I fell for “AI Visibility” Advice
Unfortunately for me and fortunately for you, my entire algorithm has been taken over by “agency owners” who promise the business game plan. You know the one(s): the plan that will drive $1MM in MRR if you pay $39.99 for the playbook. The plan that staffs your business with robots while you’re on your yacht (there’s always a lady on a yacht and she’s 99% lip filler). Lately, I’ve been promised press coverage or my money back (which makes my head pop off my body). Also guaranteed DR45+ backlinks. Wait – did I mention that I can “steal my competitor’s SEO in about 30 seconds”?!
It’s bonkers out here and we need a human in this loop. (Especially one that’s been around the block loves nothing more than calling BS for the last 25 years of her career.) I clicked so you don’t have to. I watched the videos and separated “the talk” from “the walk.” Here’s what I found:
Ew. Ew. Ew.:
‘GUARANTEED’ PR BACKLINKS: One of the videos I (embarrassingly) clicked on made a big deal about PR backlinks with a DR45+ threshold. (“DR” means Domain Rating, an Ahrefs metric that estimates the strength of a website’s backlink profile on a 0–100 scale.)
In theory, this is AMAZING. We know third-party coverage matters for a multitude of reasons. BUT, if you scratch even the teensiest bit into this, you will very quickly see that a high number from an SEO tool doesn't (automatically) equal a valuable reputation signal.
COMPETITOR ‘INSIGHTS’: There was another video that demonstrated how quickly you can find topics and pages a competitor has that you don't. What isn’t said is that just because a competitor has a page on a topic doesn’t mean that you need one. You are building your own, differentiated brand, remember? (This influencer didn’t.)
What’s fact:
MACHINES ARE GOOD AT GRUNT WORK: Indeed, there are now tools that can automate huge portions of traditional SEO: keyword research, competitive analysis, content generation, publishing, outreach and reporting. Again, that’s great in theory. But if everyone can do this now, it’s not that hot, is it? If anyone can produce 50 articles with a few clicks, producing 50 articles isn't a competitive advantage.
Related, Google did recently add Search Console support to measure certain social and video platforms (e.g., IG, TikTok, X, YouTube, etc.) It’ll tell you when content appears in Google Search, Discover or News, but don’t let the clickbait fool you. You can't "force Google to rank your social posts." SMH.
TL;DR: HUMAN BRAINS FTW!
Bottom line: someone with a (preferably developed prefrontal cortex) needs to determine answers to the big strategic questions. Which gaps are worth addressing? What does the evidence tell us? What does this brand have the credibility to say?
At CTP we ask, “Why should an AI system believe this brand belongs in the answer?”
We start there because it’s a reputation question and it gets to the work of building real expertise, credibility, third-party validation, consistency, differentiation, and (perhaps most importantly?) evidence. We love receipts around here.
In this (exceeding weird) world where producing signals is getting cheap, understanding which signals matter is more valuable than ever. Reputation isn't something manufactured at the end. It’s earned, substantiated, and then it becomes visible. (It’s as easy and tough as that.)
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Abby Lovett, Founder & AI Visibility Advisor, CTP Visibility Advisors. Author of "Super Human: 8 'SMALL' Ways to Be Super at What You Do…and Human While You Do It."
