/seo/ - SEO Techniques

just saw some interesting data implying claude is basically using brave search as its primary source for real-time info. it seems like ranking position and how recent a result is are the main drivers when you ask it to compare things.
>claude pulls from brave results frequently
this changes how we should approach [llm optimization] since traditional google dominance might not be the only thing that matters anymore. brave visibility is becoming a huge factor for ai-driven traffic anyone else seeing shifts in their search console data lately? or are we still just focusing on the usual suspects like ahrefs metrics?. fr.

full read: https://searchengineland.com/claude-visibility-brave-search-rankings-480053

just saw that google is rolling out dedicated landing pages within discover for publishers and creators. this feels like a massive shift in how we track brand authority because it basically gives sites their own hub. i am wondering if this will change our approach to content topicality or if it is just another way to boost engagement.
>google's new search profiles give publishers and creators a dedicated landing page in discover
probably just more way for google to keep users in the ecosystem
it might make monitoring competitors through ahrefs even more interesting since we can track these specific profile hubs. i am curious if anyone has seen any impact on click-through rates yet.

full read: https://www.semrush.com/blog/google-launches-search-profiles/

just saw that anthropic is calling for a coordinated slowdown in how these models are built. they are basically worried that the jump in capability is happening way too fast for search engines to keep up w/. if they actually manage to get people to slow down, we might see more stability in content quality signals and less chaos in how google evaluates pages. right now it feels like we are constantly chasing a moving target while using tools like claude or perplexity to automate everything.
>anthropic proposes coordinated ai development pause

it is a massive wild card bc if the tech doesn't accelerate, then our current reliance on automated mass-scale content generation might actually become less of a threat to organic visibility. it makes me wonder if we should stop obsessing over scale and focus more on user intent and high-level expertise instead. if the models stay at this level, will our current strategies for outranking competitors with ahrefs data even matter in a few months? i am still skeptical about whether any big player can actually force a halt to this kind of progress

found this here: https://www.searchenginejournal.com/anthropic-asks-the-ai-industry-to-hit-the-brakes-heres-what-it-means-for-seo-search-marketers/578156/

just saw that zero-click searches are sitting at 68% now because of how google is handling ai answers. it feels like click through rate is being killed by these overviews and the new ai mode making everything a dead end for organic traffic. i was checking ahrefs data and noticed our impressions stay high but spoentertraffic is flatlining/spoiler.
>users find what they need without ever leaving the search results page

it makes me wonder if we should stop obsessing over keyword volume and start focusing more on brand searches or directs. anyone else pivoting their strategy toward instead of relying on search?

link: https://searchengineland.com/google-zero-click-searches-2026-study-479717

ngl just saw that most us queries dont even result in a click, which makes zero sense for anyone relying on organic traffic. since we cant rely on search intent as much lately, are you guys switching entirely to social or just doubling down on brand authority ?

found this here: https://www.searchenginejournal.com/google-search-sends-23-of-queries-to-the-open-web/578724/

manual outreach feels like a waste of time for small sites compared to scaleable programmatic approaches. relying on one-to-one email sequences is fine for high authority niche edits, but it lacks the reach needed for broad keyword coverage. automating your database queries can help find relevant targets, yet you still need to focus on quality over quantity to avoid spam filters.
>the real danger is building a massive list of dead links
automated scaling usually results in lower domain authority drops

fr found this deep dive on managing many sites at once via @sejournal and @taylordanrw. it goes way beyond basic updates, focusing on entity clustering and how to leverage AI for better visibility.
>optimize for proximity and relevance
anyone else experimenting with using perplexity or other LLMs to automate the gbp management side? it is getting harder to keep everything consistent without a massive workflow

https://www.searchenginejournal.com/the-complete-guide-to-local-seo-for-multiple-locations/578080/

the way ai is changing search means executives are finally listening to us, but we need more than just knowing how to use ahrefs or tracking click-thru rates. most of us are still stuck in the weeds
>stop focusing on mere rankings and start driving business value. do you think we can actually bridge that gap?

more here: https://ahrefs.com/blog/seo-tactician-to-strategist/

fr just saw that google is finally rolling out a way for sites to opt out of ai search results. the catch is they aren't giving us any way to see how it actually affects our traffic patterns or what the impact on organic click-through rates will be. without access to the underlying data, deciding whether to toggle this off feels like a total gamble.
>google lets you opt out but hides the metrics

it is basically impossible to audit the damage using search console or even ahrefs because we cannot see what we are actually losing from the ai snapshots. if i turn it off, i might save my content from being scraped, but i might also tank my visibility for certain queries. it is essentially a way for google to let us take the blame for our own traffic drops . does anyone else think this is just a way to shift responsibility away from their updates? i am sticking to my current settings until there is more transparency around these new ranking factors and data access.

link: https://www.searchenginejournal.com/google-gives-sites-ai-search-opt-out-but-not-the-data-to-use-it/577978/

focusing purely on raw search volume is a trap that leads to useless wasted effort. instead, try auditing your existing content for semantic relevance by looking at how top competitors use related terms in their headers. check the search: "keyword" filetype:pdf trick to find authoritative documents that are already ranking well. you can often find niche subtopics that have low competition but high intent.
>the real gold is in long-tail queries that match user intent exactly. **stop ignoring the zero-volume keywords because they usually convert better