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, 2024 • 16min
Prioritize Value Over Sheer SEO - with Rad Paluszak
Rad Paluszak shares the importance of prioritizing "Value" over "Sheer SEO".Discussion points include:Why is working on improving the site better than obsessing about SEO?You say that SEO-elements on a website CAN be imperfect - why?You say that if your site is not useful or does not deliver truly unique value, it might be throttled and suffer in the long term - what do you mean by this?Why should SEOs stop obsessing over AI developments?
Apr 2, 2024 • 15min
Start prioritising building smaller numbers of relevant high-quality links - with Jo O'Reilly
Jo O'Reilly believes that you should start prioritising building smaller numbers of relevant high-quality links.Discussion points include:How do you define relevant high-quality links?How do you define irrelevant spammy links?How do you measure the value of a link?How do you conduct outreach?Ideally what style of links are you looking for?Are you willing to pay for links?
Mar 28, 2024 • 14min
Leverage Happy Customers for Ethical Backlinks - with Alan Silvestri
Alan Silvestri advises that you leverage happy customers for ethical backlinks.In this video we discuss the importance of leveraging happy customers for:* Case Studies* Testimonials* Guest Blogging* Webinars and Podcasts* Affiliate Programs* User Generated Content* Community Forum or Groups
Mar 27, 2024 • 18min
Master Your Video SEO - with Rana Abu Quba Chamsi
Rana Abu Quba Chamsi shares the importance of mastering your video SEO.Discussion points include:What do you mean by video SEO - optimizing video to appear on the SERP?What type of business is video most suitable for?What’s the ideal length and format? How do you optimize? What’s your process?What are some other video-based platforms that you optimize for and how is that optimization process different?What kind of intent does video traffic have and does that differ to other traffic?How does video fit into the overall content mix?How is AI impacting video optimization?What is the future of video optimization?
Mar 26, 2024 • 16min
“Build relationships” before you link build - with Amit Raj
Amit Raj shares the importance of building relationships before you link build.Discussion points include:How would you define a valuable link?What do you have to give to obtain a valuable link nowadays?How do you stand out with your outreach?Is that link a logically relevant link between those websites?Does it provide value?Is your outreach relevant and genuine to the receiver?Are you approaching sites with something that will genuinely resonate, and that their audience would benefit from?
Mar 25, 2024 • 15min
Stay on top of link and mention building - with Debbie Chew
Debbie Chew emphasises the importance of staying on top of link and mention building.Discussion points include: Why build mentions?What do you mean by generative AI chatbots and search being influenced by listicles?What do you mean by that you shouldn’t "blindly" build links to pages without regularly revisiting the SERPs?What are the link building tactics to focus on in 2024?
Mar 22, 2024 • 15min
Optimize internal links to increase the relevance scores of target content - with Andreas Voniatis
Andreas Voniatis shares the importance of optimizing internal links to increase the relevance scores of target content.Discussion points include:What scoring system do you use to analyse the relevance scores of target content?What are the data sources requiredWhat are some data cleaning tipsHow do you determine anchor text relevance with python functions? How do you use statistical distributions to model the relevance and highlight under-served target content?
Mar 21, 2024 • 15min
Don't underestimate the power of linking sub-categories to parent categories - Katherine Nwanorue
Katherine Nwanorue shares the importance of linking sub-categories to parent categories as part of your on-page SEO strategy.Discussion points include:What about linking the other way around - from the main category body content to the minor category page?Why do this if there are links on the navigation menu?What measurable value does this provide?Does this make it more likely for the pages to be indexed?Will it result in higher rankings?Is the keyword text within the links important?How many links per page do you recommend?Any other internal link strategies that you recommend?Can this be automated?
Mar 20, 2024 • 17min
Adopting search generative experience as your SEO strategy in 2024 is pivotal - Veronika Höller
Veronika Höller shares that adopting search generative experience as your SEO strategy in 2024 is pivotal.Discussion points include:How is SGE changing the SERP?What markets does this affect at the moment?What timescale are we looking at for full international roll-out?What industry sectors does this affect the most?What about queries - what types of queries does this affect the most?What does this mean for the way that we write or optimize content?How are other search engines changing?Does this reduce the impact of Google as an organic search discovery channel?Do we have to turn to other content mediums like YouTube, TikTok or podcasts?
Mar 19, 2024 • 15min
Take full advantage of internal link optimization - with Anna Uss
Anna Uss shares the importance of understanding the full advantage of internal link optimization.Discussion points include:How do you build an internal links strategy?How important is it to have your target keyword phrase in internal links?Where should you have your internal links?How often does your internal links strategy need to be reviewed?Why is having an internal links strategy so important?Can you have measurable success thanks to an internal links strategy?What tools do you use to help manage your internal links?
