Last week, our Digital Marketing Executive, Lucy Hollox, got straight off a flight from Australia and hotfooted it down to Brighton for one of the key events in the UK digital marketing calendar – Brighton SEO!
Here are her top five takeaways from the day that will shape the way we approach SEO and digital marketing over the next year (and beyond!)
1. Increase your focus on top of funnel and awareness marketing
One of the key messages from this year’s event was the importance of awareness marketing.
It’s no longer enough to focus solely on conversions at the bottom of the funnel; building brand awareness at the top stages of the customer journey is essential for long-term success.
In her talk, Carrie Rose from Rise at Seven emphasised that marketing isn’t just about making sales, it’s about creating demand for your product by increasing branded search interest. Think of it like this: don’t just sell ‘an air fryer’ – sell your air fryer. This creates a stronger association between your brand and the product.
Social media platforms such as TikTok, Meta, and Pinterest are the perfect places to help extend your reach and engage potential customers early on their journey.
2. Multi-channel marketing and search on social media is important
Consumers are no longer confined to Google when searching for products or information. They are using platforms like TikTok, YouTube, and even Pinterest to search and discover new content.
This means SEO now extends beyond traditional search engines. To remain competitive, businesses need to optimise their content for multiple platforms and adjust their strategies accordingly. This approach not only boosts visibility but also caters to the modern consumer’s multi-channel behaviour.
3. When it comes to AI, context is king
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is being used more and more in SEO, but context is key to getting the best out of it. As Tom Winter from SEO Wind noted in his talk, AI can only be as good as the input you provide.
When using AI, you need to offer clear, detailed prompts and human experience to guide it. Simple or vague prompts will lead to fluff or irrelevant information.
AI should be treated like a colleague or your marketing agency: brief it properly, and you’ll get better, more refined results. Always remember: garbage in, garbage out.
Most importantly, the human touch is still essential to ensure AI-generated content meets Google’s quality standards.
4. Your ads need to build trust
Customers are becoming more discerning, and building trust is paramount when it comes to your ads. They shouldn’t just push for a sale; they should answer customer questions and offer real value.
In her talk, Tanesha Austen from Armchair Marketing highlighted that post-purchase retargeting is a great way to build ongoing relationships. You should aim to retarget customers with helpful content such as tutorials, tips, or personalised offers. Real customer testimonials in ads can also help build trust, as people trust other people more than brands. Focus on aligning your ads with user intent to make them feel more personal and relevant.
5. Disavowing toxic backlinks is (mostly) pointless
Gone are the days of obsessing over toxic backlinks. Several speakers, including Rosa Mitchell and Szymon Slowik, agreed that disavowing links is largely a waste of time. Google’s algorithm is smart enough to ignore bad links without you having to disavow them unless they are highly problematic.
Instead of worrying about toxic backlinks, marketers should invest their time in building high-quality links through digital PR, creative content, and partnership link building. Focus on generating relevant, authoritative links rather than trying to disavow poor ones.
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Contact us for a chat with our team – we’re here to help with SEO, paid ads, content, UX and anything else you might need.