SEO in 2026
Majestic.com
SEO is continuing to change at an alarming pace. And yet, in some sense, the principles of good SEO remain the same.
Hello, and welcome to SEO in 2026 – a significant repository of current thinking from many of the world’s leading SEOs.
We're pleased to be able to welcome you to the fifth book and fifth series in this podcast, now well and truly an annual tradition, brought to you by Majestic.
“How people search has seen a bigger shift in the last 12 months than the last 12 years, and this makes SEOin2026 a must-read for anyone working in the industry. Majestic has brought together 117 of the SEO industry's brightest minds to share their insights into what matters, and what doesn't, to continue to drive growth with organic search during a period of massive uncertainty, and the book should be seen as a valuable reference point to keep your strategy on the right track.”
JAMES BROCKBANK
Managing Director and Founder, Digitaloft
“I highly recommend that every SEO professional set aside a couple of days for SEOin2026. You'll thank me for helping you plan your year effectively. I'm extremely grateful to have the opportunity to work alongside some of the world's leading SEO champions.”
NITIN MANCHANDA
Founder & Chief SEO Consultant, Botpresso
“This collection of wisdom from many of the best minds in SEO today is a great line in the sand of where we as an industry are, what problems we face, and how we tackle them. Anyone in SEO or marketing should be dipping into this on a regular basis.”
SIMON COX
Technical SEO Consultant, Cox and Co. Creative
“This series continues to be the industry’s leading source of the most timely advice a marketer could ever want. The most forward-thinking SEO experts in the world come together once a year to create this invaluable collection of new knowledge that should never be passed up on!”
PAM AUNGST CRONIN
President and Founder, Pam Ann Marketing and Stealth Search and Analytics
“2025 has been a sprint for the SEO industry, with AI reshaping how we understand visibility, relevance, and authority. SEOin2026 is not just another trends book; it’s a roadmap for what’s actually coming. I loved being part of it and seeing how experts around the world approach the same challenges from different angles.”
RAMONA JOITA
SEO Consultant and Founder
“David is good at drawing out the substance of a conversation. He will explore the topic and challenge assumptions, steer the conversation into an unexpected direction, and build on your ideas – making you think a bit deeper and sharper. Our recent conversation flew by as always, and as always – I’ve come out energised about the topic with more to think about.”
SUKHJINDER SINGH
Freelance SEO Consultant
Hello, and welcome to SEO in 2026 – a significant repository of current thinking from many of the world’s leading SEOs.
We're pleased to be able to welcome you to the fifth book and fifth series in this podcast, now well and truly an annual tradition, brought to you by Majestic.
“How people search has seen a bigger shift in the last 12 months than the last 12 years, and this makes SEOin2026 a must-read for anyone working in the industry. Majestic has brought together 117 of the SEO industry's brightest minds to share their insights into what matters, and what doesn't, to continue to drive growth with organic search during a period of massive uncertainty, and the book should be seen as a valuable reference point to keep your strategy on the right track.”
JAMES BROCKBANK
Managing Director and Founder, Digitaloft
“I highly recommend that every SEO professional set aside a couple of days for SEOin2026. You'll thank me for helping you plan your year effectively. I'm extremely grateful to have the opportunity to work alongside some of the world's leading SEO champions.”
NITIN MANCHANDA
Founder & Chief SEO Consultant, Botpresso
“This collection of wisdom from many of the best minds in SEO today is a great line in the sand of where we as an industry are, what problems we face, and how we tackle them. Anyone in SEO or marketing should be dipping into this on a regular basis.”
SIMON COX
Technical SEO Consultant, Cox and Co. Creative
“This series continues to be the industry’s leading source of the most timely advice a marketer could ever want. The most forward-thinking SEO experts in the world come together once a year to create this invaluable collection of new knowledge that should never be passed up on!”
PAM AUNGST CRONIN
President and Founder, Pam Ann Marketing and Stealth Search and Analytics
“2025 has been a sprint for the SEO industry, with AI reshaping how we understand visibility, relevance, and authority. SEOin2026 is not just another trends book; it’s a roadmap for what’s actually coming. I loved being part of it and seeing how experts around the world approach the same challenges from different angles.”
RAMONA JOITA
SEO Consultant and Founder
“David is good at drawing out the substance of a conversation. He will explore the topic and challenge assumptions, steer the conversation into an unexpected direction, and build on your ideas – making you think a bit deeper and sharper. Our recent conversation flew by as always, and as always – I’ve come out energised about the topic with more to think about.”
SUKHJINDER SINGH
Freelance SEO Consultant
Episodes
Mentioned books
Apr 3, 2026 • 16min
Earn your authority through real, human expertise – with Isa Lavahun
Isa Lavahun explains that you can enhance the perceived authority of your content through real, human expertise.Isa says: “Authority should be built on earned expertise.What I mean by that is real experience and credible voices that can’t be easily replicated or automated. In the age of AI, the most humanised content is what’s going to give you competitive edge”How does a person earn that expertise?“As marketers, we all use experts. We use people who are either the face of the brand, founders, product leads, or sector specific specialists – from scientists to nutritionists.Credible experts are always going to be better equipped to help answer the search queries people are looking for. This goes beyond standard EEAT practice because, when AI can produce technically sound content on any topic, expert-attributed content becomes your primary differentiator. Not just expert-reviewed or expert-informed, but expert-led and authored. They need to be front and centre of your content strategy.”
Apr 2, 2026 • 21min
Write from real, authentic human experience – with Greg Gifford
You’ve selected your content distribution opportunities based upon AI and where your audience resides, but your content should be written based upon real, authentic human experience, according to Greg Gifford.Greg says: “Don’t get distracted by all of the AI content on the web.A lot of people are choosing to use AI to write all of their content, but AI is just predicting words based on the content that is already out there. As more of it floods the web, AI is training itself on AI. It's like copying the same VCR tape over and over again, and the quality continues to get worse.The way that businesses and marketers need to combat that is with real, authentic human experience. AI systems and models cannot replicate that.Write your content with humans. Skip the stupid informational stuff. Share authentic experiences and reasons why humans vibe with your company. That's how you're going to win in the future.”
Apr 1, 2026 • 18min
Technical, on-page, and off-page remain the fundamental SEO building blocks - Nick Musica
Nick Musica shares that the technical, on-page, and off-page. The expressions of those SEO building blocks have evolved over the years, but they remain the fundamental building blocks. Talking points include: What do you mean by “The expressions of those SEO building blocks have evolved over the years” What are the fundamental SEO building blocks of on-page? What are the fundamental SEO building blocks of off-page? Why do they remain the fundamental building blocks?
Mar 31, 2026 • 16min
Think multimodally – with Irina Papuc
When you are creating content, you need to be thinking multimodally, advises Irina Papuc.Irina says: “Think multimodally.A consistent trend that we've seen growing over time is the inclusion of different types of media in search results. AI can already parse images and videos really well, and it can also explain what's depicted in detail.By thinking multimodally, you will increasingly capitalise on this, as AI chunks related concepts across formats into a tailored presentation for the user.”Does multimodal just include video, audio, images, and text?“It also includes things like infographics and diagrams, and it’s about the way you think through what kinds of content and visuals to use, like avoiding stock images and filler, and no longer publishing walls of text.In general, provided that you do things according to best practice and ethics (which includes citing your source), you can definitely use AI-generated content. Google has explicitly said in its best practices that AI-generated content, whether it's visual or written, is okay to use on your site or elsewhere.That's not an issue, but you need to be properly citing whatever you put out there so that you don't accidentally deceive your audience.”
Mar 30, 2026 • 17min
Produce content in the mediums that surface in AI-driven results – with Katherine Nwanorue
Katherine Nwanorue shares that the content medium you select should be based upon the content medium that your target AI platform prefers.Katherine says: “Multimodal content isn't new, but AI is going to make it non-negotiable.”How would you describe multimodal content?“Basically, it is content that exists across several mediums. We have audio, video, text, and images.For as long as I can remember, SEOs and marketers have always prioritised repurposing content across several mediums: you create a blog post, and then you transform that into video, and into infographics as well. That is multimodal content.”
Mar 27, 2026 • 16min
Get more value from your visuals – with Desmond Boateng
One of the ways that you can teach AI about what you offer is to enhance your image offering. This is what Desmond Boateng advises.Desmond says: “Use visual commerce, which means using contextual images for e-commerce.Also, for any business that works with products, instead of using plain product photos, use contextual photos with different settings based on AI.”Is there a type of image that you would recommend?“I recommend using context-rich visuals.Think about lifestyle photos and AI-generated product imagery that make the online shopping experience more engaging and trustworthy. That could be 3D renders or lifestyle photos, or it could be using AI to create video based on those high-quality images.
Mar 26, 2026 • 21min
Make sure machines truly see your brand and your product – with Myriam Jessier
Myriam Jessier highlights the importance of ensuring that machines truly see the precise nature of your products.Myriam says: “Everyone is slowly coming to realise that SEO is changing in many different ways.My tip is to make sure that your brand and your products are machine-readable, because we're dealing with multimodal search now. That means I can take out my phone, take a picture of your product and say, ‘Is this vegan?’ - and I will get the answer right away.SEO is entering the outside world, beyond the web.”
Mar 25, 2026 • 16min
Stop designing SEO pages as AI encyclopaedias - Kirsty McLellan
Kirsty McLellan shares that it's key to stop designing SEO pages as AI encyclopaedias — and start designing them as human experiences. Talking points include: How do you design pages for AI and humans? If you design for humans are you less optimised for AI? Can you design separate pages for AI and humans? What does the optimum combined optimised page look like? Is it worthwhile to still optimize for humans? Are humans still visiting websites? What are the metrics to measure success?
Mar 24, 2026 • 17min
Build community to bring together the worlds of AI and SEO – with Tory Gray
Tory Gray highlights that community blends the worlds of AI and SEO together. Tory says: “Drop the AI and SEO binary and redirect that effort into tactics, including community-building tactics, that increase visibility across both platforms.” Are you saying that anything you do for SEO is naturally optimizing for AI as well? “Not inherently everything, but there is significant overlap. It’s similar to local SEO versus traditional on-site SEO, or perhaps SEO for Bing versus Google. We might be measuring the same tactics, but they can be measured in different ways, and we might value those tactics differently. There may be changes across what we do for those platforms, and we can and should be thoughtful about how we do that, but there’s a significant overlap and work that benefits both.
Mar 23, 2026 • 17min
Get human users talking to build authority with AI – with Jon Mest
Jon Mest shares that AI needs human interaction in order to be confident in the authority of recommendations. Jon says: “User intent matters more than ever in AI search.” How do you determine what the user intent is in AI search? “So much of traditional SEO is about building your backlink profile, making sure that other reputable sites reference you, and making sure that other people say that you are who you are and you're authoritative. That still matters, but more so now than ever. When the AI thinks about who to recommend as a brand, they care about real, actual humans saying you are a good brand. That is things such as Reddit, Quora, and YouTube comments. It includes case studies, user testimonials, review sites, etc. Those all really matter to the AI when they think about how you should be referenced as a brand.”
