SEO in 2026
Majestic.com
SEO is continuing to change at an alarming pace. And yet, in some sense, the principles of good SEO remain the same.
Hello, and welcome to SEO in 2026 – a significant repository of current thinking from many of the world’s leading SEOs.
We're pleased to be able to welcome you to the fifth book and fifth series in this podcast, now well and truly an annual tradition, brought to you by Majestic.
“How people search has seen a bigger shift in the last 12 months than the last 12 years, and this makes SEOin2026 a must-read for anyone working in the industry. Majestic has brought together 117 of the SEO industry's brightest minds to share their insights into what matters, and what doesn't, to continue to drive growth with organic search during a period of massive uncertainty, and the book should be seen as a valuable reference point to keep your strategy on the right track.”
JAMES BROCKBANK
Managing Director and Founder, Digitaloft
“I highly recommend that every SEO professional set aside a couple of days for SEOin2026. You'll thank me for helping you plan your year effectively. I'm extremely grateful to have the opportunity to work alongside some of the world's leading SEO champions.”
NITIN MANCHANDA
Founder & Chief SEO Consultant, Botpresso
“This collection of wisdom from many of the best minds in SEO today is a great line in the sand of where we as an industry are, what problems we face, and how we tackle them. Anyone in SEO or marketing should be dipping into this on a regular basis.”
SIMON COX
Technical SEO Consultant, Cox and Co. Creative
“This series continues to be the industry’s leading source of the most timely advice a marketer could ever want. The most forward-thinking SEO experts in the world come together once a year to create this invaluable collection of new knowledge that should never be passed up on!”
PAM AUNGST CRONIN
President and Founder, Pam Ann Marketing and Stealth Search and Analytics
“2025 has been a sprint for the SEO industry, with AI reshaping how we understand visibility, relevance, and authority. SEOin2026 is not just another trends book; it’s a roadmap for what’s actually coming. I loved being part of it and seeing how experts around the world approach the same challenges from different angles.”
RAMONA JOITA
SEO Consultant and Founder
“David is good at drawing out the substance of a conversation. He will explore the topic and challenge assumptions, steer the conversation into an unexpected direction, and build on your ideas – making you think a bit deeper and sharper. Our recent conversation flew by as always, and as always – I’ve come out energised about the topic with more to think about.”
SUKHJINDER SINGH
Freelance SEO Consultant
Hello, and welcome to SEO in 2026 – a significant repository of current thinking from many of the world’s leading SEOs.
We're pleased to be able to welcome you to the fifth book and fifth series in this podcast, now well and truly an annual tradition, brought to you by Majestic.
“How people search has seen a bigger shift in the last 12 months than the last 12 years, and this makes SEOin2026 a must-read for anyone working in the industry. Majestic has brought together 117 of the SEO industry's brightest minds to share their insights into what matters, and what doesn't, to continue to drive growth with organic search during a period of massive uncertainty, and the book should be seen as a valuable reference point to keep your strategy on the right track.”
JAMES BROCKBANK
Managing Director and Founder, Digitaloft
“I highly recommend that every SEO professional set aside a couple of days for SEOin2026. You'll thank me for helping you plan your year effectively. I'm extremely grateful to have the opportunity to work alongside some of the world's leading SEO champions.”
NITIN MANCHANDA
Founder & Chief SEO Consultant, Botpresso
“This collection of wisdom from many of the best minds in SEO today is a great line in the sand of where we as an industry are, what problems we face, and how we tackle them. Anyone in SEO or marketing should be dipping into this on a regular basis.”
SIMON COX
Technical SEO Consultant, Cox and Co. Creative
“This series continues to be the industry’s leading source of the most timely advice a marketer could ever want. The most forward-thinking SEO experts in the world come together once a year to create this invaluable collection of new knowledge that should never be passed up on!”
PAM AUNGST CRONIN
President and Founder, Pam Ann Marketing and Stealth Search and Analytics
“2025 has been a sprint for the SEO industry, with AI reshaping how we understand visibility, relevance, and authority. SEOin2026 is not just another trends book; it’s a roadmap for what’s actually coming. I loved being part of it and seeing how experts around the world approach the same challenges from different angles.”
RAMONA JOITA
SEO Consultant and Founder
“David is good at drawing out the substance of a conversation. He will explore the topic and challenge assumptions, steer the conversation into an unexpected direction, and build on your ideas – making you think a bit deeper and sharper. Our recent conversation flew by as always, and as always – I’ve come out energised about the topic with more to think about.”
SUKHJINDER SINGH
Freelance SEO Consultant
Episodes
Mentioned books
Nov 8, 2021 • 14min
Create topic clusters that talk to each other - with Maret Reutelingsperger from Mobe Digital
Check out the rest of the content from "SEO in 2022" here:http://seoin2022.com/Questions in this episode include:What are topic clusters?How do you define the topic clusters you should have?How do you make topic clusters that talk to each other?
Nov 7, 2021 • 15min
Combine Tech SEO and Topic Clusters for maximum results - with Jo Juliana Turnbull
Check out the rest of the content from "SEO in 2022" here:http://seoin2022.com/Questions in this episode include:What are topic clusters?What are the key areas of tech SEO to ensure you get right at the moment?How to implement the tip?What businesses pay attention to what you’re saying?
Nov 6, 2021 • 18min
Stop reacting to each Google update and instead, pay attention to local audiences - with Motoko Hunt
Check out the rest of the content from "SEO in 2022" here:http://seoin2022.com/Questions in this episode include:Are local audiences important for every business?Why are local audiences better than focusing on the generic SERP?How do you SEO for local audiences in 2022?Are you talking about Google My Business or other local SEO opportunities?What are the key local SEO opportunities in 2022?
Nov 5, 2021 • 18min
Mobile UX is officially now part of SEO - with Pam Aungst Cronin from Pam Ann MarketingAungst Cronin
Check out the rest of the content from "SEO in 2022" here:http://seoin2022.com/Questions in this episode include...How does Google quantify the mobile user experience?What are the core elements of Google’s Core Web Vitals?Largest Contentful PaintCumulative Layout ShiftFirst Input DelayWhat are some things that you can do to improve your Core Web Vitals?What happens if you already have high authority and you’re an industry leader - will Google really rank you lower than a competitor if they perceive that your UX is worse? Are certain devices more important to optimize UX for? (if your UX is bad for old versions of iOS or Android, does that really matter?)
Nov 4, 2021 • 24min
Use Intent and user experience to grow revenue and increase success - with Duane Forrester from Yext
Check out the rest of the content from "SEO in 2022" here:http://seoin2022.com/Questions in this episode include:You say that Intent and UX are often spoken about, but underutilised - what do you mean by that?How does an SEO utilise intent and UX in practice?How does an SEO optimise for intent?How do you measure the value of optimising for intent?How does an SEO optimise for user experience?How do you measure the value of optimising for user experience?Where does an SEO go to find out more about optimising for intent and UX?
Nov 3, 2021 • 16min
The user experience trend is getting stronger - with Kristina Azarenko from Marketing Syrup
Check out the rest of the content from "SEO in 2022" here:http://seoin2022.com/Questions that David asks in this episode include:How do search engines measure user experience?What aspects of user experience are most important?Does this mean that keywords aren’t important anymore?What does this mean for the SEO role moving forwards - will it become less technical and more creative?
Nov 2, 2021 • 12min
Employ intent mapping for every core page on your site - with Helen Pollitt from iTech Media
Check out the rest of the content from "SEO in 2022" here:http://seoin2022.com/Questions in this episode include:What is intent mapping?How do you define your core pages?What type of business can take advantage of this?What are a few specific steps that an SEO needs to do, to start putting this into action?How often should an SEO be doing this?What does success look like? How do you measure the value of doing this?
Nov 1, 2021 • 18min
Adopt an "intent-first" mindset - with Chris Green from Torque
Check out the rest of the content from "SEO in 2022" here:http://seoin2022.com/Questions in this episode include:Are you advocating that an SEO completely stops thinking about keywords?On a practical basis, how does an SEO actually apply the intent-lens to everything they do?So you have a piece of content that’s targeted at top-of-funnel - how do you organically, predictably deliver a different piece of content about the same topic to a user further down the purchase funnel?How do you measure the impact of your success when you’re focusing on intent?
Oct 31, 2021 • 19min
“Intent” is the direction that the search engines are going - Mindy Weinstein from Market MindShift
Check out the rest of the content from "SEO in 2022" here:http://seoin2022.com/Questions in this episode include:How do search engines determine intent?Why are search engines more likely to be incorporating intent in their algorithms in 2022?What does this actually mean in practice for SEOs? How do you as an SEO use intent to drive better traffic?What if you currently receive a lot of traffic that doesn’t spend a long time on your site - will this negatively impact your rankings?
Oct 30, 2021 • 16min
Focus on human behaviour - with Aiala Icaza Gonzalez from Reflect Digital
Check out the rest of the content from "SEO in 2022" here:http://seoin2022.com/Questions that David asks Dixon in this episode include:What change in shopping habits has resulted in you recommending that SEOs focus on human behaviour?What sorts of human behaviors are we talking about?How do you measure and optimize for human behaviour?How do search engines detect changes in human behaviour?How is this changing the way that SEO is done?
