{"id":155062,"date":"2025-12-16T16:11:49","date_gmt":"2025-12-16T21:11:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.dacgroup.com\/?post_type=podcasts&#038;p=155062"},"modified":"2025-12-30T11:34:39","modified_gmt":"2025-12-30T16:34:39","slug":"ai-max-and-the-keywordless-future-of-search","status":"publish","type":"podcasts","link":"https:\/\/www.dacgroup.com\/en-ca\/insights\/podcasts\/ai-max-and-the-keywordless-future-of-search\/","title":{"rendered":"Smarter Search Marketing: Insights from Google\u2019s AI Max and the New SEO Reality\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"featured_media":155102,"menu_order":0,"template":"","meta":{"content-type":""},"podcasts-service-type":[],"podcast-category":[],"class_list":["post-155062","podcasts","type-podcasts","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"acf":{"publish_date":"20251216","expert_source":"dac-team","author":87607,"duration":"16 minutes","title":"Smarter Search Marketing: Insights from Google\u2019s AI Max and the New SEO Reality","hero":{"type":"video","hero_image":null,"hero_video":"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=IrhQDgblmeI&list=PL7_ZSBXaYOpULieJSVbhgwnqecld-Y6Na&index=4 "},"podcast_iframe":"<iframe height=\"200px\" width=\"100%\" frameborder=\"no\" scrolling=\"no\" seamless src=\"https:\/\/player.cohostpodcasting.com\/a61a27ea-7267-4006-8298-6c1a0e704473\/ec80fa02-5665-428f-915a-2631514403a3\"><\/iframe> ","promotional_listen_text":"Listen now on your favorite platform","content":"<span data-teams=\"true\">Is AI actually making your media more efficient, or just driving more empty traffic?\u00a0 In this episode of Shift Happens, DAC\u2019s SVP of Client Strategy, Nasser Sahlool, joins Jenna Watson, SVP of Media, to unpack what AI Max really delivers, where it falls short, and how to balance automation with human strategy. They also explore the emerging keyword less future of SEO \u00a0and why AI-driven search requires a complete rethink of how brands measure visibility and discoverability.\u00a0<\/span>","tips":{"tips_title":"Key takeaways","tips":[{"tip_image":155037,"tip_title":"AI Max delivers efficient scale, but only under the right conditions.","tip_content":"AI Max can unlock incremental audiences, lower CPCs, and expanded reach, but it works best for accounts already built for scale. Smaller budgets or overly granular campaigns often see weaker results. "},{"tip_image":155037,"tip_title":"Automation doesn\u2019t replace oversight: it increases the need for it.","tip_content":"AI Max can suffer from relevancy issues, keyword bleed, and higher CPAs if left unattended. Human strategy is essential to maintain quality and ensure incremental gains aren\u2019t mistaken for inefficiency. "},{"tip_image":155037,"tip_title":"SEO is entering a keywordless future shaped by LLMs and conversational search. ","tip_content":"Discovery is no longer driven by isolated keywords but by iterative, AI-guided conversations. Traditional click-based SEO models are eroding as zero-click searches rise and LLMs source answers directly. "},{"tip_image":155037,"tip_title":"The real sea change is organizational, not just tactical.","tip_content":"Marketers understand the shift, but haven\u2019t accepted it. Brands must rethink measurement, redefine what visibility means, and align teams around discoverability rather than website traffic alone. "},{"tip_image":155037,"tip_title":"SEO is no longer a silo: it\u2019s now a cross-functional discipline.","tip_content":"With AI and LLMs reshaping search behavior, SEO must integrate tightly with content, dev, media, and analytics. Brands must plan for AI-driven search now, or risk being left behind. "}]},"transcript":"<span data-contrast=\"auto\">Welcome to Shift Happens the art, science, and chaos of modern marketing. Each episode unpacks the forces reshaping marketing from AI and data to privacy, creative and performance, and asks experts how they transform disruption into advantage.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Nasser:<\/span><\/b><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span data-contrast=\"auto\">In this episode,\u00a0I'll\u00a0be joined by\u00a0Jenna\u00a0Watson, also SVP but this time of media, at\u00a0DAC, one of my favorite people, and\u00a0all round\u00a0good egg. She has years of experience leading media strategy across industries. And they have been hands on with keyword research, including AI and SEO and AI Max, testing it across client\u00a0campaigns\u00a0and uncovering both the wins and the watch outs.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span data-contrast=\"auto\">She's\u00a0here to share lessons straight from the front lines. Welcome to the show,\u00a0Jenna\u00a0Watson.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Jenna:<\/span><\/b><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span data-contrast=\"auto\">Thank\u00a0you\u00a0Nasser. And may I just say, guess\u00a0who's\u00a0back? Back again?\u00a0Jenna\u00a0is back.\u00a0With\u00a0her\u00a0friend.\u00a0Because we are the old school podcast.\u00a0But\u00a0sans Dan. How sad for him. But here we are. Back again at the microphone with each other.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Nasser:\u00a0<\/span><\/b><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span data-contrast=\"auto\">So sad. Sad for him.\u00a0Very, very sad\u00a0for Dan. Yeah. Good for us.\u00a0Yeah. So,\u00a0Jenna,\u00a0let's\u00a0get into this.\u00a0So\u00a0question I recently heard:\u00a0if AI is supposed to make media more efficient, how do I know that\u00a0it's\u00a0actually saving\u00a0me money and getting me better customers and not just driving\u00a0empty\u00a0traffic? So a way to think about that is and this is how what we're going to be exploring today as we dig into the keyword less future in search and SEO, but also within paid\u00a0tools such as AI Max, which is, you know, as of today, Google's new search feature.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span data-contrast=\"auto\">But\u00a0let's\u00a0start with the people\u00a0this really\u00a0impacts,\u00a0our clients and their customers. What challenges were advertisers and users facing that made a solution\u00a0like for example, AI Max appealing? What gap in their experience does this type of automation aim to fill?\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Jenna:\u00a0<\/span><\/b><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span data-contrast=\"auto\">So\u00a0it depends, I suppose, on the advertiser. As Google continues down its path of using AI enabled ad types and targeting types, this will be super helpful to the small kind of individual operator that wants to\u00a0gain entry into\u00a0a tool like Google Ads, because really, it can be.\u00a0It is not\u00a0at DAC.\u00a0It can be a set it and forget it thing. But what it\u00a0impacts\u00a0for DAC and for our clients is\u00a0AI\u00a0Max in paid gives us a way to find incremental audiences.\u00a0So\u00a0it's\u00a0just a toggle on your search account, right?\u00a0It's\u00a0not like\u00a0it's\u00a0a whole net new thing per se, but it uses broad matching keyword, the signals to\u00a0go find\u00a0more people that you\u00a0wouldn't\u00a0have found otherwise just using your regular search account.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span data-contrast=\"auto\">So it is an incremental scaling tactic that we like to use.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Nasser:<\/span><\/b><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span data-contrast=\"auto\">So\u00a0from our testing, where have we\u00a0actually seen\u00a0it deliver real value.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Jenna:<\/span><\/b><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span data-contrast=\"auto\">So\u00a0it does\u00a0depending\u00a0on the way your search campaigns are set up in AI for\u00a0for\u00a0AI Max, it does deliver that efficient scale.\u00a0So\u00a0it'll\u00a0get you\u00a0possibly some\u00a0lower CPC, some incremental reach.\u00a0It really is designed for scaling efficiently, but\u00a0that's\u00a0not necessarily going to be the case for every single client or every single account structure\u00a0that's\u00a0out there.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Nasser:<\/span><\/b><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span data-contrast=\"auto\">So\u00a0that's\u00a0interesting because you used the word like efficient scale.\u00a0You've\u00a0also talked about the fact that this is incremental, right. Which I find interesting and contrasting with kind of Google's first shot across the bow when it comes to AI automation, which was\u00a0P\u00a0Max.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span data-contrast=\"auto\">And when that first came out, a lot of marketers hated it. They were like,\u00a0it's\u00a0a black box, and all\u00a0it's\u00a0doing is cannibalizing what we were already doing. But\u00a0you're\u00a0saying this is different?\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Jenna:<\/span><\/b><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span data-contrast=\"auto\">Yes and no. It is different.\u00a0It's\u00a0doing different things.\u00a0It's\u00a0got different ad types. It appears, in\u00a0different places.\u00a0It's\u00a0different. Both things are still very much going to advance into change.\u00a0So\u00a0advertisers hated\u00a0P\u00a0Max at the beginning because it was a black box, and to be perfectly honest, it\u00a0didn't\u00a0perform that well at the very beginning. But of course, as more users test into it, as it gets more data, as it learns more, it gets\u00a0better and better and better. And now\u00a0we're\u00a0using\u00a0P\u00a0Max all over the place.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0I think, in this case, some of the, some of the things and snafus that people are going to run into is if you are an already very sophisticated Google Ads marketer, and you're already using a lot of broad match, and you're already using a lot of\u00a0P\u00a0Max, and you're already using\u00a0RSAs responsive search ads, the scale you're going to get out of this is going to be probably minimal.\u00a0Because those things are already designed for scale, right? Broad match in and of itself is designed to get you more, with what\u00a0you're\u00a0doing.\u00a0So\u00a0there's\u00a0the\u00a0really sophisticated\u00a0marketers where this is nice and it will, it will add some incrementality and might as well\u00a0go get\u00a0that. Absolutely. On the\u00a0flip side\u00a0of that is if clients have smaller budgets or if their campaigns set up is really,\u00a0really\u00a0granular\u00a0and really,\u00a0really tight, it\u00a0doesn't\u00a0do\u00a0a great job.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0It's\u00a0just too small to be impactful.\u00a0So\u00a0there is a fine line that\u00a0we're\u00a0finding there for sure. Okay.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Nasser:<\/span><\/b><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span data-contrast=\"auto\">What other limitations are you finding there?\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Jenna:<\/span><\/b><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span data-contrast=\"auto\">Well, there have been some stickiness where\u00a0there's\u00a0a little bit of kind of like, you know, almost call it keyword bleed in the old in the old way where like broaden or excuse me brand and\u00a0non brand\u00a0or having like keyword bleed.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0So\u00a0there's\u00a0a little bit of\u00a0maybe lack\u00a0of relevancy because\u00a0it's\u00a0trading scale for the tight controls that\u00a0we're\u00a0used to. And with that then maybe you might think that\u00a0you're\u00a0wasting a little bit, a little bit of\u00a0your\u00a0spend getting a little bit lower quality.\u00a0It's\u00a0not matching as well as regular search does.\u00a0I think, though, you know,\u00a0I've\u00a0seen a lot of people like out on the interwebs saying,\u00a0\u201coh,\u00a0AI Max\u00a0is\u00a0terrible, the CPA is x percent higher than my search CPA.\u201d\u00a0Well,\u00a0yeah, of course it is.\u00a0It's\u00a0finding incrementality.\u00a0It's\u00a0not a 1 to 1 competitor to your search campaign. Right? So\u00a0as long as\u00a0people go into this thing with kind of eyes wide open and understand that\u00a0it's\u00a0getting you more than you would normally get, and to take that for what\u00a0it's\u00a0worth should be fine.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Nasser:<\/span><\/b><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span data-contrast=\"auto\">I have to say, Jenna, when I woke up this morning, I\u00a0didn't\u00a0think\u00a0I'd\u00a0be discussing bleeding keywords,\u00a0but\u00a0here we are.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Jenna:<\/span><\/b><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span data-contrast=\"auto\">Well, you're welcome.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Nasser:<\/span><\/b><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span data-contrast=\"auto\">So\u00a0what's\u00a0the bottom line for marketers today?\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Jenna:<\/span><\/b><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span data-contrast=\"auto\">Bottom line with\u00a0AI\u00a0Max. So just speaking about that is it works best at scale. You should absolutely do it if you want to get some more efficient reach out of your campaigns, but\u00a0it\u00a0absolutely requires human oversight. Anybody\u00a0that's\u00a0ready to turn this on and forget about it, you will see\u00a0kind of the\u00a0lower relevancy.\u00a0You will see the lower performance.\u00a0So\u00a0focus on quality. Get that thing humming for you as well as you can\u00a0with the limited controls available, it will drive, some efficient scale for you.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Nasser:<\/span><\/b><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span data-contrast=\"auto\">Okay, so\u00a0let's\u00a0shift from paid to the famously transparent, practice of SEO.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span data-contrast=\"auto\">What do you think marketers should be thinking about? In a as far as a keyword list future? With regards to SEO.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Jenna:<\/span><\/b><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span data-contrast=\"auto\">Right. I have a lot of thoughts on this. So, or any of them\u00a0stated\u00a0keywords or what they could be.\u00a0I'll\u00a0find a way to work that in here.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0Anybody who still thinks that SEO\u00a0represents\u00a0a linear like user puts in a keyword, user clicks on a link, user comes to my website. I get all that traffic and\u00a0there's\u00a0lots of it and\u00a0it's\u00a0free. Those people are unfortunately in trouble. Right.\u00a0So\u00a0with AI overviews, AI\u00a0mode\u00a0and Google, not to mention things like ChatGPT, perplexity, the large language models, etc.,\u00a0we're\u00a0moving to a place where that all the onus used to be on the searcher, right?<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span data-contrast=\"auto\">I am a searcher, I need something, I have a question.\u00a0I'm\u00a0going to type that in.\u00a0I'm\u00a0going to do my research.\u00a0I'm\u00a0going\u00a0see\u00a0if that satisfied. If not,\u00a0I'm\u00a0going to type another keyword in. And it was this\u00a0very kind\u00a0of\u00a0back and forth\u00a0user guided thing\u00a0and keywords were the center of that. Now with large language models and AI\u00a0that's\u00a0actually guiding\u00a0the user.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0So\u00a0there's\u00a0a back and forth happening here.\u00a0It's\u00a0refining the questioning as you go.\u00a0So\u00a0it's\u00a0not like you stop and enter another keyword the way that we used to.\u00a0You're\u00a0just having a conversation with the AI.\u00a0So\u00a0you know,\u00a0it's\u00a0really a sea change here. Thinking about search as more of an exploration way of thinking, to discover brands and products, because the AI is continually helping you refine and iterate.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0So that first keyword that used to result in a click, eventually most of those\u00a0aren't\u00a0even going to result in a click. And the idea even of thinking of keywords, even that alone is very\u00a0bleedy. There you go. I did it!\u00a0Because\u00a0it's\u00a0queries.\u00a0It's\u00a0conversations. Right?\u00a0So\u00a0the idea of keywords being a little entity that matters very deeply,\u00a0it's\u00a0still a way that we can get some Intel.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span data-contrast=\"auto\">It's\u00a0still a way that we can start to look at topics and themes. But keywords as little individual entities are not the thing that we need to be focusing on.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Nasser:<\/span><\/b><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span data-contrast=\"auto\">So\u00a0you use the word sea\u00a0change, and\u00a0that's\u00a0not a small word, right? But do you think that the industry is there yet in terms of their understanding of the impact and how?<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0You know, because a sea change implies that\u00a0you've\u00a0got to do things\u00a0pretty radically\u00a0differently or look at it differently or measure it differently. And do you think that\u00a0they're\u00a0there yet? And if not, why not?\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Jenna:<\/span><\/b><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span data-contrast=\"auto\">Well, I think understanding and acceptance are two\u00a0very different\u00a0things. Do\u00a0I think marketers\u00a0understand this?\u00a0Yeah. Do\u00a0I think they\u00a0accept it?\u00a0No. And that is because for years and years and years and years and years and years and years, you did the SEO things. And even though it was a little bit wizardry and you\u00a0didn't\u00a0exactly know cause and effect, you knew well enough. And for all this time, your website was the central property that was receiving\u00a0all of\u00a0that benefit.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span data-contrast=\"auto\">Clicks to your site, clicks to your site, clicks to your site, clicks to your site.\u00a0So\u00a0all marketing orgs were based on that, right?\u00a0\u201cFree traffic\u201d\u00a0from SEO is a lifeblood of our marketing arm, and now as those clicks decline because 60% of all searches now result in zero click because\u00a0they're\u00a0getting the answers straight there.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span data-contrast=\"auto\">That's\u00a0really hard\u00a0for people to accept.\u00a0So\u00a0the\u00a0sea\u00a0change\u00a0isn't\u00a0necessarily that the industry is completely on its head, because a lot of the old tactics are still very valid.\u00a0There's\u00a0just more you\u00a0have to\u00a0do now. The sea change is how you think about it and how you think about my brand is going to be discovered in this way,\u00a0less than my brand is going to get clicks to my website in this way. So that makes sense.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Nasser:<\/span><\/b><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span data-contrast=\"auto\">Yeah.\u00a0So\u00a0I would some of your message correct me if\u00a0I'm\u00a0wrong, as opium is a powerful drug. Kids\u00a0don't\u00a0do drugs. Do the good thing instead, right?\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Jenna:<\/span><\/b><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span data-contrast=\"auto\">I love opium. Yep.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Nasser:<\/span><\/b><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span data-contrast=\"auto\">Oh\u00a0yeah.\u00a0That's\u00a0delicious.\u00a0It's\u00a0my favorite.\u00a0It's\u00a0my favorite.\u00a0But\u00a0it's\u00a0just not going to work anymore. So.\u00a0So\u00a0given that from our testing, what should brands be doing first to adapt to this new reality?\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Jenna:<\/span><\/b><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span data-contrast=\"auto\">First things first, make sure you really understand the difference between the way a search engine would crawl and index and source information, versus the way a large language model does. They are different things, even though the result is still appearing in like AI mode, for example,\u00a0it's still appearing on a search engine in Google's AI mode, or AI overviews the way it is learning and the way it is deciding what results to pull is vastly different. It used to be the search engine spiders or the bots. They would go out, they would crawl, they would index it and they would say, okay, this is the answer.\u00a0And\u00a0here's\u00a0your blue links right.\u00a0Now,\u00a0there's things like things that are\u00a0way smarter\u00a0than me, like Markov chains and slot schema and embeddings and\u00a0all of\u00a0these sorts of things that turn content into math.\u00a0Basically, if\u00a0I can dumb it down to the way I understand it, but it turns content into math and it uses the math to decide what the correct answer is.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0So\u00a0first things first.\u00a0Go make\u00a0sure you understand that the way that the information is getting sourced is not the same thing.\u00a0That'll\u00a0change your mind\u00a0right then and there. Now, the other thing that you really need to do is start thinking, okay, if my SEO traffic is going down, which I would assume it is for most listeners, what do I want to do about it within my marketing organization?<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0How do we want to start looking at this and get alignment within the org? How are you going to measure that visibility? How are you going to measure citations through LLMs? What does it mean to you when the click volume is\u00a0gone\u00a0and you do not have that kind of a last click measurement capability for you? I\u00a0can't\u00a0answer that as a blanket statement because\u00a0it's\u00a0going to be different for everybody.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0But organizations need to be making those decisions right now.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Nasser:<\/span><\/b><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span data-contrast=\"auto\">So\u00a0you talk about, you know,\u00a0there's\u00a0just\u00a0isn't\u00a0the same level of granular\u00a0reporting\u00a0and the mind shift that that needs to happen\u00a0as a result of\u00a0that.\u00a0What's\u00a0the bottom line for marketers today?\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Jenna:<\/span><\/b><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span data-contrast=\"auto\">So\u00a0the bottom\u00a0line, if\u00a0we think about the\u00a0keywordless\u00a0future as a whole.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0So\u00a0for SEO, I would say SEO for\u00a0a very long\u00a0time\u00a0shouldn't\u00a0have been a siloed, very technical tactic, but it still is in a lot of organizations. SEO is its own little thing. It has its own little swim lane.\u00a0Maybe you\u00a0talk to the IT and the dev teams, and\u00a0maybe you\u00a0talk to the content teams, but mostly\u00a0it's\u00a0this little standalone thing.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0Now SEO because of AI and LLMs, it is a jumping off point for a much broader, much more holistic strategy. So those silos that were there\u00a0have\u00a0to go away because you\u00a0have to\u00a0look at measurement differently. You\u00a0have to\u00a0have\u00a0different types\u00a0of content. You\u00a0have to\u00a0think about owning the entire topic because\u00a0it's\u00a0a conversation now.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span data-contrast=\"auto\">So\u00a0it really is, the bottom line is for SEO,\u00a0it's\u00a0not a standalone thing. Bring it to the fore and bring everybody together. And you know, if\u00a0you're\u00a0not thinking about this, including also in paid with things like\u00a0AI\u00a0Max and having,\u00a0it's\u00a0for that lack of control that we grew so accustomed to you, right.\u00a0That's\u00a0the thing\u00a0that's\u00a0going away that keyword was a control mechanism and\u00a0that's\u00a0going away.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0So\u00a0the bottom, bottom\u00a0bottom\u00a0line is if\u00a0you're\u00a0not already thinking this way and planning how your org is going to change for this AI driven future,\u00a0you're\u00a0already behind.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Nasser:<\/span><\/b><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span data-contrast=\"auto\">So\u00a0here's\u00a0the shift. Google's AI Max can deliver real efficiency, but only if you balance automation with human strategy. It shines at scale, but without oversight, you risk wasted spend and\u00a0low quality\u00a0traffic.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0Smarter paid media means I gets to work for you, not replace you. And in SEO, the future is already here. The time to prepare for LLMs\u00a0and\u00a0AI driven search is yesterday. Now make it happen. Follow shift happens. Leave us a review and share this episode with your team. If you have any questions for the podcast, please email us at\u00a0<\/span><a href=\"mailto:shifthappens@dacgroup.com\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">shifthappens@dacgroup.com<\/span><\/a><span data-contrast=\"auto\">.\u00a0We'd\u00a0love to hear from you.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span data-contrast=\"auto\">Jenna, thank you for an enlightening and an engaging session. Way better than the one we had with Dan Temby\u00a0before, obviously.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Jenna:<\/span><\/b><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span data-contrast=\"auto\">Thank you,\u00a0Nasser.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Nasser:<\/span><\/b><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span data-contrast=\"auto\">And thank you for listening to Shift Happens. We look forward to seeing you next time.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span>","contributing_experts":[{"expert_source":"dac-team","expert":87607},{"expert_source":"dac-team","expert":87609}],"external_links":{"youtube_link":"https:\/\/youtu.be\/IrhQDgblmeI?si=y0zi85V2v4Qzx8_n","amazon_link":"https:\/\/podcasts.apple.com\/ca\/podcast\/inside-the-funnel\/id1533975355","apple_link":"https:\/\/podcasts.apple.com\/ca\/podcast\/inside-the-funnel\/id1533975355","spotify_link":"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/episode\/7nQE8aBt0p03sLvGAQ7h6q?si=9732105072124a90"}},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.7 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Smarter Search Marketing: Insights from Google\u2019s AI Max and the New SEO Reality\u00a0 | DAC<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"AI Max promises efficient scale, but does it deliver? 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