Search Engine Journal Show

Is artificial intelligence an existential threat, an overhyped promise, or a fundamental shift marketers need to understand now?
Search Engine Journal Editor-in-Chief Katie Morton speaks with VIP Contributor Greg Jarboe about the extremes shaping the AI conversation.
Katie and Greg discuss why doomsday warnings can be useful, but only when they lead to practical safeguards. They also discuss the misleading promise that AI will effortlessly deliver a technological utopia.
Greg explains why marketers must move beyond basic fact-checking to "ground-truth" AI output, challenge its underlying assumptions, collaborate across departmental silos, and prepare for a shift he believes is much bigger than the arrival of another marketing tool.
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Kris Jones has been in search since the late 1990s. He built and sold Pepperjam, and now runs the agency LSEO. In this latest episode of the SEJ Podcast, he gives Loren Baker a one-word answer to the biggest question in AI search right now, and everything else we cover comes back to it.
 
We get into why AI systems have taken over the comparison step that buyers used to do themselves, why the raw material for those answers sits on websites you don't own, and what that means for where your budget actually goes. Kris makes the case that most of this is still fundamental SEO, names the cheapest immediate step most businesses are ignoring, and explains why brand messaging consistency is the new NAP consistency.
 
We also dig into what happens when AI Overviews get your pricing wrong, how people are really asking these questions, and why sizing your AI budget against today's referral traffic will leave you short.
[06:02] — AI Took Over The Comparison Step
[07:33] — Why Brand Is The Bridge
[13:33] — The Awards Your Competitors Are Applying For
[18:32] — Brand Messaging Is The New NAP Consistency
[21:23] — When AI Overviews Get Your Pricing Wrong
[28:56] — How People Are Actually Asking
[37:29] — Beyond ChatGPT And Google

Clicks are down across the open web, but the traffic didn't disappear. It moved.
Join Katie Morton (SEJ's editor in chief) and Matt Southern (senior news writer) for the RETURN of the SEJ PODCAST 🎙️ where they break down:
Where search traffic is landing now (Google properties, AI Overviews, Reddit, video)
What visibility means in an impressions-without-clicks world
The KPI shift: conversions, brand recognition, AI citations, qualified leads
Where to place content marketing bets, and what to walk away from If you need to prove content value to leadership, this one's for you.
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Links mentioned: SEJ Pro: our private, human-to-human conversation space where today's marketers make sense of what AI, agents, and algorithm changes actually mean for your brand's visibility, traffic and revenue. Supported, in real time, by the experts you already trust.

We're excited to bring you the SERP's Up podcast on the SEJ Show channel!
Join Wix for their landmark 100th episode, as their experts & guests take a deep dive into the world of SERPs. If you're frustrated by how broken the SERPs feel, don't worry…they're getting honest and covering the reasons.
In this candid discussion, they're also breaking down what's currently going on with local SEO, the effects of the Google August Update, and of course…they're talking all things AI.
Celebrate Wix's 100th episode with this powerhouse panel, as Mordy Oberstein & Crystal Carter of Wix are joined by SERP experts like Kevin Indig, Barry Schwartz, Chima Mmeje and more to let loose on issues search marketers are facing right now.
If you haven't experienced a SERPs Up episode before, you should absolutely take a listen to experience the full effect of Mordy and Crystal's banter.
The SERP's Up podcast is brought to you by Wix Studio.

Join us as we look at how your online reputation and local marketing strategies can drive revenue for your business, while avoiding pitfalls along the way.
With guest Raj Nijjer of Edge, we'll dive into the revenue impacts that your online reputation can have, and why this reputation building should be crucial in your planning.
Join your host Loren Baker, as he and Raj discuss how to avoid wasteful strategies of local marketing and multi-location businesses, plus a couple tips on how a good reputation can help attract and retain top talent.
[01:14] - Raj's Background and Journey to Edge.
[02:44] - Edge's Concept of Employee-Driven Growth and Its Connection to Google Reviews.
[10:34] - How Reviews Contribute to Local SEO.
[11:27] - Customer-Facing End: In-Depth Reviews and Personalization.
[13:24] - Standing Out in Cutthroat Competition: Franchises and Service Businesses.
[14:37] - Motivating Employees and Transparent Recognition Through Reviews.
[20:49] - Reputation Management and Injecting Employee Recognition.
[45:06] - Employee Retention During Challenges Like The COVID-19 Pandemic.
We encourage businesses to amplify positive reviews and learn from the negative reviews. - Raj Nijjer, 5:34
Now not only does the brand win and the business win, but employees can feel great or a person can feel great about the job that they've done. - Raj Nijjer, 9:21
Positive reviews are so important. There's one stat I read on your site…53% of customers won't go to a business rated under four stars. - Loren Baker, 15:21
I think the injection of motivating and recognizing your employees while they're doing this service is something that we're very proud of, because we can see which employees are doing really well. And then you can duplicate that. - Raj Nijjer, 21:44
Our goal is to marry the marketing with operational excellence. You want to hold people accountable, especially if you're rewarding them. - Raj Nijjer, 30:53
I think one thing COVID taught every business owner is employee retention and how hard it's been to find people and when a displacement happens, it really jeopardizes your business if you don't plan it well. So you want to keep your superstars, don't ever lose your superstars. - Raj Nijjer - 41:10
Resources Mentioned:
Edge
Connect With Raj Nijjer:
Raj is Head of Marketing for Edge, an employee-driven growth platform for service brands. Previously, he was the CMO of Refersion (acquired), and held executive marketing roles at Yotpo and Yext (IPO in 2017). Raj also spent over nine years at Godaddy (IPO in 2015) in leadership roles launching innovative product lines with over ten patents issued and leading to a PE buyout and an IPO.
Raj is also fractional CMO to early and mid-stage technology startups. Raj received his Bachelors of Science degree in International Management and his MBA from the W.P. Carey School of Business at Arizona State University.
Connect on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rajnijjer/
Follow him on Twitter: https://twitter.com/RajNijjer
Connect with Loren Baker:
Follow him on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/lorenbaker
Connect with him on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lorenbaker