Hiya,

This week’s theme in digital marketing: Humans being the curators, the tasteful eyes, of AI work.

With that said, let’s dive in.

We have a 21st-century gold rush… in content creation. 

While AI provides speed and efficiency at levels never thought possible, it does have a tendency to spew AI slop, or as I like to call it, “fool’s gold”. It means we need higher standards of taste when we work with AI in the content creation process.

Learn how to distinguish the good from the meh ideas when it comes to AI’s usage in content creation. It starts with two questions:

• How Should I Use AI for this Piece of Content? Discuss the three considerations that should be weighed before AI is used: outside circumstances, resources, and the creativity/efficiency dynamic.
• Is This Content Idea Worth Pursuing or Just Fool’s Gold? Then, we’ll learn to distinguish the metaphorical pyrite (fool’s gold) from the gold nuggets surrounding content creation processes in the AI age.

• ChatGPT removed the UTM tracking parameter with the release of GPT-6. Since Oct 10th, ChatGPT-driven sessions have been going into the direct traffic bucket. We noticed some traffic has been gradually coming back this week (Profound said they noticed traffic coming back as early as the 16th), so when/if you see a sudden drop in ChatGPT referrals this month, you know why.

• This Search Engine Journal article is predicting another major Panda-like Google Algorithm Update before the end of the year. Before you start doomsdaying, weigh the insights of this paragraph against your current AEO best practices:
  “Google’s guidance on AI content now says it is critical to manually fact-check and review everything generated before publishing, including titles, meta descriptions, structured data, and alt text, while the helpful-content guidelines have been given new language that defines main content and names the four things quality raters look for – effort, originality, talent or skill, and accuracy.”
  … You should easily survive this predicted update if you are following these guidelines. If not, try realigning your work flow (even if the update never happens).

• Bing Webmaster Tools announced the expansion of its AI Performance section to include a Beta version of what it is calling “Topic Porfolio”. It aims to provide a broader thematic view of how AI “sees” your website. It shows clusters of topics of related grounding queries where your site appears, the approximate size of topic citations, the approximate number of websites appearing in citations for this topic, and the number of distinct queries of this topic. It goes further to identify Top Opportunity Queries with citation ranges based on the topic data it has. Some initial DBE notes/considerations:
  • This data is still based on Copilot data only. We have already been reporting on Copilot Grounding Queries data which can show high volumes of impressions that we don’t see converting into actual clicks (based on GA4 data).
  • A quick review of Opportunity Queries, suggested for a few of our clients, shows many queries that are very broad in nature and/or not necessarily relevant to the products/services that they offer.

• Google Discover may be transforming from a feed of content you might be interested in to a “proactive, hyper-personalized concierge experience that helps users make progress on their goals” (according to a job posting for a Principal, UX, Search Discover). If true, it’s bad news for the news publishers who rely on the current feed for traffic. Whether it will aid consumers in their consumptive journey remains to be seen. 

• After attending the NJ Digital Marketing Conference, I realized there was an overarching theme connecting every panelist and speaker: AI can do so much of our work, but one thing it does not have is taste. That’s where humans come in. We can distinguish what is AI slop (or “fool’s gold”) and we are the crucial eyes needed to review AI’s work.

• LinkedIn, X, and Threads posts containing links got 1/12th the impressions according to Rand Fishkin’s analysis on his own social channels. Other larger-scale studies say the engagement declines for posts with external links are not as dramatic. This is a reminder that native posts are necessary and crucial to a fully-formed social strategy.

The more you spend time in nature, you realize how connected we are to our environment and there are so many ways we need to protect it. The Center for Biological Diversity is helping by guarding endangered species. From legislation to media outreach to scientific analysis, they have their hands in a slew of species conservation efforts. Learn more today: Center for Biological Diversity. 

Best Wishes 🌠

Natalie

We discussed how you are the strategist… the tastemaker… the critical eye of AI. You are the difference between mediocre and “wow.”

With all this intelligent accessibility at our fingertips, wield your power with thoughtfulness and pizazz. 🙂

Hiya,

We are sooo back and ready to lay out all the hot gossip in digital marketing.

• Google’s September Spam Update took longer than previous updates. It also produced considerable visibility volatility in rank trackers (like AWR) “which people searching on Google didn’t see reflected” in their results. We are keeping a close eye 👁️ on long term impacts of the update.

• “Want lasting AI brand visibility? Stop looking for hacks” discusses leveraging a cross-departmental visibility framework to drive real results. It’s music to our ears as we have long embraced and encouraged this approach. The article also shares a roadmap to help achieve this collaborative environment.

• Demandsphere reports “AI Overviews on branded queries tripled in September.” There is no identified explanation for the surge, and there is no click and CTR data to indicate how that visibility translated into website traffic. Even if this spike doesn’t continue, it is a good reminder that your brand needs to be considered a topic for AI optimization just like your products/services.

• Americans don’t have a positive view on social media’s impact on democracy, according to Pew. High-income nations in general seem to have a more negative view of these channels. You can see this view trickles down to teen and child social media restrictions.

• Getting a degree in Content Creation is no longer a far-out dream. Colleges like Arizona State, Stanford, and Syracuse have introduced classes and degrees focused on the creator economy… not just for the front-end, but the back-end analysts, operators, managers, etc. The world’s changin’, y’all.

What are solar cookers, you say? This organization’s name immediately got my attention. According to their website, “3 in 7 people lack sustainable fuel to cook meals and make water safe to drink. So, Solar Cookers International provides cookers that use the power of the sun to purify water and cook food. To learn how you can help (and see what solar cookers look like), visit their website: Solar Cookers International.

Keep it real, y’all ✌️

Natalie

Just in case you forgot…

You’re awesome.

Howdy,

So, you think you know digital marketing? I’m sure you do, but have you heard this??

• Yes, AI can accelerate the beginning of content creation. However, workflow problems like getting approvals and sign-offs and coordination across teams remain project completion bottlenecks. More content just means hitting those speed bumps sooner. “Mo’ content, mo’ problems” (hat tip to Puff Daddy).

• Another Google Spam Update is on the loose.

• Reminder: Title Tags remain an important element for SEO and SAIO visibility and click-through success.

• With AI Overviews appearing in 39% of desktop searches, it’s time to ask the question: Is Google lying about AI Mode? Granted, this research was limited in scope. It relied on forcing scenarios like a regular Google search without AI Overviews and AI Mode or an AI-Mode only search environment. The low click-through rates on AI Mode suggest that Google’s claims about supplemental AI clicks to brand websites may not be true. *sigh* If only we could see Google AI click performance… Say it with us, “Google, where are the clicks?”

• You’ve heard of press passes. How about creator passes? That way, you can personalize the experience for the two. Thoughts?

• Claude’s got plugins… get the lowdown on which to use. (If you’re a content creator, check out this summary video from Modern Millie.)

• What can Mila Kunis and Justin Timberlake teach us about business? Dorie Clark, best-selling author and HBR contributor, has some fascinating thoughts on home turf defense.

Ever get a little sketched when looking at a charity’s website? Hey, that’s natural. You want to make sure your support is going to the right place. Charity Navigator helps you find reputable charities you’re passionate about. Let’s support them, too: Charity Navigator.

Catch you on the flipside!

Natalie

I’ve been on a magical networking tour, and here are some myths I need to bust right now:

❌ You are bothering people by reaching out.

✅ Many people enjoy helping when given the chance. Just remember to ask them what they need. It’s a two-way street, y’all.

❌ This person is higher than me on the life/career/awesomeness hierarchy.

✅ Sure, this person did a lot of great things, but they still brush their teeth and tie their shoes. They are just as “human” as you.

❌ Networking conversations are hard. 

✅ In a webinar with Tony Martignetti, he said to enter networking conversations with an open mind and genuine interest in the other person. Ask deeper questions, relate with what you’re doing, and transcend the problem by comparing notes. *Lasting connections come from being ourselves. 

Networking is simply people helping people.

Hey y’all,

Digital marketing update coming in 3, 2, 1…

• 41% of B2B pros start with AI, then validate via traditional search while 35% start with traditional search, then use AI. Either way, it’s the classic “trust but verify” model. And it verifies the importance of combining both SEO and SAIO to gain visibility and trust. 

• Wayfair CMO Paul Toms talks about the “mindset to commit to AI before it benefits you.” It is a bit like the “build it and they will come” mindset from Field of Dreams except you are building relevance before the intent exists. Wayfair is also using AI to do “test dimension validation” to ensure product descriptions and imagery are accurate and trustworthy. 

• “…these tools you use to monitor AI platforms will help you choose prompts to monitor. The problem is you can’t really trust it. Whether it comes up with the prompts or you do, you need to validate them against what your customers are actually asking AI, and that’s hard.” We agree with search expert Dale Bertrand. We tell our clients that the AI monitoring tools are great for directional data. AI is only just so good at summing up human behavior.

• Attention content marketers: you should read Orbit Media’s Blogging Statistics 2026. The story documents why, “nearly one in five content marketers can no longer tell you whether the work they do is working.” A few findings we found interesting include:
  • None of the use cases for AI correlated with stronger performance. “Marketers just got faster at making the same things.”
  • Marketers who always research keywords as part of their blog content development (who were just 18% of the total) reported the highest level of strong results. “SEOs make good content marketers.”
  • Not all marketers measure the results of their blog, and those that do are not using the metric that most correlates with strong results — brand visibility in the form of rankings and AI mentions. “Traffic is the most watched metric and the weakest.”

• The secret to writing better emails ➡️ tell a better story… you know, one that feels like it should be whispered in your audiences’ metaphorical ears…one that encourages their participation… one that highlights your unique insight.… Though Ann Handley’s insight is best used on newsletters… you can pull out some good tidbits for marketing emails too!

Glasses can change lives.

From children to adults, Eyelliance brings affordable, high-quality optical glasses and enterprises to people that need them. Check them out: Eyelliance.

Dream on, fam 🤘

Natalie

Jia Jiang put himself through 100 days of rejection therapy.

100 days of outrageous questions like: 

• Asking for $100 from a stranger
• Asking for a free room at a hotel
• Asking PetSmart groomers to trim his hair

The groundbreaking discovery here was not his bountiful resilience to rejection (which he developed through his experiment), but only a small percentage of the people asked had genuinely negative reactions.

The point: if you’re scared to ask something, chances are others are more accommodating than you think. Many people genuinely want to help each other. 🙂

Hello fellow digital marketers,

Got a killer article you want to share? Connect with me on LinkedIn! 🙂

• The latest Gemini 3.8 Flash model was buggin’ by not linking or citing sources in AI Mode. It’s hard enough to win citation visibility through relevant, helpful content but to not have it be rewarded due to a bug? That’s #SummertimeSadness fo sure.

• The state of AI in 2026: On the road to ROI. McKinsey’s AI survey impact report covers how larger companies are implementing AI and what has changed since last year. 80% of respondents report AI has improved their individual productivity and 50% report AI helps them make better decisions. This productivity has its downside as 39% of respondents expect AI-related declines in employment. One silver lining: the expected declines for last year were less than the actual declines. 

• Your SEO and PPC keyword data should not live in silos. Here are our thoughts on the strategy of not bidding on high-ranking organic keywords: Yes, you can save money. But Google research showed that when both a paid and an organic listing appear high in the results, 50% of the clicks on the paid ad are entirely incremental (i.e., clicks you would not have gotten). When you have both a paid and organic listing, there’s a double-exposure effect that reinforces the authority of your brand. The decision to implement this strategy depends on budget constraints and visibility goals.

• With so many versions of truth out there (e.g., an outdated PDF from 2014, an old executive bio page), it’s no surprise when AI cycles in misinformation. Publishing correct content now won’t fix it without addressing the older content too— it’s a matter of bridging old, incorrect content with new, updated content. Awesome summary video and article.

• Not surprising news: Google Search Console reporting is not entirely accurate for AI Overviews. You have to look at the data directionally and understand how it is filtered:
  • You get an Impression when your website appears on a page that got served (whether it was scrolled or not.)
  • You won’t get an Impression if your link appeared in a click-to-reveal section that wasn’t clicked.
  • When you appear in AI Overviews, the average position metric is based on the position of the AI Overview on the overall results page, not where your link was in the list of AI Overview links.
  • The real question we still have is…

• Breaking news for PPC: Microsoft Ads is removing Max CPC from new campaigns starting Oct 1. Microsoft wants advertisers to link performance more toward campaign outcomes and rely more on automated bidding systems. (What else is new?)

• Is mainstream culture still a thing? YouTube says yes. Even though culture is more fragmented, we still want to share experiences with each other. The big pull: fan engagement is crucial to cultural shifts, particularly with creators.

Sometimes charity seems overwhelming. Saving the world is a big task. Lasagna Love helps bring the world-changing to your kitchen. Lasagna Love volunteers sign up to cook a meal and deliver it to a family in need. That’s it. Just old-fashioned love spread through a warm, hearty meal. Learn more about their mission: Lasagna Love.

Shine on, you crazy diamonds 🤘💎

Natalie

No idea is truly unique.

Every single one was ideated from a scrapbook of experience.

Complete originality does not exist.

So we must celebrate inspiration — find joy in sowing creative seeds in the soil of the creations that came before.

Hi,

Don’t blink… or digital marketing will change on ya! (Just kidding, it will change whether you blink or not.)

• AI visibility has two jobs: execute SEO and mobilize the organization. This story links SEO and SAIO success together not just from a technical/content perspective but also ensures important guidance and inputs are shared from other departments and experts within your company. This multi-disciplinary support helps overcome the inherent “recommendation problem” in building authority and relevance to gain AI platform citations. 

• Another month, another Google update. But Google’s August Spam Update appears to be focused on catching mass-generated SEO AI content . It’s a recognition of, and an attempt to reduce, the poor user experiences with AI slop. The article also notes that user experiences are the true “trust signals” regarding the helpfulness and relevance of your website. 

• Update on-going debate over what to call AI search optimization: AI search is here, but marketers still call it SEO. Our readers know we call it SAIO for Search AI Optimization. Apparently, we are among the minority 27% to have formally adapted any terminology beyond “SEO” for AI-related search. Other stats from the article:
  • The top 2 challenges marketers face in AI search are “keeping pace with how rapidly the landscape is evolving” and “measuring performance or visibility in AI-generated results”.
  • ChatGPT is the number one AI platform marketers are most focused on at 34% and Perplexity the least at 1%. Our SAIO is meant to create content that is relevant and attractive to all AI platforms, so no need to target individual platforms.

• New PMax controls will allow advertisers to tell the algorithm which channels to prioritize. The option for more control is always accepted from an advertising perspective!

• Meta’s $18 billion payout led to the announcement of new features to protect teen users from the harms of social media use including:
  • “A daily default two-hour usage time limit cumulative across Facebook and Instagram
  • A default block on Meta apps between midnight and 6 a.m.
  • Notifications will be muted by default during school hours (8 a.m. to 3 p.m.)
  • Teen users will be able to choose a non-algorithmic feed as their default.”
  • It sounds like a step in the right direction for teens and maybe for adults, too.

Children with Hair Loss provides human hair replacements to children at no cost. Originally, CWHL’s focus was on children fighting cancer, but have since expanded to support children with hair loss from other factors, including Alopecia, burns, Trichotillomania, and other rare diseases and disorders. They’re providing customized human hair replacement and care kits to over 600 children a year. Learn more about their hair donation programs and other ways you can provide support.

Best,

Natalie

A laugh to brighten your day 🙂

Heyo, 

It’s the last full week of August and the digital marketing news is cooking, as always.

• 71% of US shoppers who use AI at least once a month turn to AI assistants when making purchasing decisions, according to EMARKETER. 34% use AI-generated summaries in search engine results. However, they don’t actually make the purchase through AI portals. Once again showing the influence and value of AI visibility as part of the path to purchase.

• Promptwatch reports Reddit’s share of citations in ChatGPT took a big dive last week and is slowly dropping in AI Mode. Could this be a sign AI platforms are shifting to cite more useful sources to create a better user experience and generate more ad revenues? That tracks with this story about how ChatGPT fan-out queries are leveraging their own version of E-E-A-T quality values to reduce spammy outputs. Regardless, this reinforces our recommendation of not jumping down the Reddit rabbit-hole unless your audience lives there. 

Thoughts on writing, AI, and copyright: 

• Humans are on a witch hunt to call out AI-created work, making their own rules for what’s AI-written. This article talks about how AI detectors are making mistakes too by doling out false positives on human-written work. 
  • Moral of the story: don’t let AI detectors and peoples’ AI detection rules scare you from writing. Write what you need and follow your own rules. #EmDashesAreNotJustForAI
• Anthropic is battling the AI detection/copyright problem with complex text watermarking (which is a bit backward, considering they trained the AI on copyrighted material). 
  • Moral of the story: If you use AI to help you write, know the use case in which it is appropriate.
• LinkedIn has had over 1 million users report AI slop so far. LinkedIn Creator Product Lead Sam Corrao Clannon has an intriguing definition for AI slop: “[C]ontent that is potentially sophisticated or polished in its presentation, but lacks substance.”
  • Moral of the story: Whether your posts are written by AI or not, the content itself must provide value to LinkedIn users or else you’ll be labeled as hot trash.

• YouTube influencers know how to work brand partnerships. Sprout gives the 11 best examples of brand partnership video types along with some hot tips to make them watchable. My favorite tip: weave the sponsorship in the storyline of the video, so it feels organic and creative instead of intrusive. Perfecting this can keep users watching even through the sponsored section.

“… We’re not just talking about mental health when there’s a crisis, we’re talking about mental health everyday,” Alison Malmon, Founder & Executive Director of Active Minds.

Originally named “Open Minds,” the organization was created to spread the word that seeking mental health help is a sign of strength, not shame. Now 20 years later, Active Minds has chapters on over 1,000 campuses and communities. Their goal is to support young adult mental health and create change for future generations: Active Minds.

Keep it groovy ☮️

Natalie

When an artist lives and breathes a piece of work, they bury so much meaning in the intricate details. These details act as a scavenger hunt for the observer — a pathway to navigate the mind of the creator.

Next time you see a play, go to an art museum, listen to a song, really delve into the work and see if you can find the ideas the artist left. 🙂

Heya,

Summer’s flying at us fast and so is the digital marketing news!

• While we agree with the synchronicity strategy of looking at SEO and SAIO optimization as interrelated in this “keyword research meets prompt research” story, we don’t agree comparing keyword volume with prompt volume as a driver for that strategy. Prompt volumes are currently very volatile. We’re currently looking at overlaps between top organic search result pages and top pages for AI citations via Google Search Console and Bing Webmaster Tools to identify optimization synergies and gaps. Eventually, getting click data will take it a step further.

• AI responses are haunted. 👻 JK, but they are offering “ghost citations”. That’s when a brand is cited as a contributor to the prompt response, but the brand itself is not mentioned directly in the prompt response. The rate of ghost citations varies by AI platform, but it happens about 40% of the time on average. One solution is tying your brand name more explicitly to your citation-worthy content snippets. This can help prevent ghost citations and build your brand authority.

• Reddit’s CEO revealed the platform’s intent to show more evergreen content like recommendations and reviews. At the same time, it is working to make its search bar more engaging by integrating ad modules. It sounds like they want to cash in directly on their content rather than having it fuel AI results (and ad revenues) on other platforms like Google’s AI Overviews or ChatGPT.

• What metrics best demonstrate marketing’s impact? Marketing Charts shows the top 4 of 5 metrics mentioned were revenue-related. The fifth metric cited by only 3% of respondents was “Share of voice/brand equity.” The story behind the chart reveals there remains misalignment of KPIs between marketing teams and finance teams within companies that trickles over to their agency teams.

• Hyperlinks… in Google search ad descriptions? Oh yeah, it’s being tested now.

Most of us recognize that cute panda logo associated with the World Wildlife Foundation (WWF). For 60+ years, they’ve been spearheading conservation efforts worldwide. They work with local communities to conserve, advocate, protect, and restore natural resources. Learn more about them and their projects: WWF.

Keep kicking butt and takin’ names, y’all!

Natalie

When small things weigh you down, ask yourself:

Will this matter later?

Not every moment has to be treated with serious precision. 

In fact, sometimes, seriousness drains potential joy from the moment.

Here’s some other ways to help you view life more lightly.

Helllloooooo,

Welcome to this week’s digital marketing dispatch!

• “82% of weekly AI users use Google Search every day, compared with 71% of all internet users, according to a May 2026 survey from EMARKETER.” More proof that AI isn’t replacing search — the job is getting shared.

• Teach Claude AI a skill with a screen recording. Go ahead… try it!

• Anthropic didn’t block private Claude chats from being indexed by Google and Bing. It seems to be mostly fixed now, but this is a reminder to make sure your brand’s private pages aren’t being indexed.

• Google recommended using a 304 server response code to conserve crawl budget on pages that haven’t changed.

• Is your content treading on thin ice with Google? Check out how Google may be targeting AI-generated content as “thin content” not worthy of ranking. 

• Connected content aims to integrate media and creative efforts with more fluidity in the campaign development process. It tailors content to fit the context and channel. This is a way to break from siloed departments and keep teams working together, folks.

• As people turn to social media for news, it’s an interesting time to create a brand newsroom. Timely narratives and reports of the latest news can be shared with your audience here. It’s a place to get to know your audience and position your brand story.

When you transition into adulthood, there are so many things you have to learn on the fly… what insurance do you need? How much of my paycheck should go to rent? I just started work… I need to think about retirement, now? W!se is an educational nonprofit that provides financial education, college and career readiness programs, and services to students, educators and at-risk adults. Learn more about their work: W!se.

Never have I seen a sport that highlights peoples’ unique strengths more than rock climbing.

A shorter person might have power in their jumps (dyno). A visual person might be able to see the climb before hitting the wall.

If you keep your eyes peeled in everyday life, you’ll see those unique strengths everywhere, like in the way your cousin throws a party or how your friend is a phenomenal chef.

When you notice someone has a flare for something, let them know. Spread the kindness!

Have a mighty fine Wednesday,

Natalie

Thank you, Merriam-Webster, for reminding us of what we have long forgotten since our elementary school days.