WordPress hits play after a messy pause, but is it too little, too late for the CMS giant? Meanwhile, Google’s AI experiments are changing the rules for email marketing, local search, and desktop Discover, leaving marketers everywhere scrambling for a playbook that doesn’t exist.

Erin and SEO pro Cindy Krum break down WordPress’s mudslinging match with WP Engine and the quiet return to development, all while raising eyebrows over community trust. We check on Google’s ever-evolving SERPs—AI Overviews, the deployment of Discover on desktop, and the not-so-sneaky ways impressions and clicks are decoupling faster than you can say “zero-click search.” Added to the mix: AI’s impact on your inbox and why we might all end up living the “Dead Internet Theory.”

Is SEO on life support or just evolving (again)? We debate the rosy new journey-centric approach while side-eyeing Google’s “trust us, bro” attitude toward data transparency. Buckle up for a rapid-fire tour through the SEO wilderness—tracking AI hallucinations, local search creepiness, and why “hyper-personalization” might not sell more cannolis after all.

News from the EDGE:

[00:03:22] WordPress Unpauses Development - but is it out of time?

[00:08:05] Google Discover on Desktop

[00:12:53] AI is Making a Major Impact on Email Marketing

[00:16:57]  Title Sponsor: Site Strategics

SEO News from the EDGE:

[00:20:01] The Great Decoupling Of Google Search

[00:26:06] AI Overviews Research: How Google’s AI Answers Vary Across Five States

[00:32:07] AI and Local Search: The New Rules of Visibility

[00:37:49] Sponsor: WAIKAY from InLinks

[00:40:33] Google Search Console to Show AI Mode Performance

[00:46:01] Is SEO Still Relevant In the AI Era?

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