HCU recoveries: who bounced back and why

E903: Is SEO actually dying, or is the industry just rebranding the same fundamentals under new names like GEO, AEO, and AI SEO?

In this long-form holiday roundtable, we break down what really changed in search over the past year, what didn't, and why so much confusion is spreading across marketing teams, LinkedIn, Reddit, and conference stages.

This episode covers real-world observations from 2025, not theory or tool demos. We talk candidly about AI search, Google's direction, backlinks, topical authority, video, PR, exact match domains, and the growing disconnect between what's being sold and what actually works.

Top 10 SEO Predictions for 2026: 1. CMOs will continue to be duped by GEO misinformation campaigns. Results in GEO will come from SEO, more than ever. 2. Google will remain the primary source of truth for AI search, directly or indirectly influencing most large language model results. 3. Video content, especially YouTube and Instagram, will play a larger role in rankings, AI Overviews, and AI-generated answers. 4. Traditional text-based listicles will decline in effectiveness, particularly those without firsthand experience or original insight. 5. Backlinks will function more as a defensive ranking signal, helping sites withstand core updates rather than just drive growth. 6. Topical authority will become more granular, with trust evaluated at topic and subtopic levels instead of entire domains. 7. AI Overviews will continue to reduce informational clicks while increasing brand visibility, mentions, and indirect conversions. 8. Exact match and keyword-aligned domains will quietly regain value as relevance and attribution signals. 9. SEO and digital PR will fully converge, making citations, mentions, and reputation critical ranking inputs. 10. Claims that SEO is dead will persist, but organic search will remain central to discovery, competition, and revenue.

Topics covered: - Why SEO and "GEO" are not separate disciplines - How AI tools like ChatGPT and Perplexity actually rely on search engines - The rise of AI SEO tools and why many are just content scaling platforms - How misinformation around AI search is targeting CMOs and executives - Why backlinks still matter more than most people admit - What the Helpful Content Update really changed (and what it didn't) - Why some sites recovered from HCU and most did not - The problem with listicles, reviews, and fake product testing - Why authority is still largely domain-based and where it may change - How Google's AI Overviews are affecting clicks, impressions, and attribution - Why video and YouTube citations are increasing in AI search results - The role of PR, brand mentions, and reputation in AI visibility - Exact match domains, multi-domain strategies, and when they make sense - Why most "SEO is dead" claims ignore ad revenue and user behavior - What a realistic SEO strategy looks like going into 2026

Platforms and ecosystems discussed: - Google search, AI Overviews, and AI Mode - Reddit and the current spam problem - Quora and declining result quality - HubSpot as a case study in topical drift - YouTube, short-form video, and user-generated content in search

Who this episode is for: - SEOs working in-house or agency-side - CMOs and marketing leaders evaluating AI search strategies - Founders and operators relying on organic search for growth - Anyone trying to separate real search changes from marketing noise

This is not an episode about shortcuts or trends. It's a grounded discussion about how search actually works today, why Google still matters, and how to avoid strategies that damage long-term visibility.

Thanks for listening and watching, and happy holidays.

⭐️ David Quaid on 𝕏 - https://x.com/DavidGQuaid ⭐️ David Quaid on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidquaid/ ⭐️ David Quaid's agency - https://primaryposition.com/

⭐️ Gagan Ghotra on 𝕏 - https://x.com/gaganghotra_ ⭐️ Gagan Ghotra on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/gagan-ghotra/ ⭐️ Gagan Ghotra's website - https://gaganghotra.com/

⭐️ Harpreet Singh's Personal Site - https://harpsdigital.com ⭐️ Harpreet on X - https://x.com/harpreetchatha_ ⭐️ Harpreet's Newsletter - https://seoespresso.com ⭐️ Harpreet on LinkedIn - https://linkedin.com/in/harpreetsingh8/ ⭐️ Harpreet on TikTok - https://tiktok.com/@seoharp ⭐️ Harpreet on YouTube - https://youtube.com/@harpsdigital

💎 Compact Keywords - My SEO Course - Get paying customers through SEO - Clear step-by-step video breakdowns - SEO templates to be copied and adapted for your products and services: https://compactkeywords.com/

00:00 Introduction and Excitement 00:13 SEO and Digital Marketing Surprises of 2025 00:30 Disinformation Campaigns in SEO 01:53 Generative Engine Optimization vs. Traditional SEO 02:27 Spam and AI Content Detection 03:12 Partnership Requests and AI SEO Tools 04:00 Confusion and Disinformation in SEO 08:43 Impact of AI on SEO Strategies 24:28 Authority and Topical Relevance in SEO 39:50 Video Content and SEO 42:51 SEO Predictions for 2026 43:16 Contextually Relevant Content for Small Businesses 44:22 The Debate on Dwell Time and Content Length 45:30 The Skyscraper Technique and Content Efficiency 46:25 Google's Preference for Long-Form Content 46:51 The Role of Short-Form Content in SEO 47:44 Google's Content Agnosticism and Ranking Factors 53:00 The Impact of AI and LLMs on SEO 01:09:41 The Future of Web Design and User Interaction 01:18:48 The Role of Agents and Memory in AI 01:23:49 AI and SEO: The Changing Landscape 01:24:22 SEO Strategies for 2025 and Beyond 01:25:26 The Role of Marketing Teams in SEO 01:26:55 Exact Match Domains: Pros and Cons 01:36:35 The Importance of Backlinks in Modern SEO 01:43:10 The Impact of Google's Helpful Content Update 01:54:49 Future Predictions for SEO 01:59:24 Concluding Thoughts and Holiday Wishes

The Edward Show. Your daily search engine optimization podcast: https://edwardsturm.com/the-edward-show/

#searchengineoptimization #digitalmarketing #generativeengineoptimization #answerengineoptimization