BrightonSEO Presentation Summaries (October 2025)

1. The #1 spot is gone: how to win anyway

Tamara Novitović, Head of SEO, Bazoom Group. Session: "The #1 spot is gone: here's how to win anyway" · deck.

Core Topic

This presentation addresses the fundamental shift from traditional search engines to "answer engines" driven by Large Language Models (LLMs) — see what AEO is for the full picture — and why the number one organic ranking position is decreasing in importance.

Key Insights

• The Decline of #1 Rankings: Google's evolution means top rankings are less impactful as users find answers directly on SERPs without clicking through (zero-click searches).
• Durable Visibility Strategy: SEO must shift from ranking-focused to building durable visibility through:
  • Brand-led signals that encourage direct or familiar clicks
  • Entity optimization for knowledge graph and LLM-driven answers
  • Presence across various SERP features and channels
• Technical Implementation: Focus on structured data using @context and @type, particularly for BreadcrumbList schemas.
• CTR Analysis: Click-Through Rates are highly volatile and require case-by-case analysis in the current landscape.

2. Trust before traffic

Erin Simmons, Managing Director, Women in Tech SEO. Session: "Trust > traffic: how community fuels organic growth", published under her own title "Visibility is a byproduct of trust".

Core Argument

Visibility is not the goal but a byproduct of trust. In the era of AI Overviews and zero-click searches, when trust in algorithms dips, people revert to trusting other people through community-led sources like Reddit, social media, and video platforms.

Key Framework: Community-First SEO

1. Launch: Find your audience and actively listen to their conversations.
2. Grow: Engage authentically with the community to build trust.
3. Scale: Visibility will naturally follow as a result of established trust.

"Visibility doesn't begin with rankings or reach. It begins with trust." (Erin Simmons)

Critical Insight

Brands must enter community spaces as people, not faceless entities. AI Overviews have reduced organic CTR, with lost traffic moving to community and video platforms. The AI reflects existing real-world trust rather than creating it — which lines up with data-driven research on what drives AI citations, showing authority signals matter far more than on-page tricks.

3. Google Search Console: the SEO power tool you're probably misusing

Martin Hayman, RankCaddy. Session: "Google Search Console: the SEO power tool you're probably misusing" · deck.

Core Message

Most SEO professionals underutilize Google Search Console by treating it as a basic reporting tool. Strategic GSC analysis reveals hidden opportunities and quick wins — and pairs well with the AEO tools we tested for tracking AI visibility beyond GSC.

Six Strategic Quick Wins

1. Missing Terms

Common Mistake: Overlooking queries with low clicks/impressions.

Strategic Approach: Analyze GSC data for opportunity queries. Decide whether to add to existing pages, build new pages, or ignore.

2. Pattern Mining

Common Mistake: Not leveraging advanced filtering.

Strategic Approach: Use Regex in Performance reports to segment queries by patterns (long-tail, local, branded vs. non-branded, price-related terms).

3. Index Coverage

Common Mistake: Requesting indexing for all "Discovered - currently not indexed" pages.

Strategic Approach: If Google saw the page but didn't index it, improve the page's quality and value rather than forcing indexation.

4. Link Report

Common Mistake: Only looking at top linked pages.

Strategic Approach: Focus on pages lacking internal links. Internal linking is the most underrated, free, and powerful SEO tactic.

5. Core Web Vitals

Common Mistake: Focusing only on failing (red) pages.

Strategic Approach: Analyze passing (green) pages to understand and replicate their success factors.

6. Structured Data

Common Mistake: Focusing only on errors.

Strategic Approach: Prioritize warnings as opportunities to gain more SERP visibility through rich results.

4. The SEO collaboration effect

Kristina Bergwall, SEO Lead, Precis. Session: "The SEO collaboration effect" · deck.

Core Premise

The most impactful SEO gains come from cross-functional collaboration rather than isolated SEO tactics. People are the strategy.

"Collaboration isn't a soft skill. It's a growth strategy." (Kristina Bergwall, deck slide 36)

Collaboration Blueprint

1. Identify Stakeholders: Determine who needs to be involved.
2. Package Data: Present SEO data relevant to other teams.
3. Pilot Together: Run collaborative pilot projects.
4. Scale & Share: Roll out successful workflows and share results.

Four Real-World Collaboration Examples

The 4 C's of SEO Collaboration

• Curiosity: Ask questions and explore possibilities
• Clarity: Communicate data and goals clearly
• Courage: Challenge silos and traditional approaches
• Connection: Build relationships across departments

5. Brand, search and social: a search everywhere trifecta

Ashley Liddell, Founder, Deviation. Session: "Brand, search, & social - a search everywhere trifecta" · deck.

Core Argument

Search has evolved from a platform (Google) to a behavior occurring everywhere (TikTok, YouTube, Reddit, AI tools). Visibility is borrowed and easily lost. The new goal is to become the preferred brand option.

The Search Everywhere Trifecta Components

1. Brand

Establishes Preference

Brand-led narratives and strong authority are the foundation for being the preferred choice in any search environment.

2. Search

Provides Presence + Preference

Traditional SEO ensures discoverability but must align with brand and social signals to foster preference.

3. Social

Drives Cultural Relevance

Social platforms are major discovery engines. Liddell's deck puts it at around 76% of consumers having used social media to search for or discover products, brands and experiences, which is what makes conversion-ready [Brand] + [Key Term] searches worth building for.

Case Study: BullyBillows

Challenge: Falling non-brand searches with discovery migrating to social.

Strategy: Social-first content aligned with new SEO landing pages, built around cultural trends.

Results, as reported in Liddell's own deck:

• 139% organic revenue achieved in 2025 to date
• 65% increase in brand searches
• 195% increase in [Brand] + [Key Term] searches

The campaign won Best Use of Social Media in a "Search" Campaign. These are the agency's own reported figures for its client, not independently verified.

"You have always borrowed visibility… Being the preference is truly earned and is often retained." (Ashley Liddell, deck slide 89)

6. Forget SEO vs AI: build a brand people trust

Yordan Dimitrov, SEO Manager, Reflect Digital. Session: "Forget SEO vs AI. Build a brand people trust or get left behind".

Core Argument

The talk argues against framing the moment as SEO versus AI, and for deliberate brand-trust building instead. The account below is drawn from Reflect Digital's published recap of the session; the agency is Dimitrov's own employer, so treat it as the speaker's side of the story rather than independent coverage.

Key Insights

• Zero-click is the structural cause. AI Overviews are why organic traffic is harder to earn, which makes brand authority the lever that still moves.
• Sentiment analysis as a differentiator. The strongest brands track how they are described, not just whether they appear.
• Narrative management is active work. Engaging with brand conversations and answering customers directly, rather than only optimising pages.
• Trust outlasts tactics. Relationships with a trusted brand survive tool changes and algorithm states; technique-led visibility does not.

Frequently Asked Questions About BrightonSEO October 2025