Marketing

AI is dividing opinion among marketers but its growing influence is undeniable. Should you include it in your SEO efforts – and if so, how? 

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is revolutionising digital marketing, and search marketing is no exception. From technical SEO to PPC to content creation, AI-driven tools are transforming the way businesses reach and engage with their audiences. So should you fully embrace AI in your search marketing campaigns? The short answer is yes – but with a strategic approach.

In this article, we’ll explore why AI is essential for search marketing in 2025/26, the benefits it brings, and how you can effectively integrate AI-driven solutions into your strategy.

Why AI Matters in Search Marketing

AI is no longer just an option in search marketing – it’s a necessity. From improving SEO and PPC performance to automating content creation and enhancing user experience, AI-powered tools are transforming the digital marketing landscape…

1. AI is Reshaping Search Algorithms

Search engines like Google continuously update their algorithms to improve user experience and search result relevance. AI is at the core of these changes, with Google’s RankBrain and BERT models leveraging machine learning to understand search intent better. By using AI-powered tools, marketers can adapt their strategies in real time to align with these evolving algorithms.

2. Automation Saves Time and Enhances Efficiency

AI can automate repetitive tasks such as keyword research, competitor analysis and bid adjustments in PPC campaigns. This allows marketers to focus on strategic planning, creative content, and audience engagement rather than manual data crunching.

3. Improved Accuracy and Data-Driven Decision Making

AI-powered analytics tools process vast amounts of data at high speeds, providing actionable insights that help marketers refine their strategies. Whether it’s predicting trends, identifying user intent, or optimising content for better rankings, AI ensures precision in decision-making.

4. Personalisation at Scale

Modern consumers expect personalised experiences, and AI makes this possible at scale. By analysing user behaviour and past interactions, AI can help marketers deliver tailored content, ads and recommendations with the potential to boost engagement and conversions.

5. AI-Powered Content Creation and Optimisation

With tools like ChatGPT, Jasper, and Copy.ai, AI can generate high-quality content, including blog posts, ad copy and product descriptions. While human oversight is essential to maintain authenticity and brand voice, AI can significantly speed up the content production process.

How to Integrate AI into Your Search Marketing Strategy

1. Use AI for Smarter Keyword Research

Keyword research is the backbone of SEO and PPC campaigns. AI-powered tools such as SEMrush, Ahrefs, and Google’s Keyword Planner can identify high-performing keywords by analysing trends, search intent, and competition levels. AI also helps discover long-tail keywords that align with conversational search queries and voice search.

2. Enhance SEO with AI-Driven Optimisation Tools

AI can streamline SEO efforts by providing on-page optimisation suggestions, improving site structure and identifying technical issues. Platforms like SurferSEO and Clearscope analyse top-ranking pages and suggest ways to enhance your content’s relevance and readability.

3. Boost PPC Performance with AI-Optimised Bidding Strategies

AI-driven bidding strategies in Google Ads and Microsoft Ads adjust bids in real time based on factors like user behaviour, device type and location. Automated bidding ensures that your ads are shown to the right audience at the optimal cost-per-click (CPC), so maximising ROI.

4. Leverage AI Chatbots for Improved User Experience

AI-powered chatbots can engage visitors, answer queries, and guide them through the conversion funnel 24/7. This not only improves customer service but can also boost lead generation and sales.

5. Automate Reporting and Analytics

Manually analysing campaign performance can be time-consuming. AI-based reporting tools like Google Analytics 4 (GA4) and HubSpot use machine learning to provide in-depth insights into user behaviour, helping marketers adjust strategies quickly.

6. Improve Content Marketing with AI-Generated Insights

AI doesn’t just create content; it also helps marketers understand what type of content resonates with audiences. AI-driven content insights can identify trending topics, optimise headlines for click-through rates, and recommend the best publishing times for maximum reach.

The Challenges of AI in Search Marketing

While AI offers numerous advantages, it’s essential to be aware of potential challenges:

• Over-reliance on Automation: AI should support, not replace, human creativity and strategic thinking.
• Data Privacy Concerns: With increasing data regulations, marketers must ensure ethical AI usage and compliance with GDPR and other laws.
• Need for Continuous Learning: AI tools evolve rapidly, requiring marketers to stay updated on new trends and best practices.

Conclusion: Embrace AI, But Don’t Forget that Essential Human Touch

The most successful campaigns will strike the right balance between AI-driven efficiency and human creativity. By leveraging AI for data analysis, automation, and personalisation while maintaining a human touch in branding and storytelling, your search marketing strategy will be well-positioned for success in 2025 and beyond.

Talk to us
Keen to find out more about how AI-powered tools and strategies can drive up the performance of your search marketing campaigns? Our team of experts would love to have a chat about how best to future-proof your digital marketing strategy!

What are the trends and techniques that are hitting now – and what are the tactics to let go of? 

Content marketing has evolved significantly over the years, and as we move through 2025, the landscape looks more dynamic than ever. But many tactics that once delivered results have become obsolete, while new trends and best practices are shaping how brands engage with their audiences. 

So if you’re looking to refine your strategy for the rest of the year and beyond, understanding what works (and what doesn’t) is crucial. Let’s explore the key components of a strong content marketing strategy in 2025/26…

Tactics That No Longer Work

As content marketing has matured, certain approaches that were once effective have lost their impact. Here are some outdated tactics to wave goodbye to… 

1. Keyword Stuffing and Over-Optimisation

We shouldn’t need to say it, but it’s amazing how many people are still guilty of this one! Why? Because Google’s algorithms have become far more sophisticated, with AI-driven search capabilities prioritising natural, user-friendly content. 

Stuffing your content with excessive keywords in an attempt to rank higher – or shoehorning inhuman-sounding copy around contrived search phrases – is not only unlikely to perform badly search-wise and turn off your users. It could even lead to penalties.

2. Thin, Low-Value Content

Gone are the days when churning out short, generic blog posts could drive traffic. Search engines and users now demand in-depth, high-quality content that genuinely solves problems and provides value.

3. Clickbait and Sensationalism

While eye-catching headlines may attract clicks, misleading content will damage trust. Attention harvesting is a losing game – in 2025, user engagement and retention are more important than just generating one-off clicks.

4. One-Size-Fits-All Content

Generic content that doesn’t cater to specific audience segments won’t cut it any more either. Personalisation and hyper-relevance are key to effective engagement.

5. Ignoring Video and Audio Content

Relying solely on text-based content is a mistake. Video, podcasts, and interactive media have taken centre stage, and brands that fail to diversify their formats risk losing audience engagement.

Key Trends and Best Practices for 2025/26

So much for the tactics to avoid. What should businesses be focusing on to succeed in content marketing this year instead? Here’s our pick of the key strategies and best practices shaping the content landscape today… 

1. AI-Driven Content Creation and Optimisation

AI is playing an increasingly critical role in content marketing, from automating research and keyword analysis to generating content ideas and even producing drafts. However, human oversight remains essential to ensure authenticity, creativity, and brand alignment.

2. E-E-A-T (Experience, Expertise, Authority, Trustworthiness)

Google’s emphasis on E-E-A-T continues to grow, meaning that brands must demonstrate deep expertise and credibility in their content. Author bylines, citing reputable sources, and creating long-form, well-researched content are key to success. Quality over quantity every time! 

3. Conversational and Voice Search Optimisation

With more users relying on voice search, optimising for natural language queries is essential. Content should be structured in a way that answers questions directly and succinctly.

4. Interactive and Immersive Content

Static content is no longer enough to capture and hold attention on its own. Interactive quizzes, polls, augmented reality (AR) experiences and even AI-driven chatbots that provide personalised content recommendations are gaining more and more traction.

5. Video-First Content Strategy

Video continues to dominate the internet. Short-form video platforms like TikTok, Instagram Reels and YouTube Shorts will go on making video an essential part of any content strategy. Live streaming and video-based storytelling are also proving highly effective in building audience engagement.

6. Content for the ‘Zero-Click’ Era

With Google providing more direct answers in search results, brands must optimise content for featured snippets, knowledge panels, and other direct–answer SERP features. Providing valuable information within the search results itself can enhance brand visibility and authority.

7. Sustainability and Ethical Storytelling

Consumers are more conscious than ever about the brands they support. Content that highlights transparency, ethical business practices, brand purpose and sustainability efforts can help build trust and loyalty.

8. Community-Driven Content

Engagement is shifting from just broadcasting messages to fostering genuine conversations. User-generated content (UGC), community forums, and interactive social media discussions will play a bigger role in content marketing success.

9. Long-Form and Evergreen Content with Depth

While short-form content is essential, long-form, in-depth pieces still have their place – especially for SEO. Comprehensive, regularly-updated guides, case studies and well-researched reports help establish authority and provide long-term value – they are the content gifts that keep on giving!

10. Omnichannel Content Distribution

Sweat those assets! If done right, a single piece of content can be repurposed and distributed across multiple platforms. Look to email marketing, social media, video and even offline channels to slice and dice your content pieces to maximise reach and engagement.

Crafting Your 2025/26 Content Strategy

What does your content marketing strategy need to look like if you’re to stay ahead of the curve in 2025/26? 

In a nutshell, you need to be taking a strategic and responsive approach to content marketing. Here’s how to craft a winning strategy:

Set Clear Goals:

Same as always – define what success looks like, whether that’s brand awareness, lead generation, engagement or conversions.

Know Your Audience:

Leverage data and AI insights to understand audience preferences, pain points and behaviours.

Prioritise Quality Over Quantity:

A few high-value pieces will outperform a slew of thin, me-too content items.

Diversify Content Formats:

Combine and repurpose blog posts, videos, podcasts, interactive content for maximum impact.

Optimise for Search and Social:

Ensure content is structured for SEO while being shareable and engaging on social platforms.

Leverage AI and Automation:

Use AI tools for research, content generation, and personalisation, but maintain a human touch.

Measure, Analyse, and Adapt:

Regularly review performance data and refine your strategy based on insights.

Fancy a chat?

A strong content marketing strategy in 2025 is about more than just publishing content – it’s about delivering value, fostering engagement and keeping on top of digital trends. By focusing on quality, leveraging AI intelligently, and embracing diverse content formats, brands can build lasting relationships with their audience and achieve sustainable growth.

Are you ready to refine your content marketing strategy for the months ahead, talk to our expert team – we’d be delighted to share some thoughts to help you navigate the ever-changing digital landscape and craft a winning approach tailored to your business goals. 

Google are a smart bunch and certainly know how to make us work hard to get those all-important rankings. With an ever-evolving algorithm and hugely competitive landscape, it’s a battle to see yourself outrank those you are up against.

That is why those among us in the SEO world look to deploy a host of tactics to ensure the words and images on screen translate to a high position on the SERPS.

Some of these strategies don’t always work though. We can spend time cultivating what appears to be high quality, relevant and detailed content, tailored to the search intent, yet for some reason, the Google gods think it’s not worthy of a high position. So, what do we do?

We must adapt, and match the audience demand as things change, we have to be aware of trends and make ourselves an authoritative voice on those trends. To do this, we adopt link building and digital PR strategies.

These give us the chance to amplify the voice or the message of the brand and the associated content to a potentially new and valuable audience that may have not yet found us via Google.

Building links has long since been known as a valuable tool in the world of SEO. If a high-quality site has a link to your content, it’s basically saying “we agree with this” or “these people know what they are talking about.” From this, your sites credibility grows and those ranking start to improve. So, what is the difference if both aim to give you the same result? In this edition of our blog, we take a look.

What is Digital PR?

Even if you are new to the world of marketing, you’ll know that PR can be both good and bad. In digital, bad PR isn’t so much a controversial statement, or a publicity stunt gone wrong. It’s more so that your content lands on a poor-quality site and causes your own site to lose a bit of its credibility.

Digital PR is where you use PR tactics to secure backlinks or exposure on high quality sites. Think news media, such as The Times, The Guardian, Sky News. Think industry publications specific to your niche. Think big. With digital PR you craft valued assets that can be shared and consumed by a wide audience, who in some cases, may have no interest in your brand but are lured in though your creative content. This could be videos, infographics, detailed reports or articles. Think about articles you may stumble upon such as “The five places you are likely to die.” It sounds a little morbid, it sounds a little odd, but you are giving it a click….Then once you start reading, you’ll find a link within to, let’s say, a life insurance company who have created this novel, quirky PR piece.

I’ll give you another example, how often do we see “Netflix viewers shocked by gory scene in latest show” or something similar? You click it, you want to know what the scene was, what the show was or whether people were genuinely shocked. Once on the piece, you find a few references to specific scenes, perhaps a quote from a viewer, but there it is…..the link to sub to Netflix.

You’ll craft this content, specifically for outreaching, to relevant outlets. With each item you outreach being built to the audience of the publications you are reaching out to. Some you may have built relationships up with through earlier work, others you might find via tools such as Muckrack, Prowly or Dotstar. These outlets become the metaphorical gun that shoots your message out to the new, untapped audience. To get them to do so though, you need two things. Great content, and a relationship.

Digital PR relies on relationship building, and it takes time. You need to build a contact list of site owners, journalists, marketers and more. Reaching out to them will be the start of your journey. Some may not want to know; others may love every aspect of what you have. It’s a slow burner and one where results may not be evident right away. Let’s use an example. At Chillibyte, we landed some links for a property client of ours on the Ideal Home site. This stemmed from spotting an opportunity on Dotstar. We then pitched to the journalist, she liked what we had and published it. Since then, we have been able to offer expert commentary from our client for a variety of pieces for the site where the writer reaches out to us, rather than us having to reach out to them.

You can view digital PR as they way to sing, dance and shout about your brand through being creative, informative and engaging.

What are the common digital PR tactics?

It all depends on what message you need to get across. You may have stories or stats to offer that align with a trend or current affairs. Data driven outreach is loved by media outlets as they can use it to help solidify their story. Expert commentary is loved just as much as it allows the publication to inform their audience with quotes from those “on the front line” rather than just give unsubstantiated opinions.

For the most part, digital PR will include:

• Creative marketing efforts to capture attention (videos, social campaigns, calls to action)
• Research and data driven content that provides valuable information
• Commentary and opinion to show the brand as a voice of authority
• Product launches and partnerships, showcasing innovation, new trends and endorsements

So, what about link building then?

There is a fair bit of similarity between digital PR and link building. The end result after all, is fundamentally the same. However, manual link building is a little different.

We all know that a backlink can help increase your site authority, and much like digital PR, if the link comes from a high-quality site, it’s going to work wonders. In PR though, a link isn’t always guaranteed. Some publications see your hope for a link as a chance to sell you an advertorial package, others may simply ignore links in the press release and just opt for a brand mention.

With link building, the core focus is the link. In fact, a link may be all you need to supply to the hosting site as opposed to a huge press release with media files and reams of info.

If you can successfully build links on high quality sites, you stand to see not just an enhanced credibility for your site but gain improved visibility within your industry. This then helps to build relationships among other industry experts, giving you the opportunity to perhaps work alongside each other in the future should opportunity arise.

With increased website credibility, the increased organic traffic follows (hopefully) and from this increased traffic, you should….and we say should….have a better chance of converting visitors into customers.

So how do we build links manually? We do it a little like we do with digital PR, except in some cases, you don’t need content, you just need to answer a question or provide a piece of data that helps another site out. Common link building tactics could include simply requesting a link from partners or affiliates, it could be from providing a blog with relevant images or a piece of data, or it could be from providing content that the host thinks is link worthy such as a helpful tool, some valuable resources or some key data that backs up their story or article.

You may find sites that have broken links where you can reach out and say, “Hey, I see you are talking about buying a new car, your link is broken, but don’t worry, I’ve got this if you want it” They might then just thank you for highlighting their broken page by giving you the link.

Another option could be where you reach out to a blogger for example and tell them you have some content relevant to some items on their site. You might have an infographic that complements their existing work. You don’t want paying for supplying them some valued info that bolsters their coverage, you just want the link that shows where the infographic came from.

You can view link building a little like being a helpful aid to other sites.

Overcoming hurdles

By covering both PR and link building, you stand to gain links from the high-quality media outlets but also the industry specific blogs and sites. This shows to Google that not only does the industry rate you, but the media does too.

Google won’t just take a link as a sign of quality though; it looks at the site and checks whether it serves a purpose to the user. It wants to know; will a click take the consumer to somewhere relevant and authoritative or will it take them to something of poor quality. As a result, links do not become the only factor. The quality of the content and the quality of the site come into play too.

You could, for example, look at a site that gets plenty of traffic, yet all its other metrics point to it being a site of low authority. If the content within is of high quality though, the rankings could be too. Engaging, quality content can convince Google that you are the thought leader in your field. And this, can be priceless.

It can take time though and as a result, many look to link building in favour of content. The thought being that lots of good links will push you to the top step of the Google podium. Whilst to a small degree that is correct, highlighting just one page as the bells and whistles of your site could actually demean your site’s worth. Instead, it’s best to cultivate high quality content, site wide, then when you build links and outreach, not only will Google know you are a worthy voice in the field, but the media outlet will too. 

Wow, we’ve reached double figures! It’s time to blow out some candles and eat some cake! This year, we celebrated our tenth birthday, a special milestone and one we are particularly proud of.

Since our inception, we’ve grown from strength to strength, welcoming clients from not only the UK, but across the globe too. Our place in the world of search marketing, now firmly cemented.

For some of you reading this, you may be new to Chillibyte, either as clients, or even team members. For others, you may have been with us from the start. Whoever you are, and whenever you came on board, we thank you all! You are what helps make Chillibyte great.

So, we guess you want to know what we got up to for our 10^th birthday? Well, let’s indulge you a little in how we celebrated, but first, a quick overview of Chillibyte to give you a little background.

When was Chillibyte founded?

Chillibyte was founded by Sam Trousdale and Tim Watney in the summer of 2013, with the aim of delivering premium search marketing services to businesses that felt their online presence was lacking. Utilising their years of experience in digital marketing, the duo put a plan in place. A plan that would help see rankings rise and sales surge for businesses looking for results that had otherwise eluded them.

Over time, the ability to demonstrate the merits of search proved to be successful. Clients could now see and understand why their brand wasn’t previously seen. They could finally fathom why keywords mattered, why content is king, and why getting to page one on Google is certainly not a given.

Expansion of Chillibyte

With an influx of clients beginning to flood in, rapid expansion was needed. Sam and Tim drafted in Akash Valand, an SEO Jedi who is the walking, talking encyclopedia of SEO strategy. Still here to this day, Akash, now the Head of SEO, has helped Sam and Tim enhance the Chillibyte reputation immensely. Next in was Amber Longhurst, the content writer who can make words sing on a page, no matter the subject.  Now the Head of the Content department, Amber strategises the way content will deliver meaningful and impactful results for clients across property, finance, insurance, beauty, travel, healthcare and so much more.

With a core now built, Chillibyte was able to continually expand as it impressed clients with its results. Valued assets such as Dan Stockwell, now the Head of Web, Jeff So the Head of PPC, and more, all came on board to help Sam and Tim with their mission.

Today, we celebrate ten years of Chillibyte with many of the people who joined Sam and Tim in the early stages of the journey still with us. A few faces have gone, and a few new ones have joined. The only thing that hasn’t changed is the Chillibyte ethos of giving your search marketing a kick!

So, let’s tell you about what we did to celebrate.

Chillibyte’s 10^th birthday party

With Covid putting pause to many events throughout 2020-2022, we approached 2023 knowing that if everything was as close to normal as possible, we could enjoy a 10^th birthday with our team. If it wasn’t, a party via Zoom may have been our only option!

Sure enough, life in 2023 is pretty much the same as it was pre-covid. This means we can have some fun.

So … what did we do?

We started with a vote organised by Senior Account Manager Kim May-Papailiou. A selection of event types was given to us, and we could all choose a preference. Options such as a meal and drinks, an escape room or a trip to a sporting event, were all listed among many others.

Being a team never to shy away from excitement, an escape room experience was chosen with a meal and drinks added in for good measure.

So, on a balmy July day, the team headed to Brighton. Some keen to soak up the atmosphere had already arrived in advance of the majority. Once all together, we headed for the Pier Pressure murder mystery at Preston Manor. With questions around whodunnit about to be answered, it was time to don our detective gear and go investigating!

The murder mystery solved by Chillibyte

Chillibyte is a team of around 15 people, and with the organisers of the event suggesting we break into smaller teams for a more competitive experience, we soon had captains picking their colleagues as prized assets. With none of us qualified in criminology and a few having visited the pub in advance, this could be a taxing affair……

Split into three teams, we navigated the manor attempting to solve a murder. Like a game of Cluedo, we needed to locate a weapon, the criminal and where it was committed within the grounds. Adorned with our costumes provided by the venue, we set out on the hunt for answers.

An hour is set on the clock, and penalties are in place for incorrect answers. Penalties that would affect the result for some.

With puzzles ranging from the simple to the complex, it was a true combination of excellent teamwork, a little luck, and some random guesses that we all managed to get back to the “Detective” with our allegations.

All three teams made it within the hour, but one failed. As you enter the room to announce your findings, the Detective confirms whether you are right or wrong with each accusation. If you have them all correct, and complete it in the quickest time, you are the winner. Unfortunately, the writer of this post was lured by a false indicator from the detective, thinking it was a helpful hint. Instead, he made a decision that cost his team a further five seconds. Putting them bottom of the rankings.

Whilst a career in MI5 may not be beckoning for any of us, we thought it was time to enjoy some food and drinks, satisfied a fictional killer had been found and justice served.

Seaside dining and city centre cocktails

Solving murders, even fictional ones, is hard. Leaving Preston Manner, we ventured closer to the seafront, stopping at a few pubs on the way to test the beers and break down our case findings. Time was moving quickly though, and with a drink or two enjoyed, it was time to move on to Shelter Halls. Now if you have never been, we recommend it. A huge selection of eateries, all under one roof, offering an eclectic mix of different cuisines. Whereas in a regular restaurant, you may order from one specific menu, at Shelter Halls, you can order your main from one, your side from another, and a drink from another. Fancy adding a side of pasta to your burger? No problem! Enjoy a little Indian food but wouldn’t mind some fries too? You can do that!

The service was speedy, and considering you are ordering from multiple menus, the wait for things to arrive from each outlet was incredibly short. It gets very busy though, and booking is a must. With tables often held for short periods, we knew that after eating it was time to explore elsewhere.

A bar close by that had a ship’s hull as part of its interior provided a welcome rest spot before we dived deeper into the city. The Cuban band outside gave us some welcome tunes to bring the afternoon into the evening.

As time progressed, a few of the team headed home due to childcare and other commitments but a few stayed out to see what else the night may bring.

A cocktail bar, where you “roll the dice” was next up. Bohemia is a great venue where your preferred drink can be ordered unless you “roll the dice”. The barman gives you two dice, each number represents a spirit. The numbers you roll then determine what the mixologist must use. Their ingenious creative skills mean you end up with a drink combination you may have never thought possible. In one instance, we were taken back to 1920s New Orleans with a whisky-based drink that looked appealing but didn’t quite give us the taste we hoped for. Our next roll provided something a little fruitier and from there, we had found our tipple for the evening.

With the night drawing to a close, it was time to reflect on the day and also the company itself. Sitting around a small table. Sam and Tim both enthused about how far Chillibyte has come and how excited they are for the next chapter.