Search with Candour

Jack is joined by SEOritmo’s André Pitì to bust common AI search myths.

Topics discussed and myths busted:

• Why AI visibility metrics are modelled estimates rather than exact numbers.
• How tools infer AI Overview and AI platform volumes
• Why spikes in direct traffic don’t automatically indicate AI traffic
• How to investigate direct traffic by URL patterns
• Segmenting AI-related signals by geography
• And more

Follow André

• Website: https://seoritmo.com/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andre-piti/
• Founding agency programme: https://beta.seoritmo.com/

Chapters

00:00 AI Search myth busting

01:51 Introduction

03:33 Meet André Pitì

04:45 Why these myths need busting

08:16 Myth one: AI visibility metrics

09:58 How tools model search volumes

17:22 Myth two: Direct traffic spikes = AI traffic

19:24 Practical tracking fixes

25:23 Cross referencing signals

30:21 Segmenting AI traffic by location

33:22 GSC location pitfalls

35:58 Not all long queries are prompts

39:15 GA4 location segmentation

41:27 Avoiding bad GEO signals

45:33 Completing the puzzle of AI search optimisation

49:28 Technical readiness for crawlers

51:52 Cross department alignment

54:31 Recommendation: Actionable tip

56:30 Recommendation: SEO tools for AI visibility

58:38 Recommendation: Music and martial arts

01:05:23 Wrap up

John Morabito is the founder of Winston Digital Marketing and SVP of Search Innovation at Stellar Rising.

Expect to learn how to automate SEO work using AI, including Claude skills, connectors, and multi-agent workflows. John shares experiments where agents create and publish content from call transcripts and other inputs, driving major traffic growth and increased leads, while stressing the need for human oversight throughout.

00:00 Can AI run an SEO agency?

01:27 Introduction

03:38 Welcome, John Morabito

04:43 Claude Skills Origins

06:55 The Winston testing lab

08:49 Agentic blog post creation

11:02 How traffic leads to results

15:05 From content to revenue

18:02 Keeping humans at the centre

18:40 Agency automation ideas

23:09 How to align deliverables

27:16 Maintaining guardrails for AI

31:45 Local search reality check

33:47 Use regulations when building AI skills

35:15 Why agencies still matter

38:10 Inside the content pipeline

41:06 Interview your clients to get expertise

43:59 Skills vs workflows

46:22 Recommendation: Actionable tip

48:22 Recommendation: SEO tool

50:58 Recommendation: Something fun

53:35 Where to follow John

54:32 Episode wrap-up

Follow John:

• Website: https://www.winstondigitalmarketing.com/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/john-morabito-29459655/
• The new rules of search: https://www.winstondigitalmarketing.com/whitepapers/the-new-rules-of-search/

Nathan Gotch joins Search with Candour to discuss the state of AI search in 2026.

Topics include:

• how the demand for GEO and AI search optimisation has grown recently
• how much traditional SEO rankings and AI search citations crossover
• the fragmentation of search across different AI search engines

Follow Nathan:

• Get Nathan’s book ‘AI SEO for dummies’: https://www.amazon.co.uk/AI-SEO-Dummies-Nathan-Gotch/dp/1394418981
• The Rankability study: https://www.rankability.com/blog/ai-search-statistics/
• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@nathangotch

Chapters

00:00 The state of AI search

01:48 Introduction

03:34 Welcome, Nathan Gotch

05:55 Study methodology

07:57 ChatGPT citations don’t match the SERPs

12:03 one category marketing playbook

15:17 UGC and agent-led outreach

19:48 The demand shift

24:13 How to sell AI SEO to clients

28:11 Is SEO still SEO?

28:46 Do backlinks still matter?

30:00 Why AI needs more than traditional search

32:17 Authority and inventory gaps

37:18 AI vs Google quality filters

39:23 Taking the kitchen sink approach

41:59 Do title tags still matter?

46:21 Reviews as a top priority

49:08 Recommendations

53:18 Wrap up

This live podcast event brings together The SEO Mindset and Search with Candour podcasts at Komedia in Brighton.

The trio of hosts explore mixed feelings about hustle culture, its long-term harm, burnout and disconnection and redefining success beyond productivity.

They also share practical steps for career longevity: intentional planning, setting boundaries, routines, self-reflection, and listening to your body to know when hard work is worth it and when to rest.

Sponsored by SISTRIX: https://www.sistrix.com/

Sponsored by Majestic: https://majestic.com/

Follow The SEO Mindset podcast: https://theseomindset.co.uk/

Chapters

00:00 Live show kickoff

00:34 Meet the hosts

04:08 Sponsored by SISTRIX and Majestic

10:29 What is hustle culture?

16:28 Pressure and burnout

23:59 Redefining success

27:49 Career longevity goals

32:10 Intentional career choices

34:13 Burnout to better fit

38:21 Freelance flexibility tradeoffs

40:40 Routines and boundaries

47:10 Journaling and self-insight

48:34 Finding your ikigai

50:17 Enjoy your hobbies without pressure

53:39 Start small and learn

55:27 Key takeaways wrap up

59:48 Where to find us

Welcome to season 5 of Search with Candour!

Jack sits down with SEO veteran Charlie Whitworth to discuss whether SEO and “GEO” are essentially the same and which traditional SEO strategies still work for AI search.

Follow Charlie

• Whitworth SEO: https://www.whitworthseo.com/
• HIVE MCR: https://hive-mcr.co.uk/
• AIR SEO: https://www.whitworthseo.com/air-seo-ai-ready-seo-campaigns/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/the-authentic-seo/
• Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/whitworthseo.bsky.social
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hivemcr/

Chapters

00:00 Highlight

01:36 Introduction

04:27 Meet Charlie Whitworth

05:33 Why this matters now

10:43 Good SEO = Good GEO

14:05 GEO bro debate

15:56 Data and measurement

21:46 KPIs that still matter

25:12 Technical SEO still wins

27:28 Content structure for LLMs

35:46 Pruning and cannibalisation

38:40 Content pruning done right

41:06 Brand mentions vs backlinks

44:34 Good products beat spam

47:07 Old tactics you need to stop

49:03 Testing and reprioritising

51:03 No silver bullets for GEO

56:39 Ignore the noise

58:11 Cloudflare bot settings

01:01:18 Recommendations: Log file analysis

01:05:03 Recommendation tool: WAIKAY

01:07:22 Fun recommendation: The Streets

01:08:40 Wrap up

Recorded the day after the first SearchNorwichXL, this episode recaps the last four weeks of SEO news from the Core Updates newsletter:

Google rolling out google.com/goto pass-through URLs to deter scraping amid the SERP API lawsuit (with rank-tracking tools finding workarounds); Google Search Console’s generative AI performance reporting rolling out globally, showing impressions for AI Overviews/AI Mode, alongside a toggle to opt sites out of generative AI features without affecting organic rankings; data suggesting nearly all People Also Ask results are AI-generated; and a Google AI Contribution pilot in Search Console that tests paying publishers when their content significantly contributes to AI-generated responses in Gemini, AI Overviews, and AI Mode.

News stories

• https://www.seroundtable.com/google-search-goto-tracking-41957.html
• https://searchengineland.com/google-search-console-ai-performance-reports-and-search-generative-ai-control-rolling-out-globally-486269
• https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7503164423075725313/
• https://9to5google.com/2026/09/17/google-ai-contribution-pilot-tests-paying-websites-when-theyre-used-in-ai-results/

Chapters

00:00 Welcome and recap

01:11 SearchNorwichXL highlights

02:15 September 2026 news

02:40 Google’s new goto redirect URLs

05:26 GSC AI reports rollout

08:42 AI Overviews takeover People Also Ask

11:15 Google pilots new publisher payment program

15:44 Season five teaser

17:21 Wrap up

Jack Chambers-Ward hosts a crossover episode of Search With Candour with Mel Barfield from Indie Business Club, discussing personal branding through shared interests, authenticity, and community.

The conversation covers balancing personal brand with employed work, using hobbies (ranging from board games and films to music and cheese) to create relatable connections, and how small signals like presenting yourself authentically can create new connections.

Jack & Mel also discuss how who you work with affects your brand reputation and why being nerdy about the things you care about is so important.

Follow Mel:

• Website: https://allcopymel.com/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melaniebarfield/
• Podcast: https://open.spotify.com/show/0DTopTvMDkklkmpAfshIjW
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@indiebusinessclubpod

Chapters

00:00 Introduction

00:25 How Jack and Mel met

03:23 Freelancing advice

09:05 Building your brand with podcasting

14:42 Nerd Signals That Connect

16:14 Board games and playtime

21:21 Content consumption habits

24:08 Band t-shirts and relatability

25:58 Cheese discussion

30:49 The ethics of who you work with

33:17 LinkedIn gurus

35:55 Choose your clients carefully

42:31 Should you niche down?

44:21 Essentialism and focus

48:38 Futureproof your personal brand

53:44 How to be relatable

59:19 See It. Say It. Sorted.

01:04:45 Hobbies create connections and opportunities

01:08:19 Align your personal brand with your values

01:09:41 Find your audience

01:11:33 Don’t write like your audience is children (unless they’re children)

01:14:46 Curiosity builds rapport

01:18:39 Being nerdy works

01:22:46 Building a brand while employed

01:27:20 Conference recognition

01:29:21 Hot takes on LinkedIn

01:34:13 Wrap up

01:41:42 Where to follow us

🌟 SearchNorwichXL - 24 September 2026: https://searchnorwich.org/

🎟️Get your tickets: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/searchnorwichxl-a-one-day-seo-conference-with-world-class-speakers-tickets-1985283700992?discount=podcast

Jack Chambers-Ward previews SearchNorwichXLand shares two talks from past SearchNorwich events:

First, Seb Atkinson shows how ChatGPT’s Code Interpreter is the cheat code you need to start automating SEO tasks and improve your data analysis abilities using Python - no prior coding skills required!

Seb discusses the kinds of SEO activities you can automate with Python and how to use ChatGPT to get started, including what tools to use, example projects and prompts, how to resolve errors, and how to use ChatGPT to develop your own coding skills.

Second, Mark Williams-Cook from Search Norwich 19, explains why using conceptual models is doing "advanced SEO" and what he learned from the Google exploit he discovered last year.

Also, Mark describes how SEO is just like the video Theme Park (yes, seriously)

⌚ Time stamps

00:00 Introduction

02:39 ChatGPT's Code Interpreter: Your secret weapon for SEO automation success - Seb Atkinson

20:33 Improving your SEO with conceptual models - Mark Williams-Cook

47:03 Wrap Up

Topics discussed:

•

New EU transparency rules requiring clear labelling of AI-generated or AI-altered content across formats

•

Microsoft Clarity is adding branded vs non-branded segmentation for AI query/citation reporting and share of authority

•

Anthropic’s Claude embedding watermarks/metadata

•

Google is expanding AI Mode with interactive visualisations, quizzes, Lens learning features, and Notebook/Gemini integrations

•

Google is introducing google.com/goto redirecting tracking URLs aimed at reducing scraping abuse, with major rank-tracking tools saying it doesn’t impact tracking data

News stories:

• https://www.euronews.com/my-europe/2026/08/02/ai-generated-label-becomes-mandatory-in-the-eu-for-companies
• https://clarity.microsoft.com/blog/branded-non-branded-queries/
• https://www.cloudflare.com/press/press-releases/2026/cloudflare-adds-aeo-visibility-dashboard-to-its-aeo-suite-showing-brands-whether-ai-assistants-are-recommending-them/
• https://support.claude.com/en/articles/16266773-how-claude-marks-ai-generated-content
• https://www.seroundtable.com/google-search-goto-tracking-41957.html

Time stamps

00:00 Coming up on the show

00:26 Introduction

01:45 EU AI-labelling rules

06:31 Microsoft Clarity AI brand query filters

11:31 Claude watermarking update

15:45 Google AI visual tools

22:49 Google anti-scraping URLs

25:54 What’s coming up on season 5

28:05 Wrap up

Jack Chambers-Ward continues the hype for SearchNorwichXL by highlighting talks from Arnout Hellemans and Brendan Bennett, who will be speaking at SearchNorwichXL.

Arnout’s talk from SearchNorwich 16 is titled ‘How to work on your SEO without paying for tools’, and Brendan’s talk from SearchNorwich 19 is titled ‘It’s not me, it’s you: Why your SEO or agency (probably) hates you’

🎟️ Get 25% off SearchNorwichXL tickets: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/searchnorwichxl-tickets-1985283700992?discount=podcast

Chapters

00:00 Introduction

03:19 Arnout Hellemans’ talk

23:43 In-between talks

24:26 Brendan Bennett’s talk

49:18 Wrap up

Jack Chambers-Ward and Mark Williams-Cook present a preview of SearchNorwichXL, their upcoming conference on 24 September 2026.

Mark and Jack discuss the talks they’re looking forward to and give a preview of what to expect on the day.

Use ‘MONDAYSWC’ to get 20% off your tickets: ⁠https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/searchnorwichxl-tickets-1985283700992?discount=mondayswc⁠For more information about SearchNorwichXL: https://searchnorwich.org/

Chapters

00:00 Introduction

01:29 Mark’s first pick: Arnout Hellemans

08:36 Jack’s first pick: Giulia Panozzo

16:37 Mark’s second pick: Adam Gent

25:22 Jack’s second pick: Future Of Search Panel

31:14 Mark’s third pick: Myriam Jessier

39:14 Jack’s third pick: Martin Splitt

42:20 Discount code and tickets

43:43 Mark’s upcoming speaking schedule

46:55 Thanks and wrap up

Candour’s Principal SEO Consultant, Brendan Bennett and Design Lead Mark Salisbury join Search with Candour to discuss the growing overlap between SEO, design, UX, and brand, and how AI/LLMs and emerging agentic experiences affect the way we build and use websites.

The Candour trio also explore what brand means beyond just a logo, how third-party signals like reviews, Reddit, and search results shape perception, and how SEOs measure brand through metrics such as brand search volume, sentiment, and frameworks like Google’s HEART.

The conversation covers trust signals, page clarity, semantic HTML, the tension between brand-led copy and keyword-focused headings, and the risk of AI-generated “slop” versus human differentiation.

Follow Mark and Brendan:

• Website: https://withcandour.co.uk/
• Mark on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mark-salisbury-701b8911/
• Brendan on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brendanbennett1989/

Chapters

00:00 Welcome, Brendan Bennett and Mark Salisbury

01:09 Design vs SEO No Versus

03:01 Why Brand Matters Now

09:45 Defining Brand Beyond Logos

17:17 Brand Metrics and Frameworks

22:40 SERP Signals and Trust Issues

27:19 When Brand Beats SEO

33:01 AI Websites and Human Proof

36:12 Luxury Branding vs AI Content

42:05 Websites as Experiences

42:48 Designing for Agents

43:50 Trust and Spend Thresholds

45:47 Technical SEO Meets Semantics

49:10 Brand Voice vs Keywords

53:31 Traffic vs Conversion Tradeoffs

56:43 What Makes a Site Good

59:04 Trust Signals and UX Proof

01:02:14 Vibe Coding and Web Slop

01:03:44 Future of SEO and Design

01:08:51 Recommendations: Actionable tips

01:12:00 Recommendations: Tools to try

01:15:23 Recommendations: Fun things like dancing and video games

Jack Chambers-Ward hosts a July 2026 AI search and SEO news roundup on Search With Candour.

This episode covers everything from new Google Trends features and social media data tracking in Google Search Console to research about ads in Google AI Mode and if Google punishes AI-generated content.

Links to articles

• https://www.linkedin.com/posts/analyzing-search-interest-just-got-more-powerful-share-7478017577340968960-qsi3/
• https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7480247562084638720/
• https://seranking.com/blog/google-ai-mode-ads/
• https://www.tryprofound.com/blog/google-com-is-now-ai-mode-s-2-cited-domain
• https://ahrefs.com/blog/google-doesnt-punish-ai-content/
• https://www.similarweb.com/corp/reports/2026-generative-ai-landscape/
• https://www.axios.com/2026/07/23/yelp-reviews-chatgpt-geo-partnership

Chapters

00:00 Coming up on this episode

00:29 Introduction

01:53 Live Podcast returns on 7 October 2026

04:19 Google Trends new comparison feature

09:31 ChatGPT adds Yelp reviews

12:35 SE Ranking study: Ads in AI Mode

18:39 Profound study: Google cites itself more

23:01 Ahrefs study: Does Google punish AI content?

29:37 SimilarWeb Generative AI Report

36:33 Wrap up

Liv Day and Ellie Wraith from Digitaloft join Search with Candour to explain how to turn client expertise into SEO gold and why you need to create content your competitors can’t copy.

They explain why unique, non-commodity content matters more in the AI era, how to extract insights from hesitant clients, and how to build processes (checklists, writer access to experts, ongoing client questions) to ensure information gain.

They discuss using first-party data (sales, customer service transcripts), surveys, and sources like Reddit to uncover real audience pain points, plus repurposing interviews and video assets across site pages based on page goals.

Follow Liv & Ellie:

Digitaloft: https://digitaloft.co.uk/

Liv on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/olivia-day-seo/

Ellie on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/elliewraith/

Chapters

00:00 Welcome to Search with Candour

02:46 Introducing Ellie Wraith

03:38 Introducing Liv Day

04:30 Why expertise matters now

09:48 Measuring information gain

15:12 Client chats vs keyword research

18:17 Handling hesitant experts

27:25 Personal brands and authority

32:53 What is trust in the AI era

35:10 Convincing clients to get on camera

37:04 Proving real Experts

39:30 Repurposing your content and assets

41:58 Technical difficulties

42:05 Finding Proprietary Data

46:50 Measuring Content Success

51:03 Recommendations: Ask more questions and prioritise based on your bottom line

54:01 Recommendations: Collate customer service data and check Reddit

56:44 Recommendations: Summer gigs and Widow’s Bay

59:00 Where to Follow and Wrap

Jack Chambers-Ward recaps the biggest SEO news from June 2026 on Search With Candour.

Jack covers Google’s “Preferred Sources” expanding from Discover into AI Mode and AI Overviews, the new Search Console generative AI performance reporting and contrasts it with Bing Webmaster Tools’ expanded AI visibility reporting.

He also highlights the new ability to connect Google Business Profile to GA4 for richer local reporting and a landmark German court ruling that Google can be held liable for false claims in AI Overviews, treating them as Google’s own content.

Links to news stories

• https://blog.google/products-and-platforms/products/search/original-high-quality-content-search/
• https://blog.google/products-and-platforms/products/search/a-new-profile-to-help-publishers-and-creators-highlight-their-work-on-search/
• https://developers.google.com/search/blog/2026/06/gen-ai-performance-reports
• https://blogs.bing.com/search/June-2026/New-AI-Visibility-Insights-in-Bing-Webmaster-Tools-Intents-Topics-Citation-Share-Compare
• https://support.google.com/analytics/answer/16930347
• https://the-decoder.com/landmark-german-ruling-declares-googles-ai-overviews-are-googles-own-words-and-makes-it-liable-for-false-answers/

Chapters

00:00 Introduction

01:27 Preferred sources expand to AI Mode

05:08 Google adds creator Search Profiles

08:32 GSC AI performance reporting

10:25 Bing AI visibility tools

17:23 Google Business Profile data in GA4

22:34 German court finds Google liable for AI Overview content

31:11 Wrap up

Sean Barber joins Search with Candour to discuss fighting misinformation in the health industry.

Misinformation has been exacerbated with the growth of LLMs and AI, which increasingly cite piecemeal sources in ways that can mislead or endanger users.

Sean and Jack share examples such as incorrect CPR guidance and confusing emergency and non-emergency phone numbers.

Follow Sean:

• Website: https://www.searchwithsean.com/
• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@SearchWithSean
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seanrbarber/
• Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/searchwithsean.bsky.social

00:00 Fighting misinformation in YMYL industries

01:36 Meet Sean Barber

05:15 Why misinformation spreads so quickly

08:09 AI Overviews causing health risks

11:26 Patience versus accuracy

15:02 Organisation-wide strategies for companies fighting misinformation

21:19 The importance of transparency and reputation

26:28 Defensive vs proactive tactics

29:51 Proving your expertise

34:01 Put experts on camera

37:58 Low-budget video setup

39:51 Authenticity beats big productions

41:10 Why showing your face matters

43:13 How to build trust signals

46:18 AI search and funding

50:03 Bad press is actually bad press

52:59 Always keep a human in the loop

55:11 Recommendations: Sean’s actionable tip

57:41 Recommendations: Sean’s SEO tools

59:38 Recommendations: TV and movies

01:03:54 Episode wrap-up

Léo Poitevin, founder and CEO of Astrak Agency, joins Search with Candour to discuss why your competitors may be recommended in ChatGPT and other AI search tools while you are not.

Topics discussed:

• Why AI search engines are easier to manipulate than Google
• How to identify competitors in AI search
• How to build trust signals for AI search
• How to use listicles and guest posts to rank in AI search
• The risks of self-promotional listicles

Follow Léo:

• Astrak Agency: https://astrak.agency/en/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/leo-poitevin/
• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@leopoitevin

Get your tickets for SearchNorwichXL

Chapters

00:00 Highlights of Léo Poitevin

01:03 Introduction

05:24 Leo’s SEO background

07:14 Are LLMs easier to game than Google?

07:47 Google is good at fighting spam

12:36 AI competitor research

15:16 Competitor research for GEO

19:47 Tracking volatility

25:13 Imperfect data and KPIs for AI search

30:11 A listicle strategy that works for LLMs

33:01 Léo case studies

36:07 The risks of listicles

37:16 Self promotional listicles

38:04 Ranking shifts in ChatGPT

39:06 Listicles penalised by Google

41:48 Testing new limits

43:05 Links versus mentions

46:18 Black Hat vs White Hate SEO

49:15 Influencers and guest posts

52:34 What hurts AI search

56:20 Recommendation: Actionable tip

57:51 Recommendation: Tool

59:57 Recommendation: Cozy games

01:05:14 Where to follow Léo

01:06:44 Episode wrap-up

Host: Jack Chambers-Ward | https://www.linkedin.com/in/jlwchambers/ | He/him

In this episode of Search with Candour, I’m joined by Josh Bachynski, CEO at Be Found Everywhere. With over 20 years of experience, Josh shares insights on ethical marketing and why an evidence-based approach to SEO is important for AI search optimisation.

Topics discussed:

• Why AI Mode is the biggest change in search since 1998
• How the ranking factors compare to the traditional 10 blue links
• Why marketers must adapt to AI or get left behind
• Why testing is so important in making strategic decisions
• Google’s definition of consensus and non-commodity content
• How to find trustworthy sources in SEO
• The difference between virtue signalling and truly ethical marketing

Chapters

00:00 Introducing Josh Bachynski

01:16 Introduction

04:15 Why evidence-based SEO is so important

07:05 The new ranking factors for AI search

15:00 Google’s definition of consensus and E-E-A-T

18:18 The ethics of Google’s business model

23:07 Google Ads incentives

27:34 Learn to embrace AI and adapt

36:11 Defining ethical marketing

41:18 Truthful ethical marketing

42:12 Virtue signalling and positivity

43:28 Use AI for good

44:03 Google is not moral

47:55 Adapt or lose jobs

50:37 Evidence-based SEO testing

53:55 Finding trustworthy sources in SEO

59:08 Accountability in communities

01:03:30 Recommendation: Actionable tip

01:08:36 Recommendation: Tools and software

01:14:03 Recommendation: Something fun

01:16:48 Where to follow Josh

01:18:31 Episode wrap-up and upcoming guests

Follow Josh

• Website: https://bfeai.com/- Use code BEEFY-JOSH-20 for 20% off
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/josh-bachynski/
• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/jbachyns

Watch / Listen on YouTube - https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL8c8k5Yy8FltVNsIsP1iUCSXDfE5cq2pM&si=xl4cMh_ngcMhrJ0-

Subscribe to Core Updates for weekly SEO news and SEO tips - https://coreupdates.com/

Laura Iancu joins Search with Candour to talk about the growing crossover between SEO and UX and how we should all thinking about “search experience optimisation” (SXO) instead of traditional SEO.

Follow Laura:

Searchpedia: https://searchpedia.co.uk/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/laura-iancu-seo/

Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/searchpedia.bsky.social

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@searchpedia

Chapters

00:00 Intro trailer

01:37 Introduction

03:53 Why SXO matters

05:05 Building a common language

09:44 How often to have these conversations

13:17 Sell the value, to get buy-in

17:55 Show, don't tell

25:26 Go beyond best practices

30:27 Take a culture-first approach to research

34:33 The benefits of heatmaps

36:57 UX basics for SEOs

41:41 Designers should stay flexible

42:43 SEO basics for design teams

44:52 AI search shifts

47:30 Testing LLM Visibility

48:44 Laura’s perfect website

51:16 A dream of smarter site search

54:33 Personalisation vs bots

01:00:01 Recommendations: Actionable tip

01:01:47 Recommendations: Tools and software

01:03:49 Recommendations: Books and games

01:10:31 Where to find Laura

01:11:45 Episode wrap-up

Host: Jack Chambers-Ward (he/him)

Vince Nero, BuzzStream’s Director of Content Marketing, joins Search with Candour to discuss whether paying for digital PR is the same as buying links.

Vince shares research on link marketplaces, noting many sites have zero organic traffic and only a tiny fraction qualify as high-quality. With some top-tier paid placements averaging thousands of dollars per link, often rivalling or exceeding monthly digital PR retainers.

Vince and Jack also discuss relevancy vs authority, referral traffic and business impact, the growing value of brand mentions for AI visibility, and how creating owned, original assets and proprietary data can drive long-term coverage.

Follow Vince

• Buzzstream
• Buzzstream podcast
• Follow Vince on LinkedIn
• Vince’s previous episode

Vince's recommendations:

• Actionable tip: Create unique content for digital PR pitches and host that content on your website.
• Recommended tool: Xofu
• Something fun: Mina the Hollower and Widow's Bay

Chapters

00:00 Highlight reel

01:12 Introduction

04:47 Welcome Vince Nero

05:38 Digital PR vs link buying

08:48 Link marketplaces data

12:47 Quality metrics relevancy

17:13 Google risks penalties

21:45 Cost value comparison

32:02 Digital PR long-term wins

36:07 The importance of owned assets

44:00 AI mentions new value

46:51 Linked vs unlinked mentions

48:25 When links don’t matter

49:46 Big brand campaign metrics

50:45 AI as a status signal

52:55 Non-AI agency debate

54:15 Trusting Google guidance

55:17 Search relations vs Google Corp

01:01:00 guidelines vs case studies

01:03:01 Recommendations: Actionable tip

01:04:24 Recommendations: Tool/software

01:05:37 Recommendations: Something fun

01:15:28 Where to find Vince

01:16:28 Episode wrap up and next guests