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Specifically CMOs and those accountable for a company's marketing success. AI-generated answers seem like a direct threat to the standard organic traffic sites used to obtain from online search engine. Before, you needed to click a website to see the outcomes. Today, LLMs simply rip the content on sites and individuals no longer require to visit a website anymore.
While I personally think this hazard is blown entirely out of percentage (based on information from websites I have actually personally seen), I don't think it's an excuse to neglect it entirely. From my own experience growing both blogs and YouTube channels, particularly to sell something, I can tell you that video converts way more than written material.
It's a lot simpler to inform if someone is lying or full of it if you can see their facial expressions and their tone of voice. YouTube should certainly be in your SEO and content method.
And due to the fact that you have constructed the trust with video, your traditional SEO efforts will convert much better. But there's much more to it. Earlier this year, I had a hunch that if I turned some of my finest ranking post into YouTube videos, and embedded them into my existing article, my blog site posts would rank even much better.
Mastering Modern Content Outreach for Growing SitesI made a YouTube video about the subject, embedded it into that blog site post, and I've been ranking # 1 considering that.
In 2025, we saw everyone talking about how AI search was going to take over Google. Beyond just SEO, the marketing neighborhood as an entire started to get bombarded with influencers trying to ride the AI buzz train.
It became difficult to find trusted sources that weren't prejudiced or had a concealed agenda to sell us something. While I do think there are advantages to using LLMs in our workflows, I do think it has been overhyped. And in 2026, I forecast many marketers will realize that ChatGPT and Perplexity are simply a little part of the SEO market.
Google still controls 90% market share and with its AI Mode and AI Overviews, it remains in the perfect position to win the AI search engine race. Search behavior hasn't basically shifted far from Google. Beyond just that, there are a couple of things that have rubbed me the wrong method about the AI SEO pattern.
Some claim ChatGPT has a 16% discussion rate and is much better by more than 2X compared to Google. However what these online marketers don't recognize is that Things like homepages, pricing pages, or bottom of funnel material, tends to be displayed in ChatGPT. The informative top of funnel content is "eaten up" by LLMs and shown to users without anywhere to click.
Google's conversion rates show less due to the fact that the traffic is higher due to it being diluted by all the top of funnel material that is in the equation. Other things like how ChatGPT can make stuff up, it never ever totally follows prompts properly (i.e.
I do still believe that think companies bigger business aside an experimental budget to spending plan things evaluate ChatGPT apps and other AI SEO tools.
Don't do it. These tactics may work now in ChatGPT and other LLMs, however they're short-term plays that will eventually get penalized. Concentrate on white hat strategies that construct genuine authority and trust in time instead of chasing fast wins that will not last. The 2000s are back. Scammy keyword packing strategies, spending for low-grade backlinks, delivering thousands of ineffective articles all in the name of ranking high.
ChatGPT and other LLM algorithms are not as mature. I can't name this person, but I satisfied an SEO director at a big banking company.
And from there, they are utilizing their main company domain, that has an extremely strong brand authority, and sending out backlinks to the microsite. And this has led to greater rankings for their brand name in LLMs like ChatGPT.It blew my mind that substantial, credible business are doing this. And I understood just how much black hat (or grey hat) techniques are going on behind the scenes.
In 2026, I forecast these techniques will continue to happen. Until ChatGPT's algorithm gets as wise as Google's search algorithm.
Share genuine insights, utilize your own images and videos, and construct topical authority in your niche. This is how solo creators and small groups can beat big brands in 2026. This is one of the biggest SEO trends for material marketing I'm seeing right now.
You require a genuine organization, be it a newsletter service, a service-based business, SaaS company, or ecommerce store. And after that you include on this human-centered niche blogging to the site to organically grow your core product/service offering. In 2026, I forecast that Google's algorithm will continue to get smarter about which web pages contain AI content and which do not.
In truth, I know lots of individuals quietly crushing it with AI created material (even pursuing top of funnel keywords). But what I am saying is that engaging, human material will outrank AI created material with no initial insights. There are 2 routes I see with SEO's today: Produce countless AI-generated article and get them to rank in the middle/bottom of page 1.
Produce a hundred human article and get them to rank at the top of the very first page. Quality over amount. The very first path is based on large volume, and can result in traffic growth. You do risk a possible algorithm update injuring your rankings. And anybody who writes much better human material will rank greater in positions 1-3. The 2nd path is slower, however can yield greater ranking positions and more trust with readers.
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