Digital Marketing Weekly News (Week Of 19/01) – Top Stories, Videos & Social Posts

Welcome to Search With Sean: Weekly News - your concise roundup of the key stories shaping SEO, AI, search, digital PR, paid media, and digital strategy this week.

Co-Hosts:

Nicola Agius – https://www.linkedin.com/in/nicola-agius-8b330956/

Amanda Walls – https://www.linkedin.com/in/amandajwalls/

Stanislav Farkas – https://www.linkedin.com/in/stanislav-farkas-fastraveller/

This week, we covered a wide range of hot topics in SEO, AI, and digital strategy.

First, we tackled the ongoing debate: Is SEO Dead? New data from Graphite and SimilarWeb showed that organic traffic is only down by 2.5% year-on-year, with certain sectors like shopping portals seeing growth. The presence of AI overviews, while reducing click-through rates by 35%, is still only visible in about 30% of search results. This highlights the ongoing importance of SEO, even with the rise of AI-driven search tools.

We also discussed OpenAI’s shift towards impression-based advertising within ChatGPT, which introduces a pay-per-view model that could reshape PPC strategies, especially in lead generation.

Meanwhile, Google’s Gemini platform has confirmed it won’t be introducing ads for now, presenting an interesting contrast to OpenAI’s approach, though this could change in the future as Google adapts its strategies.

On the jobs front, we highlighted the growing demand for AI-related roles, particularly in London, where positions like "Head of AI" and "AI Engineer" are becoming some of the fastest-growing opportunities in the job market. This shift is indicative of how deeply AI expertise is being integrated into various industries.

Top Videos 🎥

In this week’s video discussions, we reviewed Edward Sturm’s video challenging the efficacy of schema for SEO, questioning its value as a ranking factor for most sites. While schema is useful in specific cases like top stories carousels or large marketplaces, it’s not a game-changer for SEO on its own. We also explored how SEO KPIs are shifting, with a growing focus on intent-driven outcomes rather than simply traffic volume. This reflects a broader industry trend towards optimizing for high-quality traffic and engagement rather than just clicks.

We also covered a video on AI’s role in online shopping, examining how Google's new Universal Commerce Protocol could transform e-commerce by embedding AI agents directly in search results, bypassing the need for websites altogether.

Top Social Posts 📲

On social, Bernard Huang’s LinkedIn post made waves, declaring that the blue link era is officially over. With AI-driven responses becoming the focal point, brands must rethink how they appear in search results - it’s no longer just about ranking number one. He emphasized the need for brands to focus on AI visibility as we approach 2026 and beyond. Additionally, Glenn Gabe shared insights about GPT for Doctors, an AI platform increasingly used by U.S. doctors for medical guidance, showing how AI is being adopted in crucial sectors like healthcare.

View all stories + more here - https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/e/2PACX-1vRgApI9fMAMVswEIcS8iz2HXYpWXPlA2hjHZs8B9stlS6s8mvX-cAkHydCWW2yvca6Jv2sn0xu6w4Eg/pubhtml