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The advanced skill most SEOs pretend to understand | SEW Weekly Digest

PLUS: What leaders are saying about the next era of search at POSSIBLE 2025

Hi there,

Welcome back!

Highlights from today's newsletter:
šŸ” Meta tags SEO guide
šŸ“Š How to track visibility in GenAI platforms
šŸ¤– ChatGPT vs. Google AI mode {head-to-head comparison}

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TOP OF THE SERPS šŸ†

Search no longer starts with Google. At POSSIBLE 2025, marketers from Target, Unilever, Claritas, and Lily AI made one thing clear: discovery is happening through retail apps, product feeds, and AI agents—not browser-based queries.

From Target’s in-app search behaviors to Kellanova’s ā€œCheezmergencyā€ campaign, visibility now depends on product language, real-time relevance, and how content performs inside closed ecosystems. SEO teams are being pushed beyond keyword rankings to shape discovery in retail search, AI-powered interfaces, and influencer-led commerce.

If your content doesn’t reflect how people actually search, it’s not being seen.

AI & SEO šŸ–±ļø

SEARCH TECHNOLOGY OPTIMIZATION
GEO Prepares Content For AI Search Visibility And Citations
Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) adapts web content for large language models like ChatGPT, Gemini, and Perplexity, focusing on citations and summaries within AI-generated responses.

GEO requires clear structure, authoritative data, and consistent brand positioning to secure AI mentions, diverging from conventional SEO. Tracking performance needs specialized metrics, emphasizing platform-specific traffic and AI content references.

INNOVATIVE MARKETING TECHNOLOGIES
How AI Search Is Forcing Agencies to Rethink Their Websites to Attract Brands
Ad agencies are redesigning their websites to improve crawlability by AI-driven search platforms like ChatGPT and Perplexity, responding to brands’ increasing use of these tools for partner discovery.

Optimizing for AI search has become essential for remaining visible and competitive in winning new business. This shift signals a broader industry adaptation to AI’s influence on online brand-client connections.

AI VISIBILITY TOOLS
How to Track Visibility in GenAI Platforms
As user searches shift to generative AI platforms that lack transparent keyword data, tools like Knowatoa, Essio, and Waikay help brands track their visibility in AI-generated answers and monitor competitor presence.

These platforms analyze crawlability, prompt-based brand mentions, visibility scores, and AI training data associations. eCommerce marketers can utilize these insights to refine content and address knowledge gaps within AI environments.

EXTRA CLICKS FOR THOUGHT šŸ’”

TECHNICAL SEO STRATEGY
11 Lessons Learned from Auditing Over 500 Websites
Decades of auditing over 500 websites reveal that technical SEO, accurate JavaScript rendering, on-page optimization, data-driven keyword mapping, and effective internal linking are critical for SEO success.

Overemphasis on Core Web Vitals or backlinks without foundational practices impedes results. Manual checks must validate tool reports for precise, context-specific action.

SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION
Meta Tags SEO Guide: How To Use Meta Tags Effectively
Meta tags—such as title, description, robots, viewport, and charset—are essential HTML elements that inform search engines about webpage content, influence indexing, and impact how pages display in search results.

Proper implementation supports mobile usability, accurate content display, and improved SEO outcomes. For eCommerce sites, optimizing meta tags is crucial for discoverability and user experience.

SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION
Semantic SEO: The Advanced Skill Most SEOs Pretend to Understand
Semantic SEO is the practice of optimizing for meaning, ensuring that brands are accurately represented in search engines and large language models by aligning technical SEO, content, and branding.

It is increasingly relevant as AI-driven tools summarize and reinterpret web content, requiring brands to focus beyond keywords toward entity, sentiment, and context optimization.

Modern SEO practitioners must prioritize data consistency, structured data, and comprehensive coverage of relevant attributes to ensure machine understanding and maintain visibility amid evolving search technologies.

SOUNDS OF SEARCH šŸŽ§

Meredith's Husband | SEO for People Who Don't Like SEO
ChatGPT vs. Google AI Mode {Head-to-Head Comparison}

Google’s newly launched AI mode makes its search experience more conversational, directly competing with ChatGPT by offering instant access from the search interface.

Comparative tests show Google’s AI delivers more comprehensive answers, especially with detailed queries, while ChatGPT remains friendlier in tone. This shift signals a major trend toward integrated AI-driven search tools.

MORE THAN A NEWSLETTER

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