Is Automation a Path of Search Growth?

What these online marketers do not understand is that Things like homepages, pricing pages, or bottom of funnel content, tends to be shown in ChatGPT. The informational top of funnel material is "consumed up" by LLMs and shown to users without anywhere to click.

If you were to take that exact same principle over to Google, you would see the very same conversion rates. Google's conversion rates show less since the traffic is higher due to it being diluted by all the top of funnel content that remains in the formula. Other things like how ChatGPT can make things up, it never fully follows prompts correctly (i.e.

I do still think that bigger business will set aside an experimental spending plan to test things like ChatGPT apps and other AI SEO tools. In 2026, I forecast people will understand optimizing for Google will enable them to show up in ChatGPT and Perplexity. Simply take a look at ChatGPT Atlas or Perplexity's Comet web browsers.

Don't do it. These tactics might work now in ChatGPT and other LLMs, but they're short-term plays that will eventually get penalized. Focus on white hat techniques that build real authority and trust gradually rather of chasing after quick wins that will not last. The 2000s are back. Scammy keyword packing techniques, spending for low-grade backlinks, delivering countless useless short articles all in the name of ranking high.

How to Scale SEO Strategies in 2026

I can't name this individual, but I fulfilled an SEO director at a big banking business. This person told me they (and all their competitors) are producing microsites (like little blogs) on various domains.

And from there, they are using their primary company domain, that has an extremely strong brand authority, and sending out backlinks to the microsite. And this has resulted in greater rankings for their brand name in LLMs like ChatGPT.It blew my mind that big, trustworthy companies are doing this. And I recognized just how much black hat (or grey hat) methods are going on behind the scenes.

GSA SER Link List

In 2026, I predict these techniques will continue to take place. Until ChatGPT's algorithm gets as clever as Google's search algorithm. That seems like a long time from now. Anyways, I personally would not advise participating in this. It's short term thinking and your energy is best invested in white hat marketing strategies that can stand the test of time and improve your sites trust signals over time.

Navigating Modern SEO Markets with Automation

Share genuine insights, utilize your own images and videos, and construct topical authority in your niche. This is how solo developers and small teams can beat substantial brands in 2026. This is one of the greatest SEO trends for content marketing I'm seeing right now.

You require a genuine company, be it a newsletter organization, a service-based organization, SaaS business, or ecommerce store. And after that you add on this human-centered niche blogging to the website to organically grow your core product/service offering. In 2026, I anticipate that Google's algorithm will continue to get smarter about which web pages include AI content and which do not.

In truth, I know lots of people quietly crushing it with AI produced material (even pursuing top of funnel keywords). But what I am saying is that engaging, human content will outrank AI created content without any original insights. There are 2 paths I see with SEO's right now: Produce countless AI-generated article and get them to rank in the middle/bottom of page 1.

Navigating Future Search Landscapes with Automation

Produce a hundred human blog posts and get them to rank at the top of the very first page. And anyone who writes much better human content will rank higher in positions 1-3. The second route is slower, but can yield greater ranking positions and more trust with readers.

The second path is for solo developers or startups that wish to do things right. And I understand I sound prejudiced for path 2. It's since I am. I have actually seen it deal with my own blog. And I've also seen it with other smaller sized developers in the company space. My buddy Victoria (an SEO who I deeply respect) is a terrific example.