Episode Highlights:
- Grant Simmons shares his unconventional journey from 1980s programming to becoming a top SEO strategist, emphasizing the importance of foundational practices.
- Recent SEO trends like entity SEO, entity maps, and Google's evolving understanding layers—comparing Google’s approach to Large Language Models (LLMs)—are discussed.
- The significance of schema markup: its role in grounding search results, its impact on AI and LLMs, and best practices for implementation.
- How SEO tools leverage data like Google Search Console and Log File Analysis to refine strategies; discussion on tools like Market Brew, SEO Crawl, and the importance of first-party data.
- The challenges and opportunities in SEO attribution, reporting, and measuring real impact amidst evolving algorithms and AI influences.
- The industry’s salivation over new tech like AR, Self-driving cars, and the “beta testing culture” where poor launches are accepted as part of innovation.
- Grant reflects on his experience at Homes.com, algorithm penalties, and recovery strategies—highlighting the importance of aggressive, foundational SEO efforts.
- The industry’s shift from “golden age of easy wins” to embracing complexity, with an emphasis on outcome-based SEO and understanding user engagement.
- How SEOs should adapt budgets for emerging AI and LLM-related services, integrating them as an extension rather than a replacement for traditional SEO.
- The importance of continuous testing, validation, and building innovative tools to better interpret data, including future focuses like Log File Analysis and tracking user paths for actionable insights.
- Grant’s current work at Fiat Growth and his openness to collaboration and beta testing new SEO tools and strategies.
- Article Recap on Waikay by Grant
- Watch the interview
Why You Should Listen:
This episode brings a seasoned SEO veteran's perspective—highlighting the evolving landscape of search engines, LLMs, and strategic priorities for modern SEOs. Whether you're interested in technical strategies, industry trends, or innovative tools, Grant's insights contribute a practical, experience-backed viewpoint.
Main Topics:
- Entity SEO and Knowledge Graphs
- Schema Markup & Semantic Optimization
- SEO Data, Tools, and Log File Analysis
- AI, LLMs, and Their Impact on Search
- Industry Evolution & Future Trends
Timestamps:
00:00 - Welcome and episode overview
02:13 - Recent SEO shifts and unique site issues
03:23 - Entity SEO and the new standard: Entity Map
05:50 - Google’s grounding strategies and LLMs
07:35 - Schema markup: value and best practices
09:45 - The role of entity graphs in fighting hallucinations
11:20 - Comparing Google’s knowledge layer and LLMs
13:30 - Schema’s influence on AI and search categorization
15:25 - The importance of knowledge layers and disambiguation
16:55 - Future of AI and entity-based understanding in search
19:00 - Industry challenges with beta software testing culture
21:17 - Recovery stories: Homes.com Panda penalty case
23:00 - The evolving complexity of SEO tools and strategies
26:00 - Data-driven decision making and user engagement metrics
30:30 - The importance of strategic budgets for AI and LLMs
33:00 - Future developments: Log file analysis & user path tracking
37:00 - Grant’s current projects and contact info
Resources & Links:
