Technically, blog categories and tags can help your SEO, but most people are using them in a way that actively hurts it.

The question to ask is: Do your blog categories actually help people find what they're looking for, or are they just clutter?

1. Why keyword-stuffed categories and tags get flagged as spam
2. The retail store analogy for structuring categories and tags correctly
3. How to fix an existing blog with too many categories
4. Using Google Search Console to avoid losing visibility during a cleanup

Get this right and your blog categories start working the way they should, guiding real visibility instead of quietly working against it.

Timestamps
[0:00] Introduction
[0:30] The real problem with blog categories and tags
[1:43] Why keyword-stuffed categories are a spam signal to Google
[2:23] User frustration and how it hurts rankings
[3:37] The retail store analogy for categories and tags
[5:11] What tags are for versus what categories are for
[6:38] What to do if you already have too many categories
[7:08] Using Search Console before you prune anything
[8:38] The rip the band-aid off approach
[9:08] How to rebuild categories and tags the right way

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Send me your AI/SEO questions!
https://www.meredithshusband.com/podcast

How do you know if the SEO advice you're getting is any good?

The answer isn't about finding the right buzzword, it's about recognizing when someone is selling you a myth.

Terms like AEO and GEO get pitched as replacements for SEO, but Google itself has flagged this exact claim as a warning sign when evaluating consultants.

1. The AEO and GEO myth and where it's coming from
2. What Google's own guidance says about AI search
3. Why the changes for AI search are smaller than past SEO shifts
4. One question to ask before hiring an SEO/AI consultant

Knowing this one distinction protects you from hiring the wrong person and wasting money chasing a trend that doesn't exist.

Timestamps
[0:00] Introduction
[1:04] Where this bad advice is coming from
[1:27] The overwhelming message: SEO is dead
[2:09] Why the AEO and GEO claim is false
[3:14] How AI models actually access search data
[4:29] Why the changes for AI search are subtle, not dramatic
[5:31] Only one consultant out of dozens debunked the myth
[7:28] Closing and where to find the free Primer

Read the Google Guide:
Optimizing your website for generative AI features on Google Search
https://developers.google.com/search/docs/fundamentals/ai-optimization-guide

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Send me your AI/SEO questions!
https://www.meredithshusband.com/podcast

Why do the same competitors always outrank you on Google?

The answer usually comes down to links, but figuring out where those links come from takes real digging.

Most SEO advice stops at optimizing your own site, but the bigger gap is usually how other websites link to your competitors and not you.

1. Local directories that pass along a valuable backlink
2. Free versus paid directory listings
3. Using AI to surface where a competitor is mentioned online
4. Sorting real opportunities from dead ends

Following this process gives you a short list of specific, findable places to get your own site linked and mentioned.

Timestamps
[0:00] Introduction
[0:30] Why competitor research matters
[1:04] Links versus on-site SEO
[1:39] What clients pay for
[2:14] How this connects to the mentoring program
[2:49] Links and mentions, ranked
[3:48] Finding local directories
[5:23] Deciding if a directory is worth paying for
[6:23] Using AI to find competitor mentions
[8:15] Needle in a haystack, and why that's still worth it

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Send me your AI/SEO questions!
https://www.meredithshusband.com/podcast