SEO in 2025

It wouldn’t be long before AI joined the brand party! If you want your name to show up in AI-driven results, then taking control of your brand entity is key, according to Crystal Carter from Wix.Crystal says: “Manage your brand entity for visibility in generative search engines and tools.”Why does generative search visibility mean that you should rethink your brand entity?“One of the things that’s really important to consider is the way that LLMs work and the way that people are using them on a regular basis.Over the last year, search has become very dissipated and decentralised. Rather than just using Google or Bing, people are searching across multiple search engines – including LLMs and tools like ChatGPT, Perplexity, Claude, and Gemini – to find their answers.Find out more here: https://majestic.com/seo-in-2025/crystal-carter

Like the others in this chapter, Casie Gillette from Customers.ai believes that brand is changing the face of SEO. In her view, you don’t just need to build links anymore; you need to get your name out there.Casie says: “Brand mentions are the new links.Considering what we’re seeing with AI overviews, Reddit, and Quora, forums are back. Fortunately or unfortunately, it’s where you’re going to have to spend your time.AI overviews are pulling from these various places. I can’t tell you how many searches we’re seeing Reddit pulled up for. Lily Ray recently assessed people who lost traffic and are now ranking number 2. Guess who they’re behind? Reddit.Find out more here: https://majestic.com/seo-in-2025/casie-gillette

You can put the work into your brand identity, but your customers need to recognise and believe in it too. Rana Abu Quba Chamsi from Expando.Digital explains how to gain a customer’s trust and attention.Rana says: “Everything is changing, so build trust and focus on brand awareness for your clients.”Why do you believe that traditional metrics are losing their importance?“In the SEO world, we live with change, but what’s going on now is changing everything. We have witnessed a change in the ranking of websites, for example. SERPs are moving and some websites that have always been in the top positions are losing out to new websites.Read the full transcript of Rana's interview at https://majestic.com/seo-in-2025/rana-abu-quba-chamsi

Like Rejoice, Annika Haataja from Seeker Digital believes in the power of the brand, and she believes that brand should be central to everything that you do.Annika says: “Make brand SEO a firm part of your analysis and strategy.Consider brand almost as a superpower for websites and companies. I would count it as one of the three main pillars that can give you a huge competitive advantage.The first pillar is topical authority, which is about content and content marketing within SEO. The second pillar is link authority, and the third pillar is definitely brand. Although brand is part of both of those other elements, there are ways that SEOs can analyse it and make it a firm part of their strategy.Read the full transcript of Annika's interview at https://majestic.com/seo-in-2025/annika-haataja

Grégory Dominé joins David Bain to discuss the importance of shifting to agile SEO.Talking points include:What does working in an agile way actually mean?What are the benefits of working in an agile manner?What are the practical steps that you can take in order to shift to Agile SEO?Are there elements of SEO that can’t work in an agile approach?What are examples of tasks that work really well using an agile approach?Does an agile approach help you get things done more quickly?How do you define what needs to be done first?How do SEOs move from their current approach to a more agile approach?Does working in an agile way help you work more effectively with other departments?What are the first steps that an SEO needs to take to find out more about Agile?Read the full transcript of Grégory's interview at https://majestic.com/seo-in-2025/additional-insights/gregory-domine

In a world increasingly overpopulated with labels, Rejoice Ojiaku from Nelson Bostock UNLIMITED suggests brand archetypes as a way to make your identity cohesive and compelling to the customers that matter.Rejoice says: “Start incorporating and integrating brand archetypes into your content strategy to align your content and identify buyer personas.”What is a brand archetype?“Brand archetypes are a set of 12 frameworks. It is a more psychological approach to developing emotional connections with your audience through your brand. A lot of brands inherit these different distinct personas that can represent a brand identity and create a narrative within your audience about what the brand is."Read the full transcript of Rejoice's interview at https://majestic.com/seo-in-2025/rejoice-ojiaku

Compliance is starting to have a more important role in many businesses, and Ash Nallawalla from CRM911 Digital is here to explain why digital governance is an area that you can’t afford to miss.Ash says: “Digital governance is lacking in most web-enabled businesses, at least in a formal sense.Although websites have been around for 20 years or more, their execution tends to be ad hoc, ultimately resulting in a less-than-ideal outcome for the business.‘Digital’ is a loose term that people use when they think of computers. In the context of governance, it covers websites, social media platforms, our software if we make software, and apps for mobile phones and tablets if we make apps. The definition tends to vary a little. It usually implies the internet; it doesn’t have to, but it usually does.”Read the full transcript of Ash's interview at https://majestic.com/seo-in-2025/ash-nallawalla

Effective communication is about more than just making yourself heard, and Anthony Barone from StudioHawk UK knows how to get clients and agencies to sing from the same hymn sheet.Anthony says: “I’m going to explain how to get optimal results from an agency and how an agency can get good results from their client.It’s all about working together and focusing on that relationship.”What does an optimal client-agency partnership look like in 2025?“Traditionally, it would just be: ‘We pay you, you do work.’ Then, sometimes, the client won’t actually know what you’re doing and it just keeps on rolling and rolling."Read the full transcript of Anthony's interview at https://majestic.com/seo-in-2025/anthony-barone

Building on Adrijana’s motivational advice, Anna Bravington from Those That Dare and Oxford Innovation Space helps you speak up and have your voice heard in budget discussions.Anna says: “Integrate SEO into the business better so that you can talk finance and get those CFOs to give you a budget.”Is it an SEO’s fault when they don’t get the budget or a CFO’s fault?“It’s a bit of both. There is a balance and tension between CFOs and CMOs. Apparently, 40% of CFOs don’t think that CMOs and marketing people can speak business, and marketers also don’t think that finance people understand marketing."Read the full transcript of Anna's interview at https://majestic.com/seo-in-2025/anna-bravington

David Bain and Otuto Umeji discuss what content is required for each stage of the buyer journey.Talking points include:How do you create content for each stage of the buyer journey?How do you establish user intent?How do you know what type of content to write?How do you measure success?Read the full transcript of Otuto's interview at https://majestic.com/seo-in-2025/additional-insights/otuto-umeji