E1022: Patrick Stox of Ahrefs breaks down what actually matters in SEO right now and what doesn't.

We cover a wide range of topics, from technical SEO and internal linking to AI content, programmatic SEO, and the growing conversation around GEO and large language models. Patrick shares practical insights from working on some of the largest websites in the world and building SEO tools used by thousands of companies.

This conversation focuses on separating signal from noise. There are a lot of tactics being pushed in SEO today that sound convincing but don't move rankings. Patrick explains where people are wasting time and what drives results.

Topics we cover: - Why many common SEO beliefs are wrong - Subdomains vs subfolders and why it usually doesn't matter - The truth about redirects and how much value they pass - Why SEO is just one part of a larger marketing system - What "good content" actually means in practice - When technical SEO matters and when it doesn't - Super useful Ahrefs features and workflows - The real role of internal linking and how most sites get it wrong - How to think about authority beyond domain rating - Why keyword volume can be misleading and what to look at instead - How to approach content strategy from scratch - What small businesses should do to show up in AI systems - The reality of AI-generated content and when it fails - Programmatic SEO: what works and what breaks sites - Why scaling content too fast can backfire - What causes rankings to drop after initial growth - The importance of reclaiming lost links and redirects - When to redirect vs let pages 404 - Why schema and LLM.txt are overhyped - How SEO tools and audits can lead people in the wrong direction - What Patrick would do if starting a site from zero

If you work in SEO, content, or growth, this will help you focus on what moves rankings and avoid spending time on things that don't.

⭐️ Patrick Stox on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/patrickstox/ ⭐️ Patrick Stox on 𝕏 - https://x.com/patrickstox ⭐️ Use Ahrefs - https://ahrefs.com/

🚀 Edward's SEO Articles - https://edwardsturm.com/articles/search-engine-optimization/

💎 Compact Keywords - My SEO Course - Get paying customers through SEO - Clear step-by-step video breakdowns - SEO templates to be copied and adapted for your products and services: https://compactkeywords.com/

00:00 Meet Patrick Stox 00:54 Unpopular SEO Takes 01:49 Redirects Pass Value 02:18 GEO Is Bigger Than SEO 03:16 Small Business GEO Playbook 06:09 Tech SEO Threshold 07:24 Hreflang Costly Mistakes 09:07 Authority And Internal Links 14:57 Competing With Giants 16:56 Word Count And Writing 19:12 IBM Topic Hub Strategy 22:31 Internal Linking Done Right 26:18 SEO Myths And LLMs 27:08 Markdown Versions Debate 31:03 Ahrefs Features And Agent A 33:37 Traffic Potential Over Volume 35:06 Future Of Publishers 39:30 Growing A Site From Zero 41:31 Local PR Links 43:11 Content Planning Workflow 44:36 Smart SEO Automation 50:45 Programmatic SEO Risks 01:01:13 Defining Content Quality 01:06:18 Testing And Iteration 01:10:39 Schema Myths Debunked 01:15:34 Biggest SEO Wins 01:19:13 Killing LLMs.txt Hype 01:22:35 Wrap Up And Where To Follow

The Edward Show. Your daily search engine optimization podcast: https://edwardsturm.com/the-edward-show/

#searchengineoptimization #seo #ahrefs #digitalmarketing