytics, developing interactive tools that force website visits, and training AI agen...

When SEO budgets are tight, resource allocation becomes critical. Jade Pruett, founder of Hello SEO, shares insights on balancing investments between AI content tools and human editorial resources. She emphasizes the importance of prioritizing technical SEO fundamentals before content quality upgrades, highlighting how even luxury brands can fail when basic technical elements like robots.txt confi...

AI search evolution demands new tracking and research tools. Jade Pruett, founder of Hello SEO, predicts increased AI adaptation and specialized tools emerging through year-end. She advocates for LLM webmaster tools and more nuanced keyword research capabilities, with Bing potentially gaining competitive advantage by being first to market with these features. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.co...

Is using AI to generate meta descriptions at scale effective? Jade Pruett, founder of Hello SEO, weighs in on this emerging practice. She recommends providing keywords and references when using AI for meta description generation rather than using generic prompts. Both Pruett and host Tyson Stockton agree this represents a low-risk entry point for organizations hesitant about implementing AI in the...

Enterprise SEO leaders face mounting pressure to develop AI search strategies. Jade Pruett, founder of Hello SEO, shares her approach for navigating this evolving landscape. She recommends starting with immediate data collection through tools like Scrunch AI to establish baseline performance, then adopting a deliberately reactive stance while the AI search ecosystem matures before building more co...

Schema markup is gaining importance for search visibility. Jade Pruett, founder of Hello SEO, explains why structured data provides critical advantages in an AI-driven search landscape. She discusses how schema creates efficiency for large language models and serves as a controllable optimization technique that SEOs can implement to improve content interpretation and performance. See Privacy Polic...

AI is transforming SEO—for better or worse. Jade Pruett, CEO of Hello SEO, shares her optimistic perspective on navigating this evolution. She explains how AI search is creating new opportunities for smaller businesses to compete against established brands, why schema markup is making a comeback, and how diversifying optimization strategies across multiple LLMs can drive measurable results. See Pr...

Is backlinking still relevant in AI search? Travis Tallent from Brainlabs discusses the evolving role of link building in modern SEO. He explains why brand mentions may become more valuable than traditional backlinks as AI technology improves at understanding context and sentiment. Tallent advocates for digital PR strategies that focus on meaningful brand references rather than simply accumulating...

Winning executive buy-in as a new SEO director is challenging. Travis Tallent, SEO expert from Brainlabs, shares his strategic approach for the critical first 90 days. He recommends diagnosing problems through CRO testing for quick wins, focusing on systems rather than individual silos, and creating a clear roadmap with specific timelines for audits, reporting, and results that align with business...

Reporting the right SEO metrics to executives is crucial. Travis Tallent, Director at Brainlabs, shares the three essential KPIs every SEO team should track and report. He emphasizes revenue/conversions as the primary metric, followed by comprehensive search share of voice (including organic, paid, and AI visibility), and brand search trends as indicators of overall performance. These metrics effe...

Should SEO teams embrace CRO as part of their core function? Travis Tallent from Brainlabs makes the case for fully integrating conversion rate optimization into SEO strategy. He advocates for incorporating CRO principles into every roadmap and initiative, from content topic selection to blending UX research with keyword mapping strategies. Tallent emphasizes that SEO inherently overlaps with mult...

AI is fundamentally simplifying how people search online. Travis Tallent from Brainlabs shares his expert perspective on the transformative impact of AI on search behavior over the next 12 months. The discussion explores how AI is streamlining user search experiences, reducing complexity in search interactions, and creating more direct pathways to information. Show Notes Connect With:  Travis...

Reframing SEO as a business revenue driver remains a major challenge. Travis Tallent, Managing Director at Brainlabs and specialist in integrated SEO strategy, details methods for aligning SEO with stakeholder KPIs, incorporating conversion rate optimization and UX into SEO roadmaps, and building implementation frameworks that focus on measurable business impact. Hear actionable approaches for bre...

AI summaries threaten organic traffic in search results. Mike Walrath, CEO of Yext, explains why brands should focus on maintaining awareness rather than traffic metrics. He advocates for making structured data widely available to AI systems, enabling direct customer connections without traditional website visits. Walrath suggests measuring success through conversions rather than traffic volume, a...

Zero-click search presents both challenges and opportunities for SEO professionals. Mike Walrath from Yext explores how these seemingly traffic-less interactions might evolve into valuable engagement points. He examines the growing role of voice search in zero-click experiences and predicts how brands may still deliver content directly to users despite the changing search landscape. how Notes Conn...

In e-commerce search, AI is reshaping the shopping experience. Mike Walrath, CEO of Yext, predicts the emergence of single-click shopping experiences through AI search engines this holiday season. He explains how conversational AI will enable personalized product recommendations based on user preferences and price constraints, creating a more intelligent discovery process than traditional search r...

In this episode, Mike Walrath of Yext tackles the strategic dilemma of optimizing for Google AI Overviews versus alternative search environments. He argues that optimizing for Google's AI search already leverages existing SEO practices, while diversifying to other platforms creates additional visibility opportunities. Walrath predicts established search players will continue gaining market share,...

AI is rapidly transforming local search results. Mike Walrath, CEO of Yext, explains how AI assistants now provide direct answers to local queries instead of deferring to search engines. He explores why businesses must adapt their strategies to become the answer within AI-generated results, emphasizing the accelerating pace of this fundamental shift in local search visibility.   Show Notes Co...

AI is reshaping search discoverability and business visibility. Mike Walrath, CEO of Yext, explains how Google's monetization model faces disruption from emerging AI search competitors. He details how businesses must structure data for machine consumption rather than humans, identifies opportunities in local search fragmentation, and demonstrates how granular competitive intelligence can pinpoint...

In this episode, Elliot Tsai, Senior Growth Manager of SEO and ASO at TextNow, predicts which marketing channels will most overlap with SEO in the coming year. He identifies YouTube as the primary convergence point, followed by App Store and Google Store Optimization, noting how these platforms increasingly appear in search results. Elliot explains why AI tools like ChatGPT and Gemini, while compl...

Is YouTube SEO just like traditional SEO from five years ago? Elliot Tsai, Senior Growth Manager of SEO and ASO at TextNow, debunks this oversimplification while highlighting the strategic overlap. He explains how YouTube's visual nature and engagement metrics create an 80/20 similarity ratio with traditional SEO, emphasizing how subscriber signals function as topic authority indicators. Tsai reco...

In the quest for effective SEO partnerships, data teams emerge as the critical ally. Elliot Tsai, Senior Growth Manager of SEO and ASO at TextNow, explains why data teams should be every SEO professional's first choice for collaboration. He emphasizes how understanding data implementation logic prevents misalignment between analytics and strategy, while highlighting that data expertise enables SEO...

Partnering with CRM teams requires strategic alignment. Elliot Tsai, Senior Growth Manager of SEO and ASO at TextNow, shares his approach to cross-functional collaboration. He emphasizes understanding CRM user journeys and templates first, then identifying content gaps where SEO articles can enhance customer communications, ultimately creating a more cohesive user experience across touchpoints. Sh...

In this episode, Elliot Tsai, Senior Growth Manager of SEO and ASO at TextNow, challenges the notion that paid search should be SEO's primary partner channel. Tsai argues that all marketing channels deserve equal partnership as they each represent different parts of the user funnel. He explains that paid search often receives preferential treatment simply because it delivers faster results, while...