<div><img width="1920" height="1080" src="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/04/How-to-measure-Demand-Gen-creative-impact-with-asset-uplift-tests.png" class="attachment-large size-large wp-post-image" alt="How to measure Demand Gen creative impact with asset uplift tests" decoding="async" fetchpriority="high" srcset="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/04/How-to-measure-Demand-Gen-creative-impact-with-asset-uplift-tests.png 1920w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/04/How-to-measure-Demand-Gen-creative-impact-with-asset-uplift-tests-768x432.png 768w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/04/How-to-measure-Demand-Gen-creative-impact-with-asset-uplift-tests-1536x864.png 1536w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/04/How-to-measure-Demand-Gen-creative-impact-with-asset-uplift-tests-1200x675.png 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px" /></div>The update provides additional guidance on when audience targeting restrictions could affect campaign delivery and reach.

<div><img width="1920" height="1080" src="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/04/How-to-measure-Demand-Gen-creative-impact-with-asset-uplift-tests.png" class="attachment-large size-large wp-post-image" alt="How to measure Demand Gen creative impact with asset uplift tests" decoding="async" srcset="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/04/How-to-measure-Demand-Gen-creative-impact-with-asset-uplift-tests.png 1920w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/04/How-to-measure-Demand-Gen-creative-impact-with-asset-uplift-tests-768x432.png 768w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/04/How-to-measure-Demand-Gen-creative-impact-with-asset-uplift-tests-1536x864.png 1536w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/04/How-to-measure-Demand-Gen-creative-impact-with-asset-uplift-tests-1200x675.png 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px" /></div>
<p>Google updated its personalized advertising policy documentation to clarify how restricted targeting rules apply to Demand Gen and Discovery campaigns, particularly when advertisers promote products or services tied to sensitive interest categories.</p>



<p><strong>The big picture</strong>. The update appears in Google&#8217;s &#8220;Restricted targeting in Personalized Advertising&#8221; policy documentation and focuses on explaining potential ad serving limitations rather than introducing new policy restrictions.</p>



<p id="h-what-s-changing"><strong>What&#8217;s changing. </strong>Google updated its help documentation in June to provide additional guidance on how Demand Gen and Discovery campaigns interact with personalized advertising restrictions.</p>



<p>The changes specifically address campaigns that target products and services associated with sensitive interest categories.</p>



<p id="h-the-fine-print"><strong>The fine print. </strong>The update is a clarification to existing policy guidance, not a new policy announcement.</p>



<p>Google says the revised documentation includes additional information about potential serving implications when advertisers use audience targeting for products or services that fall into restricted categories.</p>



<p>Sensitive interest categories can include areas such as:</p>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>Health conditions</li>



<li>Financial hardship</li>



<li>Personal difficulties</li>



<li>Other topics that Google considers sensitive under its personalized advertising policies</li>
</ul>



<p id="h-between-the-lines"><strong>Between the lines.</strong> Demand Gen campaigns rely heavily on audience signals and personalized targeting to reach users across YouTube, Discover and Gmail.</p>



<p>As adoption of Demand Gen continues to grow, advertisers have increasingly sought clarity around how Google&#8217;s sensitive interest policies affect audience eligibility, reach and campaign delivery.</p>



<p>The documentation update suggests Google is responding to those questions by providing more explicit guidance on when targeting restrictions may limit campaign performance.</p>



<p id="h-why-now-the-clarification-comes-as-demand-gen-becomes-a-larger-part-of-google-s-advertising-ecosystem-and-more-advertisers-shift-budgets-from-discovery-campaigns-into-google-s-ai-powered-audience-products"><strong>Why now. </strong>The clarification comes as <a href="https://searchengineland.com/google-expands-demand-gen-with-youtube-creator-tools-478111">Demand Gen becomes a larger part of Google&#8217;s advertising ecosystem</a> and more advertisers shift budgets from Discovery campaigns into Google&#8217;s AI-powered audience products.</p>



<p><strong>Why we care. </strong>For advertisers operating in regulated or sensitive industries, understanding these restrictions is becoming increasingly important to campaign planning and audience strategy.</p>



<p id="h-what-to-watch-advertisers-running-demand-gen-campaigns-in-healthcare-financial-services-or-other-potentially-sensitive-verticals-may-want-to-review-the-updated-guidance-to-understand-whether-targeting-choices-could-affect-reach-or-ad-delivery"><strong>What to watch.</strong> Advertisers running Demand Gen campaigns in healthcare, financial services or other potentially sensitive verticals may want to review the <a href="https://support.google.com/adspolicy/answer/143465">updated guidance</a> to understand whether targeting choices could affect reach or ad delivery.</p>


Google updated its personalized advertising policy documentation to clarify how restricted targeting rules apply to Demand Gen and Discovery campaigns, particularly when advertisers promote products or services tied to sensitive interest categories.
The big picture. The update appears in Google’s “Restricted targeting in Personalized Advertising” policy documentation and focuses on explaining potential ad serving limitations rather than introducing new policy restrictions.
What’s changing. Google updated its help documentation in June to provide additional guidance on how Demand Gen and Discovery campaigns interact with personalized advertising restrictions.
The changes specifically address campaigns that target products and services associated with sensitive interest categories.
The fine print. The update is a clarification to existing policy guidance, not a new policy announcement.
Google says the revised documentation includes additional information about potential serving implications when advertisers use audience targeting for products or services that fall into restricted categories.
Sensitive interest categories can include areas such as:
Health conditions
Financial hardship
Personal difficulties
Other topics that Google considers sensitive under its personalized advertising policies
Between the lines. Demand Gen campaigns rely heavily on audience signals and personalized targeting to reach users across YouTube, Discover and Gmail.
As adoption of Demand Gen continues to grow, advertisers have increasingly sought clarity around how Google’s sensitive interest policies affect audience eligibility, reach and campaign delivery.
The documentation update suggests Google is responding to those questions by providing more explicit guidance on when targeting restrictions may limit campaign performance.
Why now. The clarification comes as Demand Gen becomes a larger part of Google’s advertising ecosystem and more advertisers shift budgets from Discovery campaigns into Google’s AI-powered audience products.
Why we care. For advertisers operating in regulated or sensitive industries, understanding these restrictions is becoming increasingly important to campaign planning and audience strategy.
What to watch. Advertisers running Demand Gen campaigns in healthcare, financial services or other potentially sensitive verticals may want to review the updated guidance to understand whether targeting choices could affect reach or ad delivery.

The update provides additional guidance on when audience targeting restrictions could affect campaign delivery and reach.

Google clarifies sensitive audience targeting rules for Demand Gen campaigns

<div><img width="1920" height="1080" src="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2025/08/The-future-of-remarketing-Microsoft-bets-on-impressions-not-clicks.jpg" class="attachment-large size-large wp-post-image" alt="The future of remarketing? Microsoft bets on impressions, not clicks" decoding="async" srcset="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2025/08/The-future-of-remarketing-Microsoft-bets-on-impressions-not-clicks.jpg 1920w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2025/08/The-future-of-remarketing-Microsoft-bets-on-impressions-not-clicks-768x432.jpg 768w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2025/08/The-future-of-remarketing-Microsoft-bets-on-impressions-not-clicks-1536x864.jpg 1536w" sizes="(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px" /></div>Microsoft is opening more premium ad inventory to cryptocurrency advertisers while maintaining existing compliance requirements.

<div><img width="1920" height="1080" src="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2025/08/The-future-of-remarketing-Microsoft-bets-on-impressions-not-clicks.jpg" class="attachment-large size-large wp-post-image" alt="The future of remarketing? Microsoft bets on impressions, not clicks" decoding="async" srcset="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2025/08/The-future-of-remarketing-Microsoft-bets-on-impressions-not-clicks.jpg 1920w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2025/08/The-future-of-remarketing-Microsoft-bets-on-impressions-not-clicks-768x432.jpg 768w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2025/08/The-future-of-remarketing-Microsoft-bets-on-impressions-not-clicks-1536x864.jpg 1536w" sizes="(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px" /></div>
<p>Microsoft is widening advertising opportunities for cryptocurrency exchanges by allowing them to run Audience Ads in all markets where crypto advertising is already permitted.</p>



<p><strong>The big picture:</strong> The update extends cryptocurrency advertising beyond traditional search placements, giving eligible exchanges access to Microsoft&#8217;s Audience Ads inventory across its broader network.</p>



<p id="h-what-s-changing">What&#8217;s changing. Microsoft has updated its advertising policies to allow cryptocurrency exchanges to use Audience Ads in all approved crypto advertising markets.</p>



<p>The expansion applies only to advertisers that comply with Microsoft&#8217;s Cryptocurrency and Related Products policies and any applicable local regulations.</p>



<p id="h-why-it-matters"><strong>Why we care. </strong>Audience Ads allow advertisers to reach users across Microsoft&#8217;s native advertising network, which includes placements on content, news and partner sites.</p>



<p>For cryptocurrency exchanges, the change creates additional opportunities to build awareness and engage potential customers beyond search-driven intent.</p>



<p id="h-the-fine-print"><strong>The fine print.</strong> The policy update does not represent a relaxation of Microsoft&#8217;s cryptocurrency advertising requirements.</p>



<p>Advertisers must still meet all eligibility requirements and comply with the company&#8217;s Cryptocurrency and Related Products policies, which vary by market and regulatory environment.</p>



<p id="h-what-to-watch"><strong>What to watch.</strong> Advertisers will be watching to see whether the expanded inventory leads to increased adoption of Audience Ads among cryptocurrency exchanges and whether <a href="https://help.ads.microsoft.com/?pnf=may-2026-pilot-program-policies-fdd2a452#apex/ads/en/60225/0">Microsoft further broadens crypto advertising opportunities</a> in additional markets.</p>






Microsoft is widening advertising opportunities for cryptocurrency exchanges by allowing them to run Audience Ads in all markets where crypto advertising is already permitted.
The big picture: The update extends cryptocurrency advertising beyond traditional search placements, giving eligible exchanges access to Microsoft’s Audience Ads inventory across its broader network.
What’s changing. Microsoft has updated its advertising policies to allow cryptocurrency exchanges to use Audience Ads in all approved crypto advertising markets.
The expansion applies only to advertisers that comply with Microsoft’s Cryptocurrency and Related Products policies and any applicable local regulations.
Why we care. Audience Ads allow advertisers to reach users across Microsoft’s native advertising network, which includes placements on content, news and partner sites.
For cryptocurrency exchanges, the change creates additional opportunities to build awareness and engage potential customers beyond search-driven intent.
The fine print. The policy update does not represent a relaxation of Microsoft’s cryptocurrency advertising requirements.
Advertisers must still meet all eligibility requirements and comply with the company’s Cryptocurrency and Related Products policies, which vary by market and regulatory environment.
What to watch. Advertisers will be watching to see whether the expanded inventory leads to increased adoption of Audience Ads among cryptocurrency exchanges and whether Microsoft further broadens crypto advertising opportunities in additional markets.

Microsoft is opening more premium ad inventory to cryptocurrency advertisers while maintaining existing compliance requirements.

Microsoft expands Audience Ads eligibility for cryptocurrency exchanges

<div><img width="800" height="450" src="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2021/10/hiring-in-search-marketing-800x450.jpg" class="attachment-large size-large wp-post-image" alt="Search marketing jobs" decoding="async" srcset="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2021/10/hiring-in-search-marketing-800x450.jpg 800w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2021/10/hiring-in-search-marketing-600x338.jpg 600w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2021/10/hiring-in-search-marketing-200x113.jpg 200w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2021/10/hiring-in-search-marketing-768x432.jpg 768w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2021/10/hiring-in-search-marketing-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2021/10/hiring-in-search-marketing-150x84.jpg 150w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2021/10/hiring-in-search-marketing-550x310.jpg 550w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2021/10/hiring-in-search-marketing.jpg 1920w" sizes="(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px" /></div>Land your next job in SEO or PPC. These brands and agencies are hiring to fill open search marketing positions right now.

<div><img width="800" height="450" src="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2021/10/hiring-in-search-marketing-800x450.jpg" class="attachment-large size-large wp-post-image" alt="Search marketing jobs" decoding="async" srcset="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2021/10/hiring-in-search-marketing-800x450.jpg 800w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2021/10/hiring-in-search-marketing-600x338.jpg 600w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2021/10/hiring-in-search-marketing-200x113.jpg 200w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2021/10/hiring-in-search-marketing-768x432.jpg 768w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2021/10/hiring-in-search-marketing-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2021/10/hiring-in-search-marketing-150x84.jpg 150w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2021/10/hiring-in-search-marketing-550x310.jpg 550w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2021/10/hiring-in-search-marketing.jpg 1920w" sizes="(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px" /></div>
<p>Looking to take the next step in your search marketing career? </p>



<p>Below, you will find the latest SEO, PPC, and digital marketing jobs at brands and agencies. We also include positions from previous weeks that are still open.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-newest-seo-jobs">Newest SEO Jobs </h2>







<p><strong>(Provided to Search Engine Land by <a href="https://www.seojobs.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">SEOjobs.com</a>) </strong>


<ul class="has-dates has-excerpts wp-block-rss"><li class='wp-block-rss__item'><div class='wp-block-rss__item-title'><a href='https://hiyield.co.uk/careers/seo-and-ppc-job/'>SEO and PPC job at Hiyield (B Corp)</a></div><time datetime="2026-06-04T08:54:28-04:00" class="wp-block-rss__item-publish-date">June 4, 2026</time> <div class="wp-block-rss__item-excerpt">Hiyield is a climate-conscious digital product studio that’s proudly B Corp and 80% employee owned – and one of Cornwall’s best places to work in 2026, according to Business Cornwall magazine. We help purpose-driven organisations do more good in the world – and we’re looking for someone brilliant to take this SEO and PPC job, to help us do even more of it. […]</div></li><li class='wp-block-rss__item'><div class='wp-block-rss__item-title'><a href='https://www.seojobs.com/job/seo-specialist-contractvea-technologies/'>SEO Specialist (Contract)</a></div><time datetime="2026-06-04T08:49:27-04:00" class="wp-block-rss__item-publish-date">June 4, 2026</time> <div class="wp-block-rss__item-excerpt">Company Overview: VEA Technologies is a forward-thinking Digital Marketing Agency with roots in Missouri and Colorado. We are currently seeking an experienced and skilled SEO Specialist to collaborate with our team as a contractor at approximately 50 hrs/mo. As a contractor, you’ll enjoy the flexibility to work from anywhere and set your own schedule while […]</div></li><li class='wp-block-rss__item'><div class='wp-block-rss__item-title'><a href='https://forms.clickup.com/2280762/f/25k9u-116397/UGUKKSBKH5X8P1MG5F'>SEO Specialist</a></div><time datetime="2026-06-03T12:54:34-04:00" class="wp-block-rss__item-publish-date">June 3, 2026</time> <div class="wp-block-rss__item-excerpt">Remote opportunity. U.S. applicants only. If you’re looking for a place where you can sharpen your SEO skills, push your expertise to the next level, and work alongside a team that genuinely loves testing, learning, and winning, we’d love to meet you. Honest Digital is one of the fastest-growing digital marketing agencies in the automotive […]</div></li><li class='wp-block-rss__item'><div class='wp-block-rss__item-title'><a href='http://umassglobal.wd5.myworkdayjobs.com/umassglobalcareers/job/united-states-remote/seo-specialist_r-2031'>SEO Specialist</a></div><time datetime="2026-06-03T02:09:43-04:00" class="wp-block-rss__item-publish-date">June 3, 2026</time> <div class="wp-block-rss__item-excerpt">Please Note: Internal Employees, please access the Jobs Hub in Workday to apply for the position. ABOUT US University of Massachusetts Global is a private, nonprofit affiliate of the University of Massachusetts, created to help working adults change their lives through flexible, high-quality education built for real life. Regionally accredited by the WASC Senior College and […]</div></li><li class='wp-block-rss__item'><div class='wp-block-rss__item-title'><a href='http://tinuiti.wd12.myworkdayjobs.com/tinuiti/job/usa---remote/manager--seo_r26_409'>Manager, SEO</a></div><time datetime="2026-06-02T02:10:12-04:00" class="wp-block-rss__item-publish-date">June 2, 2026</time> <div class="wp-block-rss__item-excerpt">Who we are: Tinuiti is the largest independent full-funnel marketing agency in the U.S. across the media that matters most, with $4 billion in digital media under management and more than 1,200 employees. Built for marketers who demand growth and accountability, Tinuiti unites media and measurement under one roof to eliminate waste—the biggest growth killer […]</div></li><li class='wp-block-rss__item'><div class='wp-block-rss__item-title'><a href='http://careers-page.com/talenthq/job/W35XY599'>SEO / WordPress Analyst (LATAM)</a></div><time datetime="2026-06-01T02:15:08-04:00" class="wp-block-rss__item-publish-date">June 1, 2026</time> <div class="wp-block-rss__item-excerpt">SEO/AEO Analyst with strong technical experience (WordPress) Fully Remote in Latam Do you get excited when your site shows up in position 1? Are you comfortable with WordPress? This is a WordPress Developer/SEO hybrid position. We are looking for a very detailed focus person who can optimize our sites for organic conversions. You’ll work with […]</div></li><li class='wp-block-rss__item'><div class='wp-block-rss__item-title'><a href='http://dentsuaegis.wd3.myworkdayjobs.com/dan_global/job/new-york/senior-associate--seo_r1122543'>Senior Associate, SEO</a></div><time datetime="2026-05-31T22:55:03-04:00" class="wp-block-rss__item-publish-date">May 31, 2026</time> <div class="wp-block-rss__item-excerpt">Job Description: At dentsu, we help leading brands build visibility across a search landscape that is rapidly evolving. We’re looking for a Senior Associate, SEO to support a major client and drive performance across both traditional SEO, local SEO, and emerging AI‑powered discovery experiences.  This role is ideal for someone with a strong foundation who is ready to […]</div></li><li class='wp-block-rss__item'><div class='wp-block-rss__item-title'><a href='http://boards.greenhouse.io/dept/jobs/7958097'>Associate, SEO Strategy</a></div><time datetime="2026-05-31T17:24:44-04:00" class="wp-block-rss__item-publish-date">May 31, 2026</time> <div class="wp-block-rss__item-excerpt">WHY DEPT®? We are a Growth Invention company built to help the world’s most ambitious brands grow faster. Operating at the intersection of technology and marketing, we create what is next by pioneering ideas, acting fast, and moving further because standing still just is not in our DNA. We are drawn to people who stay […]</div></li><li class='wp-block-rss__item'><div class='wp-block-rss__item-title'><a href='http://amn.wd1.myworkdayjobs.com/amn_careers/job/dallas-tx/senior-lead--seo---answer-engine-optimization--aeo-_req23625'>Senior Lead, SEO &amp; Answer Engine Optimization (AEO)</a></div><time datetime="2026-05-31T12:45:04-04:00" class="wp-block-rss__item-publish-date">May 31, 2026</time> <div class="wp-block-rss__item-excerpt">Job Description Welcome to AMN Healthcare — Where Talent Meets Purpose Ever wondered what it takes to build one of the largest and most respected healthcare staffing and total talent solutions companies? It takes trailblazers, innovators, and exceptional people like you. At AMN Healthcare, we don’t just offer jobs — we build careers that make […]</div></li><li class='wp-block-rss__item'><div class='wp-block-rss__item-title'><a href='https://breaktheweb.agency/careers/senior-seo-strategist/'>Senior SEO Strategist</a></div><time datetime="2026-05-30T10:18:19-04:00" class="wp-block-rss__item-publish-date">May 30, 2026</time> <div class="wp-block-rss__item-excerpt">Location: Remote, North America Job Type: Full-Time Reports To: SEO Director Growth Track: SEO Director About Break The Web Break The Web is a boutique SEO agency built for in-house marketing teams at ambitious eCommerce and DTC brands. We help make SEO less annoying by bringing strategic thinking, clear communication, measurable progress, and real partnership […]</div></li></ul>


<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-newest-ppc-and-paid-media-jobs">Newest PPC and paid media jobs</h2>



<p><strong>(Provided to Search Engine Land by <a href="https://www.ppcjobs.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">PPCjobs.com</a>) </strong>






<ul class="has-dates has-excerpts wp-block-rss"><li class='wp-block-rss__item'><div class='wp-block-rss__item-title'><a href='https://www.ppcjobs.com/job/paid-search-ads-manager-curology/'>Paid Search Ads Manager</a></div><time datetime="2026-06-05T10:19:36-04:00" class="wp-block-rss__item-publish-date">June 5, 2026</time> <div class="wp-block-rss__item-excerpt">Description About Curology Curology’s mission is to make effective, personalized skincare accessible. We were founded by dermatologists who believe everyone should have access to skincare products that actually work. Today, our licensed dermatology providers have helped millions of patients across all 50 states make that mission a reality. We combine expert medical care with personalized […]</div></li><li class='wp-block-rss__item'><div class='wp-block-rss__item-title'><a href='https://www.ppcjobs.com/job/growth-marketing-lead-rho/'>Growth Marketing Lead</a></div><time datetime="2026-06-05T10:19:33-04:00" class="wp-block-rss__item-publish-date">June 5, 2026</time> <div class="wp-block-rss__item-excerpt">About Us Rho is the modern banking platform built for startups. Open accounts in minutes, issue cards, manage expenses, pay bills, and close the books – all in one connected platform backed by real human support. The Role Rho is hiring a Growth Marketing Lead to own acquisition end-to-end across both paid and organic channels, […]</div></li><li class='wp-block-rss__item'><div class='wp-block-rss__item-title'><a href='https://www.ppcjobs.com/job/growth-marketing-manager-injective/'>Growth Marketing Manager</a></div><time datetime="2026-06-05T10:19:31-04:00" class="wp-block-rss__item-publish-date">June 5, 2026</time> <div class="wp-block-rss__item-excerpt">About Injective Injective is trailblazing a new era of Web3-enabled finance. As a Layer‑1 blockchain built exclusively for financial applications, Injective is one of the industry’s fastest‑growing ecosystems. Today, Injective powers custom tokenized assets, on‑chain markets, and groundbreaking DeFi applications, all designed for speed, interoperability, and real‑world utility. About the role We are looking for […]</div></li><li class='wp-block-rss__item'><div class='wp-block-rss__item-title'><a href='https://www.ppcjobs.com/job/growth-marketing-lead-generation-us-h-company/'>Growth Marketing – Lead generation – US</a></div><time datetime="2026-06-05T10:19:30-04:00" class="wp-block-rss__item-publish-date">June 5, 2026</time> <div class="wp-block-rss__item-excerpt">About H: H Company builds computer-use agents that handle complex enterprise workflows without API access or custom integrations. Backed by $220M and built by researchers from Google DeepMind, Meta, and Palantir, we’re bringing that technology to the US market through a Forward Deployed Engineer model that prioritizes outcomes over demos. We’re early, we’re moving fast, […]</div></li><li class='wp-block-rss__item'><div class='wp-block-rss__item-title'><a href='https://www.ppcjobs.com/job/paid-media-specialist-five-star-home-services/'>Paid Media Specialist</a></div><time datetime="2026-06-05T10:19:28-04:00" class="wp-block-rss__item-publish-date">June 5, 2026</time> <div class="wp-block-rss__item-excerpt">What you will own: GOOGLE ADS + LSA Build and manage Google Search campaigns across all three service lines and three markets Own the LSA account: profile management, bid strategy, lead disputes, and service area configuration Proactively maintain the full portfolio of LSA certificates of insurance, tracking expiration dates and updating credentials before they lapse […]</div></li></ul>


<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-other-roles-you-may-be-interested-in">Other roles you may be interested in</h2>



<p><a href="https://www.linkedin.com/jobs/view/4404994208/?alternateChannel=search&amp;eBP=NOT_ELIGIBLE_FOR_CHARGING&amp;refId=5qay08Y4ulSd9dQ71pww2g%3D%3D&amp;trackingId=p7rrsmOzZC6RUpZf60qHQw%3D%3D&amp;trk=d_flagship3_search_srp_jobs">Senior Manager SEO/Gen AI (FTC)</a>, Jellyfish (Hybrid, New York, US)</p>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li><strong>Salary: </strong>$90,000 &#8211; $115,000</li>



<li>Act as the lead interpreter of search performance and visibility quality across both traditional and AI-led discovery experiences</li>



<li>Maintain a broad expertise across the evolving landscape of LLMs and generative engines, including Google Gemini, OpenAI GPT, Anthropic Claude, and other leading frontier models</li>
</ul>



<p><a href="https://www.linkedin.com/jobs/view/4422055435/?alternateChannel=search&amp;eBP=NOT_ELIGIBLE_FOR_CHARGING&amp;refId=5qay08Y4ulSd9dQ71pww2g%3D%3D&amp;trackingId=Beheq0QvuXeJ3wR2CPzF2w%3D%3D&amp;trk=d_flagship3_search_srp_jobs">Lead Marketing Manager, SEO</a>, Care.com (Hybrid, Dallas, TX)</p>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li><strong>Salary:</strong> $125,000 &#8211; $135,000</li>



<li>Organic Growth: Build and execute the SEO roadmap across technical, content, and off-page. Own the numbers: traffic, rankings, conversions. No handoffs, no excuses.</li>



<li>AI-Optimized Search (AIO): Define and drive CARE.com&#8217;s strategy for visibility in AI-generated results — Google AI Overviews, ChatGPT, Perplexity, and whatever comes next. Optimize entity coverage, content structure, and schema to ensure we&#8217;re the answer, not just a result.</li>
</ul>



<p><a href="https://www.linkedin.com/jobs/view/4410097969/?alternateChannel=search&amp;eBP=NOT_ELIGIBLE_FOR_CHARGING&amp;refId=5qay08Y4ulSd9dQ71pww2g%3D%3D&amp;trackingId=JdiRVXs67dGYuqxOzk%2BeIA%3D%3D&amp;trk=d_flagship3_search_srp_jobs">SEO Marketing Manager (phone accessories)</a>, Velvet Caviar ($100,000 &#8211; $120,000)</p>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li><strong>Salary:</strong> $100,000 &#8211; $120,000</li>



<li>Own and execute the SEO strategy for a high-growth e-commerce business, driving organic traffic, revenue, and conversion improvements.</li>



<li>Conduct keyword research, competitive analysis, and SEO audits to identify and prioritize high-impact growth opportunities.</li>
</ul>



<p><a href="https://www.linkedin.com/jobs/view/4420158171/?alternateChannel=search&amp;eBP=NOT_ELIGIBLE_FOR_CHARGING&amp;refId=5qay08Y4ulSd9dQ71pww2g%3D%3D&amp;trackingId=TTU%2F3JhtO8cE%2F3lM0WF0rA%3D%3D&amp;trk=d_flagship3_search_srp_jobs">Sr. Content Marketing Manager</a>, Dayforce (Remote)</p>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li><strong>Salary:</strong> $82,700 &#8211; $147,000</li>



<li>Write and publish high-quality, search-optimized content on a consistent cadence, including (but not limited to) blogs, thought leadership, comparison pages, FAQs, infographics, and other digital content assets.</li>



<li>Create structured, answer-first content designed to be surfaced in AI-generated responses and LLM-driven experiences.</li>
</ul>



<p><a href="https://www.linkedin.com/jobs/view/4418970217/?alternateChannel=search&amp;eBP=NOT_ELIGIBLE_FOR_CHARGING&amp;refId=WyRDT4tG6oCJluK16WER7g%3D%3D&amp;trackingId=hZLTrWVSqXa66VoAQo90%2FQ%3D%3D&amp;trk=d_flagship3_search_srp_jobs">Paid Media Manager</a>, Clients Blackbox, Inc. (Remote)</p>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li><strong>Salary:</strong> $90,000 &#8211; $125,000</li>



<li>Build, launch, and optimize Meta advertising campaigns focused on lead generation and appointment booking</li>



<li>Manage campaign budgets, audience targeting, bid strategies, and creative testing</li>
</ul>



<p><a href="https://www.linkedin.com/jobs/view/4414063144/?alternateChannel=search&amp;eBP=NOT_ELIGIBLE_FOR_CHARGING&amp;refId=mf6sbrzf%2BVeRs3O8jmiISg%3D%3D&amp;trackingId=Z4PJTigyL%2FJTtgj3JdI87g%3D%3D&amp;trk=d_flagship3_search_srp_jobs">Senior Manager, Paid Search</a>, Talkiatry (Hybrid, New York, NY)</p>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li><strong>Salary:</strong> $150,000 &#8211; $180,000</li>



<li>Own and scale Talkiatry’s paid search program end-to-end, including forecasting, budgeting, pacing, bidding strategies, account structure, and creative testing for Google, Bing, and ZocDoc.</li>



<li>Develop and execute a rigorous testing roadmap, including ad copy, keyword strategy, landing page variants, and automation/algorithmic controls; quantify impact using sound experimental design.</li>
</ul>



<p><a href="https://www.linkedin.com/jobs/view/4415133016/?alternateChannel=search&amp;eBP=NOT_ELIGIBLE_FOR_CHARGING&amp;refId=mf6sbrzf%2BVeRs3O8jmiISg%3D%3D&amp;trackingId=JAdAqs7TrnMblW4zLrVjMw%3D%3D&amp;trk=d_flagship3_search_srp_jobs">Paid Digital Marketing Manager</a>, Pei Wei (Irving, Texas)</p>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>Salary: $75,000 &#8211; $110,000</li>



<li>Develop and manage paid digital marketing strategies across multiple channels, including: Paid Search, Performance Max (PMAX), Meta Ads (Facebook &amp; Instagram)</li>



<li>Monitor, optimize, and scale campaigns based on performance KPIs including ROAS,CPA, conversions, traffic, impressions, engagement, and sales.</li>
</ul>



<p><a href="https://www.linkedin.com/jobs/view/4398577393/?alternateChannel=search&amp;eBP=NOT_ELIGIBLE_FOR_CHARGING&amp;refId=ttM1MlDxMtxo7nNAwl1irQ%3D%3D&amp;trackingId=T1IuftSh3q5KSTpVA%2B3%2BJw%3D%3D&amp;trk=d_flagship3_search_srp_jobs">Marketing, Social Media &amp; PR Manager</a>, PARTNERS Staffing (Fort Myers, FL)</p>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li><strong>Salary:</strong> $75,000 &#8211; $85,000</li>



<li>Develop and execute integrated marketing campaigns for shows, content releases, events, and brand initiatives</li>



<li>Identify target audiences and create strategies to grow reach and engagement</li>
</ul>



<p><a href="https://www.linkedin.com/jobs/view/4390343701/?alternateChannel=search&amp;eBP=NON_CHARGEABLE_CHANNEL&amp;refId=CY%2Bh0AN%2Fjk5sJsIWtW8bDA%3D%3D&amp;trackingId=NLoMNsqEoW3JK3oFWLjuMg%3D%3D&amp;trk=d_flagship3_search_srp_jobs">Senior Paid Media Manager</a>, Brightly Media Lab (Remote)</p>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li><strong>Salary:</strong> $70,000 &#8211; $100,000</li>



<li>Directly build, manage, and optimize campaigns within Google Ads, Microsoft Ads, and Facebook Ads (Meta).</li>



<li>Serve as the lead point of contact for your book of clients, taking full ownership of their success and growth.</li>
</ul>



<p><a href="https://www.linkedin.com/jobs/view/4389840651/?alternateChannel=search&amp;eBP=NON_CHARGEABLE_CHANNEL&amp;refId=W6UrnBoVDaWN2cD6K2D1ow%3D%3D&amp;trackingId=juG6fbKl07ZOt3wsZi52Gg%3D%3D&amp;trk=d_flagship3_search_srp_jobs">Paid Search Specialist</a>, Maui Jim Sunglasses (Peoria, IL)</p>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li><strong>Salary:</strong> $65,000 &#8211; $70,000</li>



<li>Plan, set up, and manage paid search, display, and shopping campaigns on Google Ads.</li>



<li>Manage and optimize advertising budgets to achieve revenue and efficiency targets.</li>
</ul>



<p><em><strong>Note:</strong> We update this post weekly. So make sure to bookmark this page and check back.</em>


Looking to take the next step in your search marketing career? 
Below, you will find the latest SEO, PPC, and digital marketing jobs at brands and agencies. We also include positions from previous weeks that are still open.
Newest SEO Jobs 
(Provided to Search Engine Land by SEOjobs.com) 



SEO and PPC job at Hiyield (B Corp)
June 4, 2026 
Hiyield is a climate-conscious digital product studio that’s proudly B Corp and 80% employee owned – and one of Cornwall’s best places to work in 2026, according to Business Cornwall magazine. We help purpose-driven organisations do more good in the world – and we’re looking for someone brilliant to take this SEO and PPC job, to help us do even more of it. […]

SEO Specialist (Contract)
June 4, 2026 
Company Overview: VEA Technologies is a forward-thinking Digital Marketing Agency with roots in Missouri and Colorado. We are currently seeking an experienced and skilled SEO Specialist to collaborate with our team as a contractor at approximately 50 hrs/mo. As a contractor, you’ll enjoy the flexibility to work from anywhere and set your own schedule while […]

SEO Specialist
June 3, 2026 
Remote opportunity. U.S. applicants only. If you’re looking for a place where you can sharpen your SEO skills, push your expertise to the next level, and work alongside a team that genuinely loves testing, learning, and winning, we’d love to meet you. Honest Digital is one of the fastest-growing digital marketing agencies in the automotive […]

SEO Specialist
June 3, 2026 
Please Note: Internal Employees, please access the Jobs Hub in Workday to apply for the position. ABOUT US University of Massachusetts Global is a private, nonprofit affiliate of the University of Massachusetts, created to help working adults change their lives through flexible, high-quality education built for real life. Regionally accredited by the WASC Senior College and […]

Manager, SEO
June 2, 2026 
Who we are: Tinuiti is the largest independent full-funnel marketing agency in the U.S. across the media that matters most, with $4 billion in digital media under management and more than 1,200 employees. Built for marketers who demand growth and accountability, Tinuiti unites media and measurement under one roof to eliminate waste—the biggest growth killer […]

SEO / WordPress Analyst (LATAM)
June 1, 2026 
SEO/AEO Analyst with strong technical experience (WordPress) Fully Remote in Latam Do you get excited when your site shows up in position 1? Are you comfortable with WordPress? This is a WordPress Developer/SEO hybrid position. We are looking for a very detailed focus person who can optimize our sites for organic conversions. You’ll work with […]

Senior Associate, SEO
May 31, 2026 
Job Description: At dentsu, we help leading brands build visibility across a search landscape that is rapidly evolving. We’re looking for a Senior Associate, SEO to support a major client and drive performance across both traditional SEO, local SEO, and emerging AI‑powered discovery experiences.  This role is ideal for someone with a strong foundation who is ready to […]

Associate, SEO Strategy
May 31, 2026 
WHY DEPT®? We are a Growth Invention company built to help the world’s most ambitious brands grow faster. Operating at the intersection of technology and marketing, we create what is next by pioneering ideas, acting fast, and moving further because standing still just is not in our DNA. We are drawn to people who stay […]

Senior Lead, SEO & Answer Engine Optimization (AEO)
May 31, 2026 
Job Description Welcome to AMN Healthcare — Where Talent Meets Purpose Ever wondered what it takes to build one of the largest and most respected healthcare staffing and total talent solutions companies? It takes trailblazers, innovators, and exceptional people like you. At AMN Healthcare, we don’t just offer jobs — we build careers that make […]

Senior SEO Strategist
May 30, 2026 
Location: Remote, North America Job Type: Full-Time Reports To: SEO Director Growth Track: SEO Director About Break The Web Break The Web is a boutique SEO agency built for in-house marketing teams at ambitious eCommerce and DTC brands. We help make SEO less annoying by bringing strategic thinking, clear communication, measurable progress, and real partnership […]

Newest PPC and paid media jobs
(Provided to Search Engine Land by PPCjobs.com) 







Paid Search Ads Manager
June 5, 2026 
Description About Curology Curology’s mission is to make effective, personalized skincare accessible. We were founded by dermatologists who believe everyone should have access to skincare products that actually work. Today, our licensed dermatology providers have helped millions of patients across all 50 states make that mission a reality. We combine expert medical care with personalized […]

Growth Marketing Lead
June 5, 2026 
About Us Rho is the modern banking platform built for startups. Open accounts in minutes, issue cards, manage expenses, pay bills, and close the books – all in one connected platform backed by real human support. The Role Rho is hiring a Growth Marketing Lead to own acquisition end-to-end across both paid and organic channels, […]

Growth Marketing Manager
June 5, 2026 
About Injective Injective is trailblazing a new era of Web3-enabled finance. As a Layer‑1 blockchain built exclusively for financial applications, Injective is one of the industry’s fastest‑growing ecosystems. Today, Injective powers custom tokenized assets, on‑chain markets, and groundbreaking DeFi applications, all designed for speed, interoperability, and real‑world utility. About the role We are looking for […]

Growth Marketing – Lead generation – US
June 5, 2026 
About H: H Company builds computer-use agents that handle complex enterprise workflows without API access or custom integrations. Backed by $220M and built by researchers from Google DeepMind, Meta, and Palantir, we’re bringing that technology to the US market through a Forward Deployed Engineer model that prioritizes outcomes over demos. We’re early, we’re moving fast, […]

Paid Media Specialist
June 5, 2026 
What you will own: GOOGLE ADS + LSA Build and manage Google Search campaigns across all three service lines and three markets Own the LSA account: profile management, bid strategy, lead disputes, and service area configuration Proactively maintain the full portfolio of LSA certificates of insurance, tracking expiration dates and updating credentials before they lapse […]

Other roles you may be interested in
Senior Manager SEO/Gen AI (FTC), Jellyfish (Hybrid, New York, US)
Salary: $90,000 – $115,000
Act as the lead interpreter of search performance and visibility quality across both traditional and AI-led discovery experiences
Maintain a broad expertise across the evolving landscape of LLMs and generative engines, including Google Gemini, OpenAI GPT, Anthropic Claude, and other leading frontier models
Lead Marketing Manager, SEO, Care.com (Hybrid, Dallas, TX)
Salary: $125,000 – $135,000
Organic Growth: Build and execute the SEO roadmap across technical, content, and off-page. Own the numbers: traffic, rankings, conversions. No handoffs, no excuses.
AI-Optimized Search (AIO): Define and drive CARE.com’s strategy for visibility in AI-generated results — Google AI Overviews, ChatGPT, Perplexity, and whatever comes next. Optimize entity coverage, content structure, and schema to ensure we’re the answer, not just a result.
SEO Marketing Manager (phone accessories), Velvet Caviar ($100,000 – $120,000)
Salary: $100,000 – $120,000
Own and execute the SEO strategy for a high-growth e-commerce business, driving organic traffic, revenue, and conversion improvements.
Conduct keyword research, competitive analysis, and SEO audits to identify and prioritize high-impact growth opportunities.
Sr. Content Marketing Manager, Dayforce (Remote)
Salary: $82,700 – $147,000
Write and publish high-quality, search-optimized content on a consistent cadence, including (but not limited to) blogs, thought leadership, comparison pages, FAQs, infographics, and other digital content assets.
Create structured, answer-first content designed to be surfaced in AI-generated responses and LLM-driven experiences.
Paid Media Manager, Clients Blackbox, Inc. (Remote)
Salary: $90,000 – $125,000
Build, launch, and optimize Meta advertising campaigns focused on lead generation and appointment booking
Manage campaign budgets, audience targeting, bid strategies, and creative testing
Senior Manager, Paid Search, Talkiatry (Hybrid, New York, NY)
Salary: $150,000 – $180,000
Own and scale Talkiatry’s paid search program end-to-end, including forecasting, budgeting, pacing, bidding strategies, account structure, and creative testing for Google, Bing, and ZocDoc.
Develop and execute a rigorous testing roadmap, including ad copy, keyword strategy, landing page variants, and automation/algorithmic controls; quantify impact using sound experimental design.
Paid Digital Marketing Manager, Pei Wei (Irving, Texas)
Salary: $75,000 – $110,000
Develop and manage paid digital marketing strategies across multiple channels, including: Paid Search, Performance Max (PMAX), Meta Ads (Facebook & Instagram)
Monitor, optimize, and scale campaigns based on performance KPIs including ROAS,CPA, conversions, traffic, impressions, engagement, and sales.
Marketing, Social Media & PR Manager, PARTNERS Staffing (Fort Myers, FL)
Salary: $75,000 – $85,000
Develop and execute integrated marketing campaigns for shows, content releases, events, and brand initiatives
Identify target audiences and create strategies to grow reach and engagement
Senior Paid Media Manager, Brightly Media Lab (Remote)
Salary: $70,000 – $100,000
Directly build, manage, and optimize campaigns within Google Ads, Microsoft Ads, and Facebook Ads (Meta).
Serve as the lead point of contact for your book of clients, taking full ownership of their success and growth.
Paid Search Specialist, Maui Jim Sunglasses (Peoria, IL)
Salary: $65,000 – $70,000
Plan, set up, and manage paid search, display, and shopping campaigns on Google Ads.
Manage and optimize advertising budgets to achieve revenue and efficiency targets.
Note: We update this post weekly. So make sure to bookmark this page and check back.

Land your next job in SEO or PPC. These brands and agencies are hiring to fill open search marketing positions right now.

The latest jobs in search marketing

<div><img width="1920" height="1080" src="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/04/ai-bot-traffic-surge.png" class="attachment-large size-large wp-post-image" alt="AI bot traffic surge" decoding="async" srcset="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/04/ai-bot-traffic-surge.png 1920w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/04/ai-bot-traffic-surge-768x432.png 768w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/04/ai-bot-traffic-surge-1536x864.png 1536w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/04/ai-bot-traffic-surge-1200x675.png 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px" /></div>CEO Matthew Prince expected bots to outnumber humans by 2027. New Cloudflare data shows that the milestone has already arrived.

<div><img width="1920" height="1080" src="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/04/ai-bot-traffic-surge.png" class="attachment-large size-large wp-post-image" alt="AI bot traffic surge" decoding="async" srcset="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/04/ai-bot-traffic-surge.png 1920w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/04/ai-bot-traffic-surge-768x432.png 768w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/04/ai-bot-traffic-surge-1536x864.png 1536w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/04/ai-bot-traffic-surge-1200x675.png 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px" /></div>
<p>Bots now make up the majority of webpage requests worldwide for the first time, according to Cloudflare CEO Matthew Prince.</p>



<p>Prince <a href="https://x.com/eastdakota/status/2062212701414187452">posted on X</a> that automated traffic now accounts for 57.3% of worldwide HTTP requests to HTML content, compared with 42.7% for humans, according to Cloudflare&#8217;s data.</p>



<p><strong>Prince’s 2027 forecast arrived early.</strong> <a href="https://searchengineland.com/bots-overtake-human-web-usage-2027-472109">Prince predicted</a> in March at SXSW that AI bots could outnumber humans on the web by 2027 as agent-driven browsing grew. He later revised that forecast to early 2027. Now, he says, agentic traffic is growing so quickly that bots have already crossed the line.</p>



<p><strong>Why we care.</strong> Search is moving into an agentic era, where bots may become the primary source of webpage requests. That may increase the importance of making content machine-readable, authoritative, and easy for AI systems to interpret.</p>



<p><strong>AI agents browse differently.</strong> Prince previously warned that AI agents can generate far more web activity than humans because they gather information differently. A person shopping online might visit five sites. An AI agent could visit thousands, creating real traffic and real server load without the same clicks, ad views, or customer relationships that websites have relied on.</p>



<p><strong>The measurement problem. </strong>The shift creates a new challenge for publishers, retailers and brands: traffic may rise while human engagement, referrals and monetization do not.</p>



<p><strong>The larger question.</strong> Prince previously asked what pays for the web when more of its “users” are bots? Now that bots have crossed the majority line, that question is no longer theoretical.</p>


Bots now make up the majority of webpage requests worldwide for the first time, according to Cloudflare CEO Matthew Prince.
Prince posted on X that automated traffic now accounts for 57.3% of worldwide HTTP requests to HTML content, compared with 42.7% for humans, according to Cloudflare’s data.
Prince’s 2027 forecast arrived early. Prince predicted in March at SXSW that AI bots could outnumber humans on the web by 2027 as agent-driven browsing grew. He later revised that forecast to early 2027. Now, he says, agentic traffic is growing so quickly that bots have already crossed the line.
Why we care. Search is moving into an agentic era, where bots may become the primary source of webpage requests. That may increase the importance of making content machine-readable, authoritative, and easy for AI systems to interpret.
AI agents browse differently. Prince previously warned that AI agents can generate far more web activity than humans because they gather information differently. A person shopping online might visit five sites. An AI agent could visit thousands, creating real traffic and real server load without the same clicks, ad views, or customer relationships that websites have relied on.
The measurement problem. The shift creates a new challenge for publishers, retailers and brands: traffic may rise while human engagement, referrals and monetization do not.
The larger question. Prince previously asked what pays for the web when more of its “users” are bots? Now that bots have crossed the majority line, that question is no longer theoretical.

CEO Matthew Prince expected bots to outnumber humans by 2027. New Cloudflare data shows that the milestone has already arrived.

Cloudflare: Bots now make up 57% of webpage requests

<div><img width="1920" height="1080" src="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/06/4-ways-to-track-AI-search-visibility-when-attribution-falls-short.png" class="attachment-large size-large wp-post-image" alt="4 ways to track AI search visibility when attribution falls short" decoding="async" srcset="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/06/4-ways-to-track-AI-search-visibility-when-attribution-falls-short.png 1920w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/06/4-ways-to-track-AI-search-visibility-when-attribution-falls-short-768x432.png 768w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/06/4-ways-to-track-AI-search-visibility-when-attribution-falls-short-1536x864.png 1536w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/06/4-ways-to-track-AI-search-visibility-when-attribution-falls-short-1200x675.png 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px" /></div>The path from discovery to decision is getting harder to see. Learn how to combine traditional attribution with new signals of influence.

<div><img width="1920" height="1080" src="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/06/4-ways-to-track-AI-search-visibility-when-attribution-falls-short.png" class="attachment-large size-large wp-post-image" alt="4 ways to track AI search visibility when attribution falls short" decoding="async" srcset="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/06/4-ways-to-track-AI-search-visibility-when-attribution-falls-short.png 1920w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/06/4-ways-to-track-AI-search-visibility-when-attribution-falls-short-768x432.png 768w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/06/4-ways-to-track-AI-search-visibility-when-attribution-falls-short-1536x864.png 1536w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/06/4-ways-to-track-AI-search-visibility-when-attribution-falls-short-1200x675.png 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px" /></div>
<p>Most attribution models were built for a world where people clicked links. Someone searched, clicked a result, landed on a page, and eventually converted.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Analytics platforms could connect those actions together and give you a reasonably clear picture of what was working.</p>



<p>The system wasn’t perfect, but at least the path was visible. Now, AI-generated search experiences are making the path <a href="https://searchengineland.com/content-invisible-ai-search-engines-456496">a lot harder to see</a>.</p>



<p>A buyer might ask ChatGPT for the best project management software, <a href="https://searchengineland.com/guide/google-ai-overviews">Google&#8217;s AI Overview</a> for cybersecurity vendors, or Claude for recommendations before putting together a shortlist.</p>



<p>Your company could appear in every one of those conversations — and never receive a click. That gap between influence and measurable traffic is why you need to rethink attribution.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-ai-answers-accelerate-the-zero-click-trend">AI answers accelerate the zero-click trend</h2>



<p>Search has already been moving toward zero-click experiences for years.</p>



<p>Featured snippets, knowledge panels, local packs, and similar features have steadily reduced click-through rates by answering more questions directly in the SERP.</p>



<p>Generative search <a href="https://searchengineland.com/what-4-ai-search-experiments-reveal-about-attribution-and-buying-decisions-468702">pushes that further</a> by compressing what was once a multi-click research process into a single interaction. Users can compare vendors, evaluate recommendations, and gather information without ever leaving the SERP.</p>



<p>For brands, this means losing visibility into parts of the buyer journey. But it also means new opportunities are emerging to influence decisions before a website visit ever occurs.&nbsp;</p>



<p><strong><em>Dig deeper: <a href="https://searchengineland.com/what-4-ai-search-experiments-reveal-about-attribution-and-buying-decisions-468702">What 4 AI search experiments reveal about attribution and buying decisions</a></em></strong>



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<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-limits-of-traditional-attribution">The limits of traditional attribution</h3>



<p>For years, attribution has relied on website visits as the primary signal that marketing activity influenced a decision.</p>



<p>The sequence was straightforward: Someone searches for something. They click a result. They land on a website. Analytics software records the visit and, if things go well, connects that session to a lead, sale, or conversion.</p>



<p>AI is <a href="https://searchengineland.com/consumers-start-searches-ai-not-google-study-467159">starting to break</a> that relationship between discovery and measurable traffic.</p>



<p>A prospect may encounter your brand multiple times through AI-generated answers before ever visiting your website. By the time they arrive, the journey can look deceptively simple in analytics:</p>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>Direct visit.</li>



<li><a href="https://searchengineland.com/google-appears-to-be-testing-new-branded-search-controls-in-ai-max-campaigns-479088">Branded search</a>.</li>



<li>Conversion.</li>
</ul>



<p>The interactions that introduced your brand, shaped consideration, or influenced vendor selection may never appear in reporting.</p>



<p>As more discovery and evaluation occur within AI systems, attribution captures a smaller share of the decision-making process. It still records the website visit, but most of what happens beforehand stays invisible.&nbsp;</p>



<p>The challenge is that these interactions are harder to measure, not that they matter less.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-rise-of-invisible-influence">The rise of invisible influence</h3>



<p>The same interactions that are becoming harder to measure are also creating new opportunities to influence how buyers discover, evaluate, and compare options.</p>



<p>A buyer may discover your company through one channel, then use AI to compare vendors, explore alternatives, and build a shortlist before ever visiting your website. Along the way, they could encounter your brand through recommendations, category comparisons, citations, and other AI-generated responses that help establish familiarity and reinforce credibility.</p>



<p>That influence can take many forms:</p>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>Inclusion in &#8220;best options&#8221; lists</li>



<li>Recommendations within category comparisons</li>



<li>Mentions in industry-specific prompts</li>



<li><a href="https://searchengineland.com/ai-citations-favor-listicles-articles-product-pages-study-472364">Citations</a> within AI-generated answers</li>



<li>References during early-stage research and evaluation</li>
</ul>



<p>These interactions may never generate a click, but they can still shape which companies buyers consider, which vendors make the shortlist, and how brands are perceived before a formal evaluation process begins.</p>



<p>As these moments of influence become more common, you’ll need new ways to understand their impact.</p>



<p><strong><em>Dig deeper: <a href="https://searchengineland.com/ai-visibility-starts-before-search-ends-with-citations-476308">Why AI visibility starts before search and ends with citations</a></em></strong>



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<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-how-to-measure-influence-beyond-clicks">How to measure influence beyond clicks</h2>



<p>Traditional attribution still has value. Website visits, conversions, referral sources, and channel performance remain important signals. But the reality is that attribution data provides a less complete explanation of how buying decisions are made.</p>



<p>As AI becomes more integrated into how buyers research and evaluate options, you need a broader view of influence. That means looking beyond conversion paths alone and incorporating signals that explain how awareness, consideration, and decision-making develop over time. Here are a few places to start.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-1-assisted-conversions">1. Assisted conversions</h3>



<p>AI-generated recommendations often influence decisions long before a buyer enters a measurable funnel. Assisted conversion reporting can help identify which channels consistently drive conversions, even when they aren&#8217;t the final touchpoint.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-2-branded-search-growth">2. Branded search growth</h3>



<p>One of the clearest signals that AI visibility is creating awareness is an increase in branded search activity. If more buyers are searching specifically for your company after encountering it in AI-generated recommendations, comparisons, or citations, branded search volume may rise even when AI referral traffic remains minimal.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-3-direct-traffic-trends">3. Direct traffic trends</h3>



<p>Direct traffic should never be treated as a standalone measure of AI influence. However, unexplained increases in direct visits can sometimes indicate that buyers are learning about your company elsewhere and returning later through direct navigation or branded search.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-4-brand-visibility-within-ai-systems">4. Brand visibility within AI systems</h3>



<p><a href="https://searchengineland.com/the-micro-macro-shift-how-to-measure-ai-visibility-now-that-precision-is-gone-478711">Visibility inside AI systems</a> is becoming a meaningful signal in its own right. Tracking how often your brand appears in relevant prompts, comparisons, recommendations, and citations can help reveal whether AI systems view your company as a credible source or option within a category.</p>



<p>No single metric can fully explain AI-driven influence. The goal is to combine traditional attribution data with emerging signals of visibility, consideration, and recommendation to build a more complete picture of how decisions are being shaped.</p>



<p><strong><em>Dig deeper: <a href="http://The micro-macro shift: How to measure AI visibility now that precision is gone">The micro-macro shift: How to measure AI visibility now that precision is gone</a></em></strong>



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<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-more-complete-view-of-influence">A more complete view of influence</h2>



<p>Website visits, conversions, referral sources, and channel performance remain valuable signals. But buying decisions are increasingly shaped by interactions that happen before a prospect ever reaches a website.</p>



<p>As AI becomes a more common part of how people discover, research, and evaluate options, you’ll need a broader understanding of influence and the role it plays throughout the buying process.</p>



<p>The organizations that adapt most effectively will combine traditional attribution data with emerging signals of visibility, consideration, recommendation, and brand discovery.</p>



<p>A more complete picture of influence starts with recognizing that the buyer journey extends beyond the interactions analytics platforms can easily observe.</p>

Most attribution models were built for a world where people clicked links. Someone searched, clicked a result, landed on a page, and eventually converted. 
Analytics platforms could connect those actions together and give you a reasonably clear picture of what was working.
The system wasn’t perfect, but at least the path was visible. Now, AI-generated search experiences are making the path a lot harder to see.
A buyer might ask ChatGPT for the best project management software, Google’s AI Overview for cybersecurity vendors, or Claude for recommendations before putting together a shortlist.
Your company could appear in every one of those conversations — and never receive a click. That gap between influence and measurable traffic is why you need to rethink attribution.
AI answers accelerate the zero-click trend
Search has already been moving toward zero-click experiences for years.
Featured snippets, knowledge panels, local packs, and similar features have steadily reduced click-through rates by answering more questions directly in the SERP.
Generative search pushes that further by compressing what was once a multi-click research process into a single interaction. Users can compare vendors, evaluate recommendations, and gather information without ever leaving the SERP.
For brands, this means losing visibility into parts of the buyer journey. But it also means new opportunities are emerging to influence decisions before a website visit ever occurs. 
Dig deeper: What 4 AI search experiments reveal about attribution and buying decisions




  
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The limits of traditional attribution
For years, attribution has relied on website visits as the primary signal that marketing activity influenced a decision.
The sequence was straightforward: Someone searches for something. They click a result. They land on a website. Analytics software records the visit and, if things go well, connects that session to a lead, sale, or conversion.
AI is starting to break that relationship between discovery and measurable traffic.
A prospect may encounter your brand multiple times through AI-generated answers before ever visiting your website. By the time they arrive, the journey can look deceptively simple in analytics:
Direct visit.
Branded search.
Conversion.
The interactions that introduced your brand, shaped consideration, or influenced vendor selection may never appear in reporting.
As more discovery and evaluation occur within AI systems, attribution captures a smaller share of the decision-making process. It still records the website visit, but most of what happens beforehand stays invisible. 
The challenge is that these interactions are harder to measure, not that they matter less.
The rise of invisible influence
The same interactions that are becoming harder to measure are also creating new opportunities to influence how buyers discover, evaluate, and compare options.
A buyer may discover your company through one channel, then use AI to compare vendors, explore alternatives, and build a shortlist before ever visiting your website. Along the way, they could encounter your brand through recommendations, category comparisons, citations, and other AI-generated responses that help establish familiarity and reinforce credibility.
That influence can take many forms:
Inclusion in “best options” lists
Recommendations within category comparisons
Mentions in industry-specific prompts
Citations within AI-generated answers
References during early-stage research and evaluation
These interactions may never generate a click, but they can still shape which companies buyers consider, which vendors make the shortlist, and how brands are perceived before a formal evaluation process begins.
As these moments of influence become more common, you’ll need new ways to understand their impact.
Dig deeper: Why AI visibility starts before search and ends with citations




	
	
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See terms.
		
How to measure influence beyond clicks
Traditional attribution still has value. Website visits, conversions, referral sources, and channel performance remain important signals. But the reality is that attribution data provides a less complete explanation of how buying decisions are made.
As AI becomes more integrated into how buyers research and evaluate options, you need a broader view of influence. That means looking beyond conversion paths alone and incorporating signals that explain how awareness, consideration, and decision-making develop over time. Here are a few places to start.
1. Assisted conversions
AI-generated recommendations often influence decisions long before a buyer enters a measurable funnel. Assisted conversion reporting can help identify which channels consistently drive conversions, even when they aren’t the final touchpoint.
2. Branded search growth
One of the clearest signals that AI visibility is creating awareness is an increase in branded search activity. If more buyers are searching specifically for your company after encountering it in AI-generated recommendations, comparisons, or citations, branded search volume may rise even when AI referral traffic remains minimal.
3. Direct traffic trends
Direct traffic should never be treated as a standalone measure of AI influence. However, unexplained increases in direct visits can sometimes indicate that buyers are learning about your company elsewhere and returning later through direct navigation or branded search.
4. Brand visibility within AI systems
Visibility inside AI systems is becoming a meaningful signal in its own right. Tracking how often your brand appears in relevant prompts, comparisons, recommendations, and citations can help reveal whether AI systems view your company as a credible source or option within a category.
No single metric can fully explain AI-driven influence. The goal is to combine traditional attribution data with emerging signals of visibility, consideration, and recommendation to build a more complete picture of how decisions are being shaped.
Dig deeper: The micro-macro shift: How to measure AI visibility now that precision is gone




  
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A more complete view of influence
Website visits, conversions, referral sources, and channel performance remain valuable signals. But buying decisions are increasingly shaped by interactions that happen before a prospect ever reaches a website.
As AI becomes a more common part of how people discover, research, and evaluate options, you’ll need a broader understanding of influence and the role it plays throughout the buying process.
The organizations that adapt most effectively will combine traditional attribution data with emerging signals of visibility, consideration, recommendation, and brand discovery.
A more complete picture of influence starts with recognizing that the buyer journey extends beyond the interactions analytics platforms can easily observe.

The path from discovery to decision is getting harder to see. Learn how to combine traditional attribution with new signals of influence.

4 ways to track AI search visibility when attribution falls short

<div><img width="1920" height="1080" src="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/06/The-delegation-shift-in-search-Why-users-outsource-decisions-to-AI.png" class="attachment-large size-large wp-post-image" alt="The delegation shift in search: Why users outsource decisions to AI" decoding="async" srcset="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/06/The-delegation-shift-in-search-Why-users-outsource-decisions-to-AI.png 1920w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/06/The-delegation-shift-in-search-Why-users-outsource-decisions-to-AI-768x432.png 768w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/06/The-delegation-shift-in-search-Why-users-outsource-decisions-to-AI-1536x864.png 1536w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/06/The-delegation-shift-in-search-Why-users-outsource-decisions-to-AI-1200x675.png 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px" /></div>From travel planning to product research, users increasingly seek confidence, recommendations, and a faster path to action.


<div><img width="1920" height="1080" src="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/06/The-delegation-shift-in-search-Why-users-outsource-decisions-to-AI.png" class="attachment-large size-large wp-post-image" alt="The delegation shift in search: Why users outsource decisions to AI" decoding="async" srcset="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/06/The-delegation-shift-in-search-Why-users-outsource-decisions-to-AI.png 1920w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/06/The-delegation-shift-in-search-Why-users-outsource-decisions-to-AI-768x432.png 768w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/06/The-delegation-shift-in-search-Why-users-outsource-decisions-to-AI-1536x864.png 1536w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/06/The-delegation-shift-in-search-Why-users-outsource-decisions-to-AI-1200x675.png 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px" /></div>
<p>Search used to be about retrieval. You&#8217;d open multiple tabs. Compare sources. Read reviews. Cross-reference information. Decide for yourself.</p>



<p>But increasingly, search is becoming something else entirely: delegation. </p>



<p>Users are realizing they no longer need to compare 15 different pages or bounce between Google, Maps, reviews, forums, and videos to make a decision. For the first time, there&#8217;s an easier option. They can ask AI to do the heavy lifting instead.</p>



<p>In many ways, this is the closest most people have ever come to having a personal assistant. Historically, delegation was a luxury reserved for people with human support around them, someone who could research options, summarize information, and make recommendations. In practice, that meant the wealthy.</p>



<p>Now, that capability has been democratized. Everyone has access to an assistant, and that changes search behavior fundamentally. Users want synthesis over retrieval, recommendations over exploration, and reduced effort over exhaustive research. They want help evaluating options and making decisions.</p>



<p>This is a behavioral shift. Where we used to &#8220;phone a friend,&#8221; we now ask an LLM.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-why-users-are-delegating">Why users are delegating</h2>



<p>At the heart of this shift from search to delegation is basic human psychology. Our brains are wired for cognitive ease. We naturally gravitate toward behaviors that reduce effort, simplify decisions, and save time.</p>



<p>AI tools do exactly that. They remove friction from the decision-making process by allowing users to use fewer tabs, make fewer comparisons, carry less cognitive load, and get faster outcomes.</p>



<p>Users also appear increasingly comfortable with answers that are &#8220;good enough&#8221; and delivered quickly, rather than &#8220;perfect&#8221; answers that require significant effort to uncover.&nbsp;</p>



<p>For years, search behavior was built around gathering as much information as possible before making a decision. AI has changed that value exchange. Users don&#8217;t need every possible answer. They need confidence that the answer is sufficient.</p>



<p>Up to <a href="https://www.reflectdigital.co.uk/searchpulse" target="_blank" rel="noopener">61%</a> of AI users say that they are using these tools because of their speed and ease, Reflect Digital’s SearchPulse research found. <em>(</em><strong><em>Disclosure: </em></strong><em>I’m Reflect Digital’s founder and CEO.)</em>



<p>As technology has become embedded in everyday life, our expectations around convenience have evolved alongside it. It&#8217;s a story as old as the discovery of fire. These days, we&#8217;re already conditioned to optimize more of our lives than ever before, and AI is becoming another mechanism for doing exactly that.</p>



<p><strong><em>Dig deeper: <a href="https://searchengineland.com/the-delegation-boundary-how-ai-decides-which-brands-win-477194">The delegation boundary: How AI decides which brands win</a></em></strong>



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<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-delegation-in-search-won-t-look-the-same-for-everyone">Delegation in search won&#8217;t look the same for everyone</h2>



<p>One of the biggest mistakes businesses can make right now is assuming this shift to delegation is happening evenly across all audiences and search journeys. It isn&#8217;t.</p>



<p><a href="https://searchengineland.com/ai-search-adoption-isnt-equal-and-income-is-driving-the-divide-474134">AI search adoption varies significantly</a> depending on factors such as household income, profession, and digital confidence.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Users also delegate differently depending on the task they&#8217;re trying to complete. Take vacation planning as an example. Building an itinerary for a trip is a perfect delegation task. Traditionally, this would require multiple tabs, maps, travel sites, and constant comparison between locations, timing, and logistics.</p>



<p>Now, users can ask AI a simple question like: &#8220;Plan me a five-day itinerary around Tuscany with wine tasting, scenic towns, and minimal driving.&#8221; That&#8217;s decision outsourcing.</p>



<p>But choosing the vacation itself may still involve more exploratory behavior. Users may still want to browse destinations, look at imagery, watch videos, or validate ideas independently before narrowing down their options.</p>



<p>The key point is that delegation is contextual. Businesses need to understand where delegation naturally fits within their audience&#8217;s decision-making process.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-how-to-identify-delegation-opportunities-in-your-audience">How to identify delegation opportunities in your audience</h2>



<p>The important thing to understand is that delegation is rarely universal across an entire customer journey. AI adoption isn&#8217;t binary. People delegate specific types of decisions. They delegate specific types of decisions.</p>



<p>A useful way to identify delegation opportunities is to look for moments where users experience:</p>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>High cognitive load.</li>



<li>Too many variables.</li>



<li>Time pressure.</li>



<li>Repetitive comparison.</li>



<li>Decision fatigue.</li>



<li>Information overload.</li>
</ul>



<p>These are the moments where delegation becomes appealing. To assess what that means for your specific audience, ask yourself:</p>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>Where does our audience get overwhelmed?</li>



<li>Where are they comparing too many options?</li>



<li>Where are they trying to save time?</li>



<li>Where are they repeatedly asking for reassurance or recommendations?</li>



<li>Which parts of the journey are effort-heavy rather than emotionally enjoyable?</li>
</ul>



<p>The more effort a task requires, the more likely delegation becomes. Then compare those answers against the areas where users may still want exploration:</p>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>Inspiration.</li>



<li>Entertainment.</li>



<li>Identity expression.</li>



<li>Aspirational browsing.</li>



<li>Emotionally led decisions.</li>
</ul>



<p>For example, users may delegate building a travel itinerary but still enjoy exploring vacation destinations themselves.</p>



<p>That distinction matters. The businesses that win in this new search environment will understand not just what their audience is searching for, but also what they&#8217;re trying to offload.</p>



<p><strong><em>Dig deeper: <a href="https://searchengineland.com/brand-ai-recommendation-set-477229">Why your brand isn’t making the AI recommendation set</a></em></strong>



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<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-delegation-behavior-actually-looks-like">What delegation behavior actually looks like</h2>



<p>Once you start looking for it, delegation-driven decisions become surprisingly easy to spot.&nbsp; It often appears as users asking AI to narrow down options, recommend the best fit, validate decisions, summarize information, compare choices, and reduce effort.&nbsp;</p>



<p>That means searches become more like:</p>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>&#8220;What&#8217;s best for me?&#8221;</li>



<li>&#8220;What would you recommend?&#8221;</li>



<li>&#8220;Compare these options.&#8221;</li>



<li>&#8220;Give me the top three.&#8221;</li>



<li>&#8220;Summarize this for me.&#8221;</li>
</ul>



<p>Traditional search behavior, meanwhile, is more exploration-heavy and involves deep comparisons, source checking, manual research, and detailed information gathering.</p>



<p>Most users will switch between the two modes depending on what they&#8217;re searching for and why. But businesses shouldn&#8217;t rely purely on internal assumptions or gut feel to understand where these delegation moments exist. </p>



<p>Gut feelings will only get you so far. To truly understand this shift, you need to speak to your audience. That means combining behavioral observation with direct research, such as:</p>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>Surveys.</li>



<li>Customer interviews.</li>



<li>Roundtables.</li>



<li>Usability testing.</li>



<li>Journey analysis.</li>



<li>Search behavior analysis.</li>



<li>AI prompt analysis.</li>
</ul>



<p>The goal of this research is to understand where users experience friction, become overwhelmed, seek reassurance, want recommendations, and feel comfortable outsourcing decision-making.</p>



<p>The real competitive advantage comes from understanding what your audience no longer wants to do themselves.</p>



<p><strong><em>Dig deeper: <a href="https://searchengineland.com/brand-depth-ai-systems-recommend-478816">Brand depth determines what AI systems recommend</a></em></strong>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-this-shift-to-delegation-search-means-for-content-strategy">What this shift to delegation search means for content strategy</h2>



<p>This is where the shift becomes commercially important. Right now, businesses need both search-support and decision-support content because both behaviors still exist.</p>



<p>Search-support content is designed for exploration. It tends to be comprehensive, highly detailed, comparison-driven, educational, and deeply indexable. It supports users who still want to research extensively and validate decisions themselves.</p>



<p>Decision-support content serves a different purpose. It needs to be synthesized, recommendation-oriented, clearly structured, trust-heavy, and outcome-led.</p>



<p>This type of content helps both users and AI systems quickly understand what you offer, who it&#8217;s for, when it&#8217;s appropriate, and why it should be trusted.</p>



<p>For example, a traditional search-support page might compare every CRM platform feature in detail. A decision-support page might clearly explain: &#8220;Best CRM for a 50-person B2B sales team with limited implementation resources.&#8221;</p>



<p>One page supports exploration. The other reduces decision-making effort.</p>



<p>Websites increasingly need to support two parallel journeys: humans who are exploring and humans who are delegating. Or, put another way, they need to <a href="https://searchengineland.com/your-next-customer-might-not-be-human-designing-journeys-for-people-and-ai-agents-466459">support journeys for both people and AI agents</a>.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-simple-way-to-audit-your-content-for-delegation-behavior">A simple way to audit your content for delegation behavior</h2>



<p>If delegation is becoming part of your audience&#8217;s decision-making process, the next question is obvious: How do you know whether your content supports it?</p>



<p>A useful starting point is to audit your existing content through two lenses: exploration support and decision support.</p>



<p>Does this content help someone explore?</p>



<p>This is traditional search-support behavior:</p>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>Detailed explanations.</li>



<li>Comparisons.</li>



<li>Educational depth.</li>



<li>Broad keyword coverage.</li>



<li>Manual research support.</li>



<li>Multiple options without strong direction.</li>
</ul>



<p>This content is designed to help users gather information and evaluate independently.</p>



<p>Does this content help someone decide?</p>



<p>Decision-support content reduces effort. It helps users, and increasingly AI systems, move toward action faster through:</p>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>Clear recommendations.</li>



<li>Summarized takeaways.</li>



<li>Structured comparisons.</li>



<li>Strong trust signals.</li>



<li>Direct answers.</li>



<li>Contextual guidance.</li>



<li>Outcome-focused language.</li>
</ul>



<p>One of the easiest ways to spot gaps is to ask: &#8220;If an AI system landed on this page, would it clearly understand what we recommend, who this is for, and why it matters?&#8221;</p>



<p>Many businesses currently have large volumes of exploration content but very little decision-support content. That creates a gap. Delegation isn&#8217;t just about being discoverable anymore. It&#8217;s about being usable within a decision-making process.</p>



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<p><strong><em>Dig deeper: <a href="https://searchengineland.com/from-searching-to-delegating-adapting-to-ai-first-search-behavior-467888">From searching to delegating: Adapting to AI-first search behavior</a></em></strong>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-risk-of-misunderstanding-this-shift">The risk of misunderstanding this shift</h2>



<p>Some businesses are already making the mistake of abandoning traditional search behavior too early. That is a serious error because traditional search isn&#8217;t disappearing.</p>



<p>Delegation behavior can&#8217;t be ignored either. Different audiences, moments, and decision types now require different search experiences. The businesses that succeed won&#8217;t be the ones chasing every AI trend. They&#8217;ll be the ones who deeply understand:</p>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>When users want exploration.</li>



<li>When users want delegation.</li>



<li>How to support both effectively.</li>
</ul>



<p>That&#8217;s because users increasingly seek help evaluating options and making decisions.</p>



<p>The brands that succeed in the future of search will be those that deeply understand their audience and let that knowledge guide their strategy.</p>

Search used to be about retrieval. You’d open multiple tabs. Compare sources. Read reviews. Cross-reference information. Decide for yourself.
But increasingly, search is becoming something else entirely: delegation. 
Users are realizing they no longer need to compare 15 different pages or bounce between Google, Maps, reviews, forums, and videos to make a decision. For the first time, there’s an easier option. They can ask AI to do the heavy lifting instead.
In many ways, this is the closest most people have ever come to having a personal assistant. Historically, delegation was a luxury reserved for people with human support around them, someone who could research options, summarize information, and make recommendations. In practice, that meant the wealthy.
Now, that capability has been democratized. Everyone has access to an assistant, and that changes search behavior fundamentally. Users want synthesis over retrieval, recommendations over exploration, and reduced effort over exhaustive research. They want help evaluating options and making decisions.
This is a behavioral shift. Where we used to “phone a friend,” we now ask an LLM.
Why users are delegating
At the heart of this shift from search to delegation is basic human psychology. Our brains are wired for cognitive ease. We naturally gravitate toward behaviors that reduce effort, simplify decisions, and save time.
AI tools do exactly that. They remove friction from the decision-making process by allowing users to use fewer tabs, make fewer comparisons, carry less cognitive load, and get faster outcomes.
Users also appear increasingly comfortable with answers that are “good enough” and delivered quickly, rather than “perfect” answers that require significant effort to uncover. 
For years, search behavior was built around gathering as much information as possible before making a decision. AI has changed that value exchange. Users don’t need every possible answer. They need confidence that the answer is sufficient.
Up to 61% of AI users say that they are using these tools because of their speed and ease, Reflect Digital’s SearchPulse research found. (Disclosure: I’m Reflect Digital’s founder and CEO.)



As technology has become embedded in everyday life, our expectations around convenience have evolved alongside it. It’s a story as old as the discovery of fire. These days, we’re already conditioned to optimize more of our lives than ever before, and AI is becoming another mechanism for doing exactly that.
Dig deeper: The delegation boundary: How AI decides which brands win




  
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Delegation in search won’t look the same for everyone
One of the biggest mistakes businesses can make right now is assuming this shift to delegation is happening evenly across all audiences and search journeys. It isn’t.
AI search adoption varies significantly depending on factors such as household income, profession, and digital confidence. 
Users also delegate differently depending on the task they’re trying to complete. Take vacation planning as an example. Building an itinerary for a trip is a perfect delegation task. Traditionally, this would require multiple tabs, maps, travel sites, and constant comparison between locations, timing, and logistics.
Now, users can ask AI a simple question like: “Plan me a five-day itinerary around Tuscany with wine tasting, scenic towns, and minimal driving.” That’s decision outsourcing.
But choosing the vacation itself may still involve more exploratory behavior. Users may still want to browse destinations, look at imagery, watch videos, or validate ideas independently before narrowing down their options.
The key point is that delegation is contextual. Businesses need to understand where delegation naturally fits within their audience’s decision-making process.
How to identify delegation opportunities in your audience
The important thing to understand is that delegation is rarely universal across an entire customer journey. AI adoption isn’t binary. People delegate specific types of decisions. They delegate specific types of decisions.
A useful way to identify delegation opportunities is to look for moments where users experience:
High cognitive load.
Too many variables.
Time pressure.
Repetitive comparison.
Decision fatigue.
Information overload.
These are the moments where delegation becomes appealing. To assess what that means for your specific audience, ask yourself:
Where does our audience get overwhelmed?
Where are they comparing too many options?
Where are they trying to save time?
Where are they repeatedly asking for reassurance or recommendations?
Which parts of the journey are effort-heavy rather than emotionally enjoyable?
The more effort a task requires, the more likely delegation becomes. Then compare those answers against the areas where users may still want exploration:
Inspiration.
Entertainment.
Identity expression.
Aspirational browsing.
Emotionally led decisions.
For example, users may delegate building a travel itinerary but still enjoy exploring vacation destinations themselves.
That distinction matters. The businesses that win in this new search environment will understand not just what their audience is searching for, but also what they’re trying to offload.
Dig deeper: Why your brand isn’t making the AI recommendation set




	
	
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What delegation behavior actually looks like
Once you start looking for it, delegation-driven decisions become surprisingly easy to spot.  It often appears as users asking AI to narrow down options, recommend the best fit, validate decisions, summarize information, compare choices, and reduce effort. 
That means searches become more like:
“What’s best for me?”
“What would you recommend?”
“Compare these options.”
“Give me the top three.”
“Summarize this for me.”
Traditional search behavior, meanwhile, is more exploration-heavy and involves deep comparisons, source checking, manual research, and detailed information gathering.
Most users will switch between the two modes depending on what they’re searching for and why. But businesses shouldn’t rely purely on internal assumptions or gut feel to understand where these delegation moments exist. 
Gut feelings will only get you so far. To truly understand this shift, you need to speak to your audience. That means combining behavioral observation with direct research, such as:
Surveys.
Customer interviews.
Roundtables.
Usability testing.
Journey analysis.
Search behavior analysis.
AI prompt analysis.
The goal of this research is to understand where users experience friction, become overwhelmed, seek reassurance, want recommendations, and feel comfortable outsourcing decision-making.
The real competitive advantage comes from understanding what your audience no longer wants to do themselves.
Dig deeper: Brand depth determines what AI systems recommend



What this shift to delegation search means for content strategy
This is where the shift becomes commercially important. Right now, businesses need both search-support and decision-support content because both behaviors still exist.
Search-support content is designed for exploration. It tends to be comprehensive, highly detailed, comparison-driven, educational, and deeply indexable. It supports users who still want to research extensively and validate decisions themselves.
Decision-support content serves a different purpose. It needs to be synthesized, recommendation-oriented, clearly structured, trust-heavy, and outcome-led.
This type of content helps both users and AI systems quickly understand what you offer, who it’s for, when it’s appropriate, and why it should be trusted.
For example, a traditional search-support page might compare every CRM platform feature in detail. A decision-support page might clearly explain: “Best CRM for a 50-person B2B sales team with limited implementation resources.”
One page supports exploration. The other reduces decision-making effort.
Websites increasingly need to support two parallel journeys: humans who are exploring and humans who are delegating. Or, put another way, they need to support journeys for both people and AI agents.
A simple way to audit your content for delegation behavior
If delegation is becoming part of your audience’s decision-making process, the next question is obvious: How do you know whether your content supports it?
A useful starting point is to audit your existing content through two lenses: exploration support and decision support.
Does this content help someone explore?
This is traditional search-support behavior:
Detailed explanations.
Comparisons.
Educational depth.
Broad keyword coverage.
Manual research support.
Multiple options without strong direction.
This content is designed to help users gather information and evaluate independently.
Does this content help someone decide?
Decision-support content reduces effort. It helps users, and increasingly AI systems, move toward action faster through:
Clear recommendations.
Summarized takeaways.
Structured comparisons.
Strong trust signals.
Direct answers.
Contextual guidance.
Outcome-focused language.
One of the easiest ways to spot gaps is to ask: “If an AI system landed on this page, would it clearly understand what we recommend, who this is for, and why it matters?”
Many businesses currently have large volumes of exploration content but very little decision-support content. That creates a gap. Delegation isn’t just about being discoverable anymore. It’s about being usable within a decision-making process.

  
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Dig deeper: From searching to delegating: Adapting to AI-first search behavior



The risk of misunderstanding this shift
Some businesses are already making the mistake of abandoning traditional search behavior too early. That is a serious error because traditional search isn’t disappearing.
Delegation behavior can’t be ignored either. Different audiences, moments, and decision types now require different search experiences. The businesses that succeed won’t be the ones chasing every AI trend. They’ll be the ones who deeply understand:
When users want exploration.
When users want delegation.
How to support both effectively.
That’s because users increasingly seek help evaluating options and making decisions.
The brands that succeed in the future of search will be those that deeply understand their audience and let that knowledge guide their strategy.

From travel planning to product research, users increasingly seek confidence, recommendations, and a faster path to action.

Delegation search: Why users outsource decisions to AI

<div><img width="1920" height="1080" src="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/06/How-TV-ads-create-search-demand-—-and-what-to-do-about-it.png" class="attachment-large size-large wp-post-image" alt="How TV ads create search demand — and what to do about it" decoding="async" srcset="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/06/How-TV-ads-create-search-demand-—-and-what-to-do-about-it.png 1920w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/06/How-TV-ads-create-search-demand-—-and-what-to-do-about-it-768x432.png 768w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/06/How-TV-ads-create-search-demand-—-and-what-to-do-about-it-1536x864.png 1536w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/06/How-TV-ads-create-search-demand-—-and-what-to-do-about-it-1200x675.png 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px" /></div>Viewers don't just watch TV ads. They search. Here's how to capture demand, measure search lift, and connect search to media planning.

The best TV ads don’t just generate awareness. They generate searches.
When a high-impact campaign airs, viewers immediately turn to Google, YouTube, and other platforms to learn more, find products, or continue engaging with a brand. The challenge isn’t generating that interest. It’s being ready to capture it.
A recent World Cup campaign from Fox Sports shows exactly how this process works — and why SEO and PPC planning need to start long before an ad goes live.
A World Cup ad that created more than awareness
On May 13, creative intelligence platform DAIVID published new data ranking the most emotionally engaging World Cup ads released so far, and Fox Sports’ promo “Miracle” led the field by a clear margin.
DAIVID tested 31 World Cup ads released online and ranked them by the intensity of positive emotions they generated, the measure most closely linked to long-term brand impact. Here’s how the top five shook out:

RankBrandCampaignIntense positive emotional responses

1Fox Sports“Miracle“56.1%
2Lay’s“The Most Epic Watch Party“52.1%
3Coca-Cola“Bubbling Up“51.6%
4Hisense“Out Host“50.9%
5Budweiser“The Big Drop“50.4%
—Industry norm—48.7%





Adidas’ “Backyard Legends” and Pepsi’s “Football Nation Is Here” narrowly missed making the top five. DAIVID will update the rankings throughout the tournament, meaning the creative competition is far from over.
But that table shouldn’t just be an advertising scorecard. It also represents a demand map. Every brand in the top five is generating search interest right now, weeks before the World Cup kicks off on June 11. The question isn’t whether their branded terms are seeing spikes in traffic, but whether their search teams are ready for it.
Now, let’s talk about that Fox spot in a bit more detail. Created by Fox Sports Marketing and Special US, and directed by Lance Acord, “Miracle” imagines Team USA doing the unthinkable: winning the World Cup, including a dramatic 3-2 victory over five-time champion Brazil in the 97th minute. 
U.S. soccer star Christian Pulisic sends in a corner kick, the ball is headed home in the dying seconds, and the country erupts. Soccer players end up on currency. Times Square is taken over by revelers. 
Then, just as reality starts to reassert itself, in walks Mike Eruzione, captain of the legendary 1980 U.S. Olympic hockey team that miraculously beat the Soviet Union against all odds, with the only line the ad needed: “What? You don’t believe in miracles?”
The spot is set to Elvis Presley’s “The Impossible Dream.” Yes, really. They lean hard into Americana. And it works.
When DAIVID ran it through its AI-powered creative testing platform, trained on tens of millions of human responses, “Miracle” earned a creative effectiveness score (CES) of 6.99 out of 10, placing it in the top 14% of all ads ever tested by the platform, well above the industry average of 5.8. 
It generated intense positive emotions in 56.1% of viewers, 15.2% higher than the average ad. It held attention all the way to the end, with 66.9% still watching in the final three seconds versus an industry norm of 58.2%. Viewers were also 35% more likely to remember Fox as the brand behind it.
Three emotions drove its success: excitement (+85%), hope (+72%), and pride (+61%), all significantly above industry averages.
Ian Forrester, CEO and founder of DAIVID, puts it plainly: 
“The conventional wisdom in advertising is that you make people laugh, or you make them cry. These are the reliable emotional levers. Hope is harder. It asks the audience to believe in something, which is a big ask in this time of economic and political turmoil. Fox Sports didn’t just clear that bar, they set a new one.”
That’s a masterclass in emotional advertising. It highlights a direct business problem that needs solving — fast.

  

    

      
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Dig deeper: Why most video ads fail — and what video metrics actually matter



Why this is a search marketing problem, not just an advertising one
Here’s what happens the moment that Fox spot airs during a major broadcast window: millions of viewers grab their phones. They search “U.S. World Cup 2026,” “Christian Pulisic,” “Fox World Cup schedule,” “Mike Eruzione 1980,” “The Impossible Dream Elvis,” and dozens of other queries the Fox search team may or may not have prepared for.
According to a white paper called “TV Ads and Search Spikes: Toward a Deeper Understanding,” 75% of incremental search activity occurs within the first two minutes of an ad airing. Not the first hour. The first two minutes.
If your search campaign isn’t already live, optimized, and fully funded at that moment, you won’t just miss the opportunity, you’ll actively route warm, brand-interested traffic to your competitors.
This is the fundamental strategic failure that still plagues most organizations: Search marketing is treated as a last-click discipline, siloed from the creative and media teams that generate demand upstream. Search is the digital bridge for video-driven interest. Far too many brands let that bridge wash out every time a high-impact ad airs.
4 query types TV ads generate (and how to prepare for them)
The “Miracle” spot is instructive because it generates not one type of search query, but four distinct categories, each requiring a different strategic response.
Branded queries 
These are the most obvious searches you’ll see after an ad airs: “Fox Sports,” “Fox World Cup.” Basically, they’re your brand terms. If you’re Fox, you’re already winning these. But are you capturing 100% of impressions? 
Budget should surge the moment an ad goes live to absorb the volume spike, with established brands expecting up to a 20% lift in branded search volume during a major campaign.
Campaign queries 
These searches emerge from the creative itself, such as “U.S. wins World Cup,” “Miracle ad,” or “Impossible Dream commercial.”
They only exist because the ad aired. If Fox’s search team didn’t prebuild landing pages and keyword groups around these terms before the first broadcast, they left money on the table.
Asset queries 
Viewers often search for memorable elements featured in the creative, including songs, athletes, celebrities, or story references.
For the Fox ad, these might look like “song in Fox World Cup ad,” “who is Mike Eruzione,” “Christian Pulisic World Cup commercial.”
Viewers searching for the Elvis track or the 1980 hockey captain are highly engaged, highly curious, and highly convertible. These queries need to be anticipated in keyword planning sessions — not discovered two weeks after launch.
Category queries 
Some viewers skip the brand entirely and search for solutions, products, or viewing options related to the campaign’s broader theme.
For the Fox ad these might look like “how to watch World Cup 2026,” “World Cup streaming options,” “where to watch U.S. soccer.” 
A viewer, emotionally moved by “Miracle,” who then searches for one of these terms and lands on a competitor’s streaming service would be a direct cost of poor planning. 
Bidding only on brand terms during a TV flight while ignoring category-level terms is, bluntly, strategic negligence.
Dig deeper: AI for video advertising: 5 best practices for PPC campaigns




	
	
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The 10/90 rule: Technology is the easy part
The good news is that search platforms now offer automated tools to sync bidding with broadcast schedules, detect search spikes, and adjust budgets in real time. 
The bad news is that these tools may do about 10% of the actual work. The other 90% is human, and it has to happen before the ad airs.
That means you need to be in the room when the creative is being storyboarded to:
Flag searchable hooks, such as songs, athletes, and visual gags, that will need keyword coverage.
Prebuild landing pages that maintain visual and verbal continuity with the broadcast creative.
Align search, video, and content teams around the questions viewers are likely to ask after seeing the ad.
Getting that alignment right matters. A viewer who searches “Fox Miracle ad” and lands on a generic programming grid will bounce immediately. The cognitive dissonance alone kills the conversion.
Viewers are also increasingly asking conversational questions triggered by video content.  Using our example, these might include “how does the Fox streaming app work,” “who plays in the World Cup this summer,” or “is Christian Pulisic injured.” 
YouTube descriptions, structured metadata, and FAQ content need to be optimized for these queries before a campaign launches, not after.
Measuring what matters
While traditional TV metrics measure exposure, branded search volume measures intent. These are not the same thing, and confusing them is one of the most expensive mistakes in modern marketing.
The right framework is a Branded Search Lift Model (BSLM):
Establish a rigorous baseline using 90 to 120 days of historical data (not the standard four weeks, which is too short to control for seasonality).
Apply a time-series forecasting model to project expected volume without advertising.
Measure the gap between expected and observed searches during and after the campaign.
That gap, incremental search lift, is your most honest signal of whether the creative is working. It can also serve as a diagnostic tool to identify where the funnel is leaking.
For “Miracle,” the emotional data suggests the spot will generate significant search activity across all four query categories, particularly for asset and category queries. 
The hope-and-pride emotional signature that DAIVID identified tends to drive social sharing, which in turn drives a fourth conversion pathway: 
TV → Social → Search → Conversion. 
That means hashtag volume and social mentions should be tracked alongside search lift as correlated signals of a campaign that’s genuinely breaking through.
Dig deeper: The SEO shift you can’t ignore: Video is becoming source material



The feedback loop that changes everything
Here’s where this gets genuinely exciting: The relationship between TV creative and search data is reciprocal.
Search lift data is a low-cost, real-time proof of concept for your most expensive media investments. By running small-scale tests on YouTube or CTV and monitoring branded search lift for each creative variant, teams can identify which ads actually trigger digital action before committing massive budgets to traditional broadcast.
Conversely, TV performance data can and should inform search strategy. If “Miracle” generates a 60%+ spike in branded search, as emotionally resonant ads have been shown to do, that’s not just a media win. 
It’s a creative brief for the next campaign, a signal about which emotional levers to pull again, and evidence that should be sitting in front of every senior marketer and media planner in the organization.
The brands winning this game aren’t treating search and video as separate disciplines. They’re running them as a single, integrated demand engine. Video creates curiosity, search captures it, and data from both channels sharpens the creative for whatever comes next.
Barney Worfolk-Smith, chief growth officer at DAIVID, frames the opportunity well: 
“For tentpole events like the World Cup, it’s a smart move to think more strategically about the relationship between TV and SEM. When effectiveness testing shows you’ve got a genuine firecracker of a TVC on your hands, that’s the moment to tighten the connection even further. This highly emotive Fox Sports campaign is a powerful reminder of the link between emotionally resonant advertising and uplifts in next-step intent.”

  
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Search belongs in the creative brief
Fox’s “Miracle” spot works because it dares viewers to feel something unfashionable. Hope. Possibility. The audacity of imagining a different outcome.
Search marketers should take the same lesson to heart when approaching their counterparts in TV and video. Stop waiting to be invited to the post-launch debrief. Walk into the creative brief. Ask what’s searchable. Plan the SERP with the same rigor applied to the media buy.
The dance has already started. The question is whether you’re going to watch from the bleachers while your competitors capture every lead you paid to generate, or whether you’re going to join in.

Viewers don't just watch TV ads. They search. Here's how to capture demand, measure search lift, and connect search to media planning.

How TV ads create search demand — and what to do about it

<div><img width="1920" height="1097" src="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/06/google-publisher-hero-1920.jpg" class="attachment-large size-large wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" srcset="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/06/google-publisher-hero-1920.jpg 1920w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/06/google-publisher-hero-1920-768x439.jpg 768w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/06/google-publisher-hero-1920-1536x878.jpg 1536w" sizes="(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px" /></div>These are enhanced publisher landing pages, where you can follow the publisher, see the publishers latest articles, videos and social posts all in one place.

<div><img width="1920" height="1097" src="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/06/google-publisher-hero-1920.jpg" class="attachment-large size-large wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" srcset="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/06/google-publisher-hero-1920.jpg 1920w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/06/google-publisher-hero-1920-768x439.jpg 768w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/06/google-publisher-hero-1920-1536x878.jpg 1536w" sizes="(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px" /></div>
<p>Google is rolling out Search profiles in the U.S. for publishers within Google Discover. Search profiles gives publishers a landing page that searchers can click on and view, the landing page includes a large header image, a way to follow the publisher and a place to showcase their latest articles, videos and social posts, all in one place.</p>



<p>Google has been testing this for <a href="https://www.seroundtable.com/google-discover-publisher-entity-pages-39982.html">several months</a>, constantly <a href="https://www.seroundtable.com/google-discover-publisher-pages-links-featured-41304.html">tweaking it</a> and more recently adding <a href="https://www.seroundtable.com/google-discover-profile-page-short-urls-41385.html">shortnames</a>. </p>



<p><strong>What are Search Profiles. </strong>Google <a href="https://blog.google/products-and-platforms/products/search/a-new-profile-to-help-publishers-and-creators-highlight-their-work-on-search/">describes</a> Search profiles as:</p>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>&#8220;Search profiles give publishers and creators a central place to showcase their latest articles, videos and social posts. People can easily follow sources from their profile, so they’re more likely to see that content on Discover, found on the home screen of the Google app.&#8221;</li>



<li>As a &#8220;new way for publishers and creators to shape their presence on Search. Search profiles are a dedicated, shareable space to highlight content across platforms, and help audiences find accurate, up-to-date information about sources on Search.&#8221;</li>
</ul>



<p><strong>What it looks like. </strong>Here is a video of it in action:</p>



<figure class="wp-block-video"><video height="1080" width="1920" controls src="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/06/CreatorProfiles_Delish_1920x1080_V05_060326.mp4"></video></figure>



<p><strong>How do you manage your Search profile. </strong>Google said this is first rolling out to publishers and creators &#8220;with a sizable following on at least one major social or video platform.&#8221; These publishers should be able to claim their Search profile and customize it with an avatar, bio, website, social media and video platforms, and other important content. </p>



<p>Google added that claiming a profile may trigger the creation of a Knowledge Panel for eligible publishers and creators. But if you already have a Knowledge Panel, it will be enhanced with your updated avatar, latest content, and a direct profile link.</p>



<p>Here are instructions on how to <a href="https://support.google.com/websearch/answer/16904498">create a Search profile</a>, or <a href="https://support.google.com/websearch/answer/16905608">claim an existing Search profile</a>, and <a href="https://support.google.com/websearch/answer/16904750">manage a Search profile</a>.</p>



<p><strong>Availability. </strong>This is available in the U.S. for users and publishers with a &#8220;sizable following.&#8221; Google will expand access to this over time. You need to have a minimum number of subscribers or followers on at least one content platform:</p>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>TikTok: 300,000</li>



<li>YouTube: 100,000</li>



<li>Instagram: 100,000</li>



<li>X: 100,000</li>
</ul>



<p><strong>Why we care. </strong>Google continues to add features to help publishers get more attention from Search and Discover. This is one new way where publishers can get a larger following on Google, as well as on their other platforms.  All while trying to highlight more of the publisher&#8217;s latest articles.  The big question is, will it be enough with AI overtaking Google Search?</p>


Google is rolling out Search profiles in the U.S. for publishers within Google Discover. Search profiles gives publishers a landing page that searchers can click on and view, the landing page includes a large header image, a way to follow the publisher and a place to showcase their latest articles, videos and social posts, all in one place.
Google has been testing this for several months, constantly tweaking it and more recently adding shortnames. 
What are Search Profiles. Google describes Search profiles as:
“Search profiles give publishers and creators a central place to showcase their latest articles, videos and social posts. People can easily follow sources from their profile, so they’re more likely to see that content on Discover, found on the home screen of the Google app.”
As a “new way for publishers and creators to shape their presence on Search. Search profiles are a dedicated, shareable space to highlight content across platforms, and help audiences find accurate, up-to-date information about sources on Search.”
What it looks like. Here is a video of it in action:




How do you manage your Search profile. Google said this is first rolling out to publishers and creators “with a sizable following on at least one major social or video platform.” These publishers should be able to claim their Search profile and customize it with an avatar, bio, website, social media and video platforms, and other important content. 
Google added that claiming a profile may trigger the creation of a Knowledge Panel for eligible publishers and creators. But if you already have a Knowledge Panel, it will be enhanced with your updated avatar, latest content, and a direct profile link.
Here are instructions on how to create a Search profile, or claim an existing Search profile, and manage a Search profile.
Availability. This is available in the U.S. for users and publishers with a “sizable following.” Google will expand access to this over time. You need to have a minimum number of subscribers or followers on at least one content platform:
TikTok: 300,000
YouTube: 100,000
Instagram: 100,000
X: 100,000
Why we care. Google continues to add features to help publishers get more attention from Search and Discover. This is one new way where publishers can get a larger following on Google, as well as on their other platforms.  All while trying to highlight more of the publisher’s latest articles.  The big question is, will it be enough with AI overtaking Google Search?

These are enhanced publisher landing pages, where you can follow the publisher, see the publishers latest articles, videos and social posts all in one place.

Google introduces Search profiles within Google Discover

<div><img width="1920" height="1080" src="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/06/Why-so-much-SEO-work-no-longer-drives-growth.png" class="attachment-large size-large wp-post-image" alt="Why so much SEO work no longer drives growth" decoding="async" srcset="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/06/Why-so-much-SEO-work-no-longer-drives-growth.png 1920w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/06/Why-so-much-SEO-work-no-longer-drives-growth-768x432.png 768w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/06/Why-so-much-SEO-work-no-longer-drives-growth-1536x864.png 1536w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/06/Why-so-much-SEO-work-no-longer-drives-growth-1200x675.png 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px" /></div>Keyword research and on-page optimization still matter, but authority, distribution, and brand visibility now drive more organic growth.

<div><img width="1920" height="1080" src="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/06/Why-so-much-SEO-work-no-longer-drives-growth.png" class="attachment-large size-large wp-post-image" alt="Why so much SEO work no longer drives growth" decoding="async" srcset="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/06/Why-so-much-SEO-work-no-longer-drives-growth.png 1920w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/06/Why-so-much-SEO-work-no-longer-drives-growth-768x432.png 768w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/06/Why-so-much-SEO-work-no-longer-drives-growth-1536x864.png 1536w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/06/Why-so-much-SEO-work-no-longer-drives-growth-1200x675.png 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px" /></div>
<p>The <a href="https://searchengineland.com/write-effective-seo-job-description-393355">job description</a> hasn’t changed much in five years. </p>



<p>Most <a href="https://searchengineland.com/guide/what-is-seo">SEO</a> roles, whether they sit in-house or at an agency, still get written around the same core: keyword research, on-page optimization, technical audits, content briefs, link building, and reporting. Maybe a bit of CRO if the JD writer was feeling ambitious.</p>



<p>The problem is that the job those skills add up to is no longer the job that moves the needle.</p>



<p>I’ve spent the last 18 months watching this play out across our client base. The work that drives results in 2026 looks almost nothing like the work that drove results in 2022, but team structures, training plans, and retainers are still built around the old model.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Both in-house leaders and agency owners are quietly wondering why their teams feel busy but ineffective. The honest answer is that a meaningful chunk of what they’re being asked to do just isn’t the whole picture anymore.</p>



<p>This isn’t a piece about AI killing SEO. It’s a piece about what the discipline has become, and what your team needs to do to win at it.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-stopped-mattering-mostly">What stopped mattering (mostly)</h2>



<p>Three things have quietly fallen off the list of activities worth paying for at the volume we used to.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-keyword-research-as-a-standalone-deliverable">Keyword research as a standalone deliverable</h3>



<p>Producing a list of 200 keywords with search volumes and difficulty scores used to be a billable piece of work. It still appears on retainers. But the strategic value of that output has collapsed.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Volume data is increasingly unreliable now that AI Overviews are absorbing top-of-funnel queries. Difficulty scores never accounted for SERP feature crowding anyway, and the keywords that convert sit in long-tail territory that no tool surfaces well.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Keyword research as a thinking activity still matters. As a packaged deliverable, it doesn’t.</p>



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<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-high-volume-content-production">High-volume content production</h3>



<p>The old model was simple: identify keyword gaps, brief them out, publish at pace, and watch traffic grow. That model is broken in two places at once. AI Overviews are eating the informational queries those articles used to capture, and the cost of producing competent but undifferentiated content has fallen to almost zero.</p>



<p>Producing more of it doesn’t move you ahead of anyone. If your content could have been generated by anyone using the same prompt, ranking for it is increasingly difficult and increasingly worthless, even when you manage it.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-on-page-optimization-on-its-own">On-page optimization on its own</h3>



<p>Adding internal links, tweaking title tags, and optimizing H1s. All of this still matters, and skipping it will cost you. But it’s the floor, not the strategy. Doing it well gets you to the point where your content has a fair chance of being judged on its merits. It doesn’t, on its own, get you ranking.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Teams that spend 40% of their week on on-page work and treat that as the job are doing the necessary part and skipping the bit that drives growth.</p>



<p>None of this is to say the fundamentals don’t matter. They absolutely do. </p>



<p>Solid technical SEO, well-optimized pages, and properly briefed content are still the foundation on which everything else sits. Skip them, and nothing further up the stack will work. </p>



<p>The big change is that the fundamentals used to be most of the job. Now they’re the starting point. </p>



<p>Everything above the foundation — entity work, original research, distribution, and AI visibility — relies on those foundations being in place, but the foundations alone won’t get you ranking the way they used to.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Most teams have the bottom layer broadly under control and very little going on above it, which is why the work feels busy but the results don’t move.</p>



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<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-matters-now">What matters now</h2>



<p>Here’s what I’d put on a job description today, in rough order of how often the lack of it shows up as the actual reason a client isn’t growing. The execution changes by business size, but the underlying skill is the same.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-entity-and-brand-building">Entity and brand building</h3>



<p>This is the single biggest gap I see across our client base. Google has been moving toward entity-based understanding for years, and the rise of LLM-driven search has accelerated it. If your brand isn’t recognized as a known entity in your space, you’re competing with one hand tied behind your back, regardless of how good your content is.</p>



<p>For larger teams, the skill is owning a program that earns the brand and its senior people visibility across the web. It’s part SEO, part PR, part communications, and it sits awkwardly between functions in most organizations. Someone needs to be accountable for it, with the remit to work with the press team, the content team, and the founder or senior leadership.</p>



<p>For smaller businesses, the skill is closer to disciplined consistency. Someone needs to own whether the business shows up accurately and coherently wherever it gets mentioned, and whether anyone outside the immediate customer base has any reason to know it exists.&nbsp;</p>



<p>That’s a different job from keyword work, and it rarely gets assigned. We have one client in the engineering sector where most of the last year has gone on exactly this kind of work, and their non-branded visibility has roughly doubled in that period.</p>



<p>Either way, the capability gap is the same. Very few teams have anyone whose actual job is to build the brand as a recognized entity, and it’s increasingly what decides whether the rest of the SEO work pays off.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-original-research-and-proprietary-data">Original research and proprietary data</h3>



<p>If you can publish data, insight, or experience that doesn’t exist anywhere else, you have something AI can’t synthesize, and competitors can’t easily copy. Experience is genuinely the most defensible differentiator left in the discipline.</p>



<p>For larger teams, the skill is being able to scope, run, and publish original research at a level journalists will pick up. That’s a small cluster of disciplines — research design, analysis, editorial, and outreach — and it’s almost never found in its entirety within an SEO team. </p>



<p>Building or partnering into that capability is the next hiring frontier for any business serious about earning links and citations at scale.</p>



<p>For smaller businesses, the skill is editorial, not research. You almost certainly have years of hands-on expertise, real client outcomes, and a working knowledge of your sector that nobody else has lived through.&nbsp;</p>



<p>The capability that determines whether any of that reaches an audience is having someone who can extract genuine expertise from those who have it and turn it into publishable content.</p>



<p>That’s something most small businesses don’t currently have, and what most agencies aren’t currently selling. It’s the gap that decides whether their content reads like everyone else’s or like something only they could’ve written.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-distribution-and-pr-adjacent-work">Distribution and PR-adjacent work</h3>



<p>The old assumption was that good content would earn links naturally if it was good enough. That was never quite true, and it’s certainly not true now. Content gets cited, linked to, and quoted because someone actively put it in front of the right people.</p>



<p>For larger teams, the skill set has merged most visibly with PR, and it’s where most teams are weakest. The capability needed is a hybrid of SEO judgment and PR craft, and the realistic options are either bringing the two functions closer together, hiring across both, or partnering with someone who already does it well.</p>



<p>For smaller businesses, the skill is closer to relationship building than media relations. You don’t need a press contact list, but you do need someone who treats getting your work in front of the right people as part of their job, not something that happens by accident. That’s a fundamentally different mindset from waiting for content to be discovered, and it’s the bit most small businesses are missing.</p>



<p>Regardless of size, the underlying capability is the same: someone whose explicit job is to make sure good content reaches the people it was written for. Most teams don’t have anyone who owns this, and it shows.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-ai-search-visibility">AI search visibility</h3>



<p>This is the noisiest part of the discipline right now, and most of the noise is unhelpful. The real signal is that how your brand shows up in AI Overviews, ChatGPT, Perplexity, Claude, and the rest is now a measurable, optimizable thing, and it doesn’t always correlate with how you rank in traditional search.</p>



<p>For larger teams, the skill is partly old — structured content, semantic markup, and entity work — and partly new: understanding how different LLMs retrieve and cite content, tracking brand mentions inside AI responses, and designing content that earns citations rather than clicks. Someone needs to own it and have the time and tooling to track it properly.</p>



<p>One of our app clients is a useful example of why: Their attribution gaps had been masking the fact that a significant chunk of new traffic was coming via AI-driven discovery, not via paid or organic channels as the dashboard was reporting. Without someone tracking that, the whole picture was off.</p>



<p>For smaller businesses, the skill is more about curiosity than tooling. Whoever owns marketing needs to regularly ask whether the business shows up when prospects ask AI tools about its sector, and if not, why not. Most small businesses don’t have anyone asking the question at all.</p>



<p>What both ends of the market are getting wrong is treating AI visibility as a separate channel. It isn’t. It’s the downstream consequence of the rest of the stack being in good shape. The teams winning here don’t have the most sophisticated LLM tracking. They’re the ones with strong entity signals, genuine expertise visible across the web, and someone paying attention to whether any of it is showing up where it needs to.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-analytical-depth">Analytical depth</h3>



<p>The reporting tier of SEO has been commoditized for years. Anyone can pull a Search Console export and put it in a dashboard. What still has scarcity value is being able to interpret that data, which is harder than it sounds when half your traffic signals are now distorted by AI Overviews swallowing clicks, branded search inflating because of LLM exposure, and attribution becoming more fragmented by the month.</p>



<p>For larger teams, the skill is closer to analyst than marketer. Someone who can sit with messy data, cross-reference it across platforms, and produce a view of what’s driving growth rather than what looks tidy on a slide. That capability is underhired in both in-house and agency settings, and it’s increasingly the difference between a team that can defend its strategy in a board meeting and one that can’t.</p>



<p>For smaller businesses, the budget for a dedicated analyst usually isn’t there, but the skill still applies in a lighter form. Whoever owns marketing needs to be able to interpret the numbers and be honest about which traditional metrics have become misleading. What matters most is curiosity about the gap between what the analytics suggest and what’s happening commercially, and the willingness to act on what that gap reveals.</p>



<p>First-party data will become increasingly important in all cases. Tracking incoming leads, speaking with customers, and gaining a better understanding of the customer journey become almost impossible without it.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-this-means-if-you-re-in-house">What this means if you&#8217;re in-house</h2>



<p>If you lead an in-house SEO function, the practical question is what to stop scoping and what to start hiring or training for.</p>



<p>The honest reframe is that your team probably doesn’t need to be bigger. It needs to be differently shaped. A senior SEO who can think entity-first and write a journalist-ready pitch is worth two midlevel executives churning out content briefs.&nbsp;</p>



<p>A part-time research relationship is worth more than a third copywriter. Reallocating budget from production to strategy and distribution is the move, and it’s a harder internal sell than asking for more headcount.</p>



<p>The other thing worth saying: Your reporting will get harder before it gets easier. As you shift weight onto entity work, original research, and AI visibility, the lag between effort and measurable outcome stretches out.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Be honest with your leadership about that upfront. It’s much easier to defend a six-month strategy you’ve explained in advance than one you have to explain retrospectively when the traffic line dips.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-this-means-if-you-re-agency-side">What this means if you&#8217;re agency-side</h2>



<p>The retainer model needs work. The standard package built around keyword research, content briefs, on-page optimization, monthly reporting, and a bit of link building is selling clients yesterday’s discipline at today’s rates. It’s also increasingly hard to defend when the client compares your output to what they could get from an AI tool and an enthusiastic intern.</p>



<p>The agencies growing right now are the ones that have rebuilt their offer around capabilities rather than deliverables. They lead with strategy and entity work, bring in original research as a flagship asset, treat distribution as a core service rather than an afterthought, and are honest with clients about what they no longer recommend doing at all. They also charge more because the work is harder and harder to commoditize.</p>



<p>The agencies I see struggling are the ones still selling the 2022 retainer and quietly wondering why renewals are getting harder.</p>



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<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-where-to-start">Where to start</h2>



<p>If you’re trying to work out where your team or agency sits against all of this, a useful exercise is to look at your last three months of activity and ask: What proportion of the hours went on the work that mattered most five years ago versus the work that matters most now?</p>



<p>For most teams, the honest answer is uncomfortable. As much as 80% of the time is still going on content production and on-page work, and the strategic activities that move things forward are getting whatever scraps are left after the production calendar is fed.</p>



<p>That ratio needs to flip. Not all at once, and not at the expense of the basics. But the direction of travel is clear, and the teams that act on it first are the ones that will still be ranking when the next round of platform changes lands.</p>



<p>The discipline hasn’t died. It’s just become a different job. The teams that adjust the skill stack now, before it becomes obvious to everyone else, are the ones who’ll come out of the next two years in a much stronger position than they went in.</p>

The job description hasn’t changed much in five years. 
Most SEO roles, whether they sit in-house or at an agency, still get written around the same core: keyword research, on-page optimization, technical audits, content briefs, link building, and reporting. Maybe a bit of CRO if the JD writer was feeling ambitious.
The problem is that the job those skills add up to is no longer the job that moves the needle.
I’ve spent the last 18 months watching this play out across our client base. The work that drives results in 2026 looks almost nothing like the work that drove results in 2022, but team structures, training plans, and retainers are still built around the old model. 
Both in-house leaders and agency owners are quietly wondering why their teams feel busy but ineffective. The honest answer is that a meaningful chunk of what they’re being asked to do just isn’t the whole picture anymore.
This isn’t a piece about AI killing SEO. It’s a piece about what the discipline has become, and what your team needs to do to win at it.
What stopped mattering (mostly)
Three things have quietly fallen off the list of activities worth paying for at the volume we used to.
Keyword research as a standalone deliverable
Producing a list of 200 keywords with search volumes and difficulty scores used to be a billable piece of work. It still appears on retainers. But the strategic value of that output has collapsed. 
Volume data is increasingly unreliable now that AI Overviews are absorbing top-of-funnel queries. Difficulty scores never accounted for SERP feature crowding anyway, and the keywords that convert sit in long-tail territory that no tool surfaces well. 
Keyword research as a thinking activity still matters. As a packaged deliverable, it doesn’t.

  
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High-volume content production
The old model was simple: identify keyword gaps, brief them out, publish at pace, and watch traffic grow. That model is broken in two places at once. AI Overviews are eating the informational queries those articles used to capture, and the cost of producing competent but undifferentiated content has fallen to almost zero.
Producing more of it doesn’t move you ahead of anyone. If your content could have been generated by anyone using the same prompt, ranking for it is increasingly difficult and increasingly worthless, even when you manage it.
On-page optimization on its own
Adding internal links, tweaking title tags, and optimizing H1s. All of this still matters, and skipping it will cost you. But it’s the floor, not the strategy. Doing it well gets you to the point where your content has a fair chance of being judged on its merits. It doesn’t, on its own, get you ranking. 
Teams that spend 40% of their week on on-page work and treat that as the job are doing the necessary part and skipping the bit that drives growth.
None of this is to say the fundamentals don’t matter. They absolutely do. 
Solid technical SEO, well-optimized pages, and properly briefed content are still the foundation on which everything else sits. Skip them, and nothing further up the stack will work. 
The big change is that the fundamentals used to be most of the job. Now they’re the starting point. 
Everything above the foundation — entity work, original research, distribution, and AI visibility — relies on those foundations being in place, but the foundations alone won’t get you ranking the way they used to. 
Most teams have the bottom layer broadly under control and very little going on above it, which is why the work feels busy but the results don’t move.
Get the newsletter search marketers rely on.
 
				
				
			
See terms.
		
What matters now
Here’s what I’d put on a job description today, in rough order of how often the lack of it shows up as the actual reason a client isn’t growing. The execution changes by business size, but the underlying skill is the same.
Entity and brand building
This is the single biggest gap I see across our client base. Google has been moving toward entity-based understanding for years, and the rise of LLM-driven search has accelerated it. If your brand isn’t recognized as a known entity in your space, you’re competing with one hand tied behind your back, regardless of how good your content is.
For larger teams, the skill is owning a program that earns the brand and its senior people visibility across the web. It’s part SEO, part PR, part communications, and it sits awkwardly between functions in most organizations. Someone needs to be accountable for it, with the remit to work with the press team, the content team, and the founder or senior leadership.
For smaller businesses, the skill is closer to disciplined consistency. Someone needs to own whether the business shows up accurately and coherently wherever it gets mentioned, and whether anyone outside the immediate customer base has any reason to know it exists. 
That’s a different job from keyword work, and it rarely gets assigned. We have one client in the engineering sector where most of the last year has gone on exactly this kind of work, and their non-branded visibility has roughly doubled in that period.
Either way, the capability gap is the same. Very few teams have anyone whose actual job is to build the brand as a recognized entity, and it’s increasingly what decides whether the rest of the SEO work pays off.
Original research and proprietary data
If you can publish data, insight, or experience that doesn’t exist anywhere else, you have something AI can’t synthesize, and competitors can’t easily copy. Experience is genuinely the most defensible differentiator left in the discipline.
For larger teams, the skill is being able to scope, run, and publish original research at a level journalists will pick up. That’s a small cluster of disciplines — research design, analysis, editorial, and outreach — and it’s almost never found in its entirety within an SEO team. 
Building or partnering into that capability is the next hiring frontier for any business serious about earning links and citations at scale.
For smaller businesses, the skill is editorial, not research. You almost certainly have years of hands-on expertise, real client outcomes, and a working knowledge of your sector that nobody else has lived through. 
The capability that determines whether any of that reaches an audience is having someone who can extract genuine expertise from those who have it and turn it into publishable content.
That’s something most small businesses don’t currently have, and what most agencies aren’t currently selling. It’s the gap that decides whether their content reads like everyone else’s or like something only they could’ve written.
Distribution and PR-adjacent work
The old assumption was that good content would earn links naturally if it was good enough. That was never quite true, and it’s certainly not true now. Content gets cited, linked to, and quoted because someone actively put it in front of the right people.
For larger teams, the skill set has merged most visibly with PR, and it’s where most teams are weakest. The capability needed is a hybrid of SEO judgment and PR craft, and the realistic options are either bringing the two functions closer together, hiring across both, or partnering with someone who already does it well.
For smaller businesses, the skill is closer to relationship building than media relations. You don’t need a press contact list, but you do need someone who treats getting your work in front of the right people as part of their job, not something that happens by accident. That’s a fundamentally different mindset from waiting for content to be discovered, and it’s the bit most small businesses are missing.
Regardless of size, the underlying capability is the same: someone whose explicit job is to make sure good content reaches the people it was written for. Most teams don’t have anyone who owns this, and it shows.
AI search visibility
This is the noisiest part of the discipline right now, and most of the noise is unhelpful. The real signal is that how your brand shows up in AI Overviews, ChatGPT, Perplexity, Claude, and the rest is now a measurable, optimizable thing, and it doesn’t always correlate with how you rank in traditional search.
For larger teams, the skill is partly old — structured content, semantic markup, and entity work — and partly new: understanding how different LLMs retrieve and cite content, tracking brand mentions inside AI responses, and designing content that earns citations rather than clicks. Someone needs to own it and have the time and tooling to track it properly.
One of our app clients is a useful example of why: Their attribution gaps had been masking the fact that a significant chunk of new traffic was coming via AI-driven discovery, not via paid or organic channels as the dashboard was reporting. Without someone tracking that, the whole picture was off.
For smaller businesses, the skill is more about curiosity than tooling. Whoever owns marketing needs to regularly ask whether the business shows up when prospects ask AI tools about its sector, and if not, why not. Most small businesses don’t have anyone asking the question at all.
What both ends of the market are getting wrong is treating AI visibility as a separate channel. It isn’t. It’s the downstream consequence of the rest of the stack being in good shape. The teams winning here don’t have the most sophisticated LLM tracking. They’re the ones with strong entity signals, genuine expertise visible across the web, and someone paying attention to whether any of it is showing up where it needs to.
Analytical depth
The reporting tier of SEO has been commoditized for years. Anyone can pull a Search Console export and put it in a dashboard. What still has scarcity value is being able to interpret that data, which is harder than it sounds when half your traffic signals are now distorted by AI Overviews swallowing clicks, branded search inflating because of LLM exposure, and attribution becoming more fragmented by the month.
For larger teams, the skill is closer to analyst than marketer. Someone who can sit with messy data, cross-reference it across platforms, and produce a view of what’s driving growth rather than what looks tidy on a slide. That capability is underhired in both in-house and agency settings, and it’s increasingly the difference between a team that can defend its strategy in a board meeting and one that can’t.
For smaller businesses, the budget for a dedicated analyst usually isn’t there, but the skill still applies in a lighter form. Whoever owns marketing needs to be able to interpret the numbers and be honest about which traditional metrics have become misleading. What matters most is curiosity about the gap between what the analytics suggest and what’s happening commercially, and the willingness to act on what that gap reveals.
First-party data will become increasingly important in all cases. Tracking incoming leads, speaking with customers, and gaining a better understanding of the customer journey become almost impossible without it.
What this means if you’re in-house
If you lead an in-house SEO function, the practical question is what to stop scoping and what to start hiring or training for.
The honest reframe is that your team probably doesn’t need to be bigger. It needs to be differently shaped. A senior SEO who can think entity-first and write a journalist-ready pitch is worth two midlevel executives churning out content briefs. 
A part-time research relationship is worth more than a third copywriter. Reallocating budget from production to strategy and distribution is the move, and it’s a harder internal sell than asking for more headcount.
The other thing worth saying: Your reporting will get harder before it gets easier. As you shift weight onto entity work, original research, and AI visibility, the lag between effort and measurable outcome stretches out. 
Be honest with your leadership about that upfront. It’s much easier to defend a six-month strategy you’ve explained in advance than one you have to explain retrospectively when the traffic line dips.
What this means if you’re agency-side
The retainer model needs work. The standard package built around keyword research, content briefs, on-page optimization, monthly reporting, and a bit of link building is selling clients yesterday’s discipline at today’s rates. It’s also increasingly hard to defend when the client compares your output to what they could get from an AI tool and an enthusiastic intern.
The agencies growing right now are the ones that have rebuilt their offer around capabilities rather than deliverables. They lead with strategy and entity work, bring in original research as a flagship asset, treat distribution as a core service rather than an afterthought, and are honest with clients about what they no longer recommend doing at all. They also charge more because the work is harder and harder to commoditize.
The agencies I see struggling are the ones still selling the 2022 retainer and quietly wondering why renewals are getting harder.

  
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If you’re trying to work out where your team or agency sits against all of this, a useful exercise is to look at your last three months of activity and ask: What proportion of the hours went on the work that mattered most five years ago versus the work that matters most now?
For most teams, the honest answer is uncomfortable. As much as 80% of the time is still going on content production and on-page work, and the strategic activities that move things forward are getting whatever scraps are left after the production calendar is fed.
That ratio needs to flip. Not all at once, and not at the expense of the basics. But the direction of travel is clear, and the teams that act on it first are the ones that will still be ranking when the next round of platform changes lands.
The discipline hasn’t died. It’s just become a different job. The teams that adjust the skill stack now, before it becomes obvious to everyone else, are the ones who’ll come out of the next two years in a much stronger position than they went in.

Keyword research and on-page optimization still matter, but authority, distribution, and brand visibility now drive more organic growth.

Why so much SEO work no longer drives growth

<div><img width="1920" height="1080" src="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/06/LANDSCAPE-43-cover.png" class="attachment-large size-large wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" srcset="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/06/LANDSCAPE-43-cover.png 1920w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/06/LANDSCAPE-43-cover-768x432.png 768w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/06/LANDSCAPE-43-cover-1536x864.png 1536w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/06/LANDSCAPE-43-cover-1200x675.png 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px" /></div>Uploading your customer list to Google Ads can give Google’s AI a competitive advantage as privacy changes make tracking less effective.

<div><img width="1920" height="1080" src="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/06/LANDSCAPE-43-cover.png" class="attachment-large size-large wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" srcset="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/06/LANDSCAPE-43-cover.png 1920w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/06/LANDSCAPE-43-cover-768x432.png 768w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/06/LANDSCAPE-43-cover-1536x864.png 1536w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2026/06/LANDSCAPE-43-cover-1200x675.png 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px" /></div>
<p>You wouldn&#8217;t dream of running your Google Ads campaigns without conversion tracking. So why are you still running Google Ads without uploading your customer list?</p>



<p>As third-party cookies phase out and privacy regulations tighten, you lose some of the traditional tracking capabilities that you (and Google Ads) rely on. Because of this, your own first-party data is the strongest lever you have left to steer Google&#8217;s automation.</p>



<p>Think about it: When every one of your competitors has access to the exact same Smart Bidding and AI targeting algorithms, you can’t win by relying on the same Google-owned data as everyone else. You win by feeding the system data that only you possess: your customer list.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-50-000-threshold-myth-for-customer-match">The $50,000 threshold myth for Customer Match</h2>



<p>Let’s address the primary hurdle first. To use Customer Match for direct campaign targeting or exclusions, Google requires that your account be in good standing, have at least 90 days of spend history, and have accumulated at least US$50,000 in lifetime spend.</p>



<p>If you’re managing a smaller account that hasn&#8217;t hit that milestone yet, or perhaps will never hit that milestone, that doesn’t mean that Customer Match isn’t for you! You should still upload your customer list to Google Ads immediately.</p>



<p>Why? Even without direct targeting eligibility, your uploaded customer list acts as a key AI signal. Google Ads uses it to train your Smart Bidding and optimized targeting (including Performance Max); the algorithm looks at the traits of your customers to find similar high-converting prospects.</p>



<p>Additionally, uploading your list opens up Audience Insights inside Audience Manager. You can review the demographic breakdowns and see which Google audience segments your customers belong to, completely free of charge. This is a great way to get ideas for new Demand Gen audience targeting, or different kinds of ad creative / landing pages.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-customer-match-campaign-compatibility">Customer match campaign compatibility</h2>



<p>Once your account crosses the lifetime spend threshold, Customer Match becomes compatible with campaigns running ads across Search, Shopping, Gmail, YouTube, and Display. You can apply your customer list on targeting or exclusion in Search, Shopping, Display, Demand Gen or Video campaigns. And although Performance Max doesn’t allow audience targeting, you can exclude Your data segments (including a customer list) and you can achieve a similar effect via Customer Lifecycle goals.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-customer-match-unlocks-customer-lifecycle-goals">Customer Match unlocks customer lifecycle goals</h2>



<p>Customer Lifecycle Goals are a feature of Search, Shopping, and Performance Max that let you tell the system how to value or prioritize different user segments within a single campaign.</p>



<p>For example, in “New Customer Only” mode, your customer list is treated as a hard exclusion so that the campaign only targets new customers. In “Customer Retention” mode, it does the opposite, focusing exclusively on your customer list to encourage repeat purchase behavior. There’s also New Customer Value, High Value Customers, New Prospect Mode, and more &#8211; and none of it works without Customer Match.</p>



<p>So when should you use this vs. direct targeting or exclusion? </p>



<p>I developed my “1% Rule” for customer lifecycle goals: unless your active customer list represents at least 1% of your target geographic location&#8217;s population, you probably don’t need to use customer lifecycle goals. For instance, targeting the United States (population 340 million) requires a list of roughly 3.4 million users, according to my 1% rule, to make customer lifecycle goals effective.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-conversion-based-customer-lists-another-customer-match-feature">Conversion-based customer lists: Another Customer Match feature</h2>



<p>Customer Match, when paired with Enhanced Conversions, unlocks another audience targeting feature: Conversion-Based Customer Lists. This bridges the gap between a single conversion action and long-term user data segments.</p>



<p>While a conversion is a single point-in-time event (like a form fill or a purchase), a data segment is an ongoing list of users (like a customer list or website remarketing list). A conversion-based customer list creates a list of users <em>who have completed</em> your conversion actions, like a list of Purchasers or a list of Form Fillers &#8211; all automatically generated and updated for you.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-technical-execution-how-to-upload-your-customer-list">Technical execution: How to upload your customer list</h2>



<p>To get your customer data into Google Ads securely, navigate to Tools &gt; Data Manage<strong>r</strong> to check for direct integrations. Platforms like Shopify, HubSpot, and Salesforce can link directly to Google Ads to sync your data automatically. If you do not use a major CRM, you can perform a manual upload via CSV file in Tools &gt; Shared Library &gt; Audience Manager.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Just remember to keep uploading that data so your list doesn’t go stale! This is one of the top mistakes I see when I audit Google Ads accounts; a customer list that was created two years ago and never touched again. If you receive multiple leads or transactions daily, update your lists every 24 hours. If you only pick up a handful of customers each month, a bi-weekly or monthly calendar reminder is sufficient to keep your data fresh.</p>



<p>Remember, you must have user consent to upload customer data to Google Ads. Buying a list from a third party and uploading it violates Google Ads policy and potentially local privacy laws. Also, your website&#8217;s privacy policy must explicitly state that you share user data with third-party platforms like Google for advertising purposes.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-exception-who-shouldn-t-use-customer-match">The exception: Who shouldn’t use Customer Match</h2>



<p>If your business falls under sensitive verticals such as healthcare, religion, personal hardships, or financial distress, I’m sorry to say that you cannot use Customer Match at all. Google blocks all “your data segments” in these industries to prevent exploitation of personal situations, illegal behaviour, etc.</p>



<p>But as long as you’re advertising in a “regular” industry, Customer Match is a non-negotiable. Your first-party data &#8211; a customer list &#8211; is one of the best competitive advantages you have. By providing Google’s AI with your own proprietary training data, you’re giving it the exact parameters it needs to find your next best customer.</p>



<p><em>This article is part of our ongoing Search Engine Land series, Everything you need to know about Google Ads in less than 3 minutes. In each edition, Jyll highlights a different Google Ads feature, and what you need to know to get the best results from it – all in a quick 3-minute read.</em>


You wouldn’t dream of running your Google Ads campaigns without conversion tracking. So why are you still running Google Ads without uploading your customer list?
As third-party cookies phase out and privacy regulations tighten, you lose some of the traditional tracking capabilities that you (and Google Ads) rely on. Because of this, your own first-party data is the strongest lever you have left to steer Google’s automation.
Think about it: When every one of your competitors has access to the exact same Smart Bidding and AI targeting algorithms, you can’t win by relying on the same Google-owned data as everyone else. You win by feeding the system data that only you possess: your customer list.
The $50,000 threshold myth for Customer Match
Let’s address the primary hurdle first. To use Customer Match for direct campaign targeting or exclusions, Google requires that your account be in good standing, have at least 90 days of spend history, and have accumulated at least US$50,000 in lifetime spend.
If you’re managing a smaller account that hasn’t hit that milestone yet, or perhaps will never hit that milestone, that doesn’t mean that Customer Match isn’t for you! You should still upload your customer list to Google Ads immediately.
Why? Even without direct targeting eligibility, your uploaded customer list acts as a key AI signal. Google Ads uses it to train your Smart Bidding and optimized targeting (including Performance Max); the algorithm looks at the traits of your customers to find similar high-converting prospects.
Additionally, uploading your list opens up Audience Insights inside Audience Manager. You can review the demographic breakdowns and see which Google audience segments your customers belong to, completely free of charge. This is a great way to get ideas for new Demand Gen audience targeting, or different kinds of ad creative / landing pages.
Customer match campaign compatibility
Once your account crosses the lifetime spend threshold, Customer Match becomes compatible with campaigns running ads across Search, Shopping, Gmail, YouTube, and Display. You can apply your customer list on targeting or exclusion in Search, Shopping, Display, Demand Gen or Video campaigns. And although Performance Max doesn’t allow audience targeting, you can exclude Your data segments (including a customer list) and you can achieve a similar effect via Customer Lifecycle goals.
Customer Match unlocks customer lifecycle goals
Customer Lifecycle Goals are a feature of Search, Shopping, and Performance Max that let you tell the system how to value or prioritize different user segments within a single campaign.
For example, in “New Customer Only” mode, your customer list is treated as a hard exclusion so that the campaign only targets new customers. In “Customer Retention” mode, it does the opposite, focusing exclusively on your customer list to encourage repeat purchase behavior. There’s also New Customer Value, High Value Customers, New Prospect Mode, and more – and none of it works without Customer Match.
So when should you use this vs. direct targeting or exclusion? 
I developed my “1% Rule” for customer lifecycle goals: unless your active customer list represents at least 1% of your target geographic location’s population, you probably don’t need to use customer lifecycle goals. For instance, targeting the United States (population 340 million) requires a list of roughly 3.4 million users, according to my 1% rule, to make customer lifecycle goals effective.
Conversion-based customer lists: Another Customer Match feature
Customer Match, when paired with Enhanced Conversions, unlocks another audience targeting feature: Conversion-Based Customer Lists. This bridges the gap between a single conversion action and long-term user data segments.
While a conversion is a single point-in-time event (like a form fill or a purchase), a data segment is an ongoing list of users (like a customer list or website remarketing list). A conversion-based customer list creates a list of users who have completed your conversion actions, like a list of Purchasers or a list of Form Fillers – all automatically generated and updated for you.
Technical execution: How to upload your customer list
To get your customer data into Google Ads securely, navigate to Tools > Data Manager to check for direct integrations. Platforms like Shopify, HubSpot, and Salesforce can link directly to Google Ads to sync your data automatically. If you do not use a major CRM, you can perform a manual upload via CSV file in Tools > Shared Library > Audience Manager. 
Just remember to keep uploading that data so your list doesn’t go stale! This is one of the top mistakes I see when I audit Google Ads accounts; a customer list that was created two years ago and never touched again. If you receive multiple leads or transactions daily, update your lists every 24 hours. If you only pick up a handful of customers each month, a bi-weekly or monthly calendar reminder is sufficient to keep your data fresh.
Remember, you must have user consent to upload customer data to Google Ads. Buying a list from a third party and uploading it violates Google Ads policy and potentially local privacy laws. Also, your website’s privacy policy must explicitly state that you share user data with third-party platforms like Google for advertising purposes.
The exception: Who shouldn’t use Customer Match
If your business falls under sensitive verticals such as healthcare, religion, personal hardships, or financial distress, I’m sorry to say that you cannot use Customer Match at all. Google blocks all “your data segments” in these industries to prevent exploitation of personal situations, illegal behaviour, etc.
But as long as you’re advertising in a “regular” industry, Customer Match is a non-negotiable. Your first-party data – a customer list – is one of the best competitive advantages you have. By providing Google’s AI with your own proprietary training data, you’re giving it the exact parameters it needs to find your next best customer.
This article is part of our ongoing Search Engine Land series, Everything you need to know about Google Ads in less than 3 minutes. In each edition, Jyll highlights a different Google Ads feature, and what you need to know to get the best results from it – all in a quick 3-minute read.

Uploading your customer list to Google Ads can give Google’s AI a competitive advantage as privacy changes make tracking less effective.

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Read the Latest Trends and Headlines in Digital Marketing.

Here are some of the latest headlines on digital marketing insights, search, and ecommerce:

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Reach out with any questions you might have regarding how RSO can help you with digital marketing.

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