2026 SEO: What’s In, What’s Out, and How to Win with Generative AI
- Gareth Cunningham, Director of Search Experience at Mod Op, and Maurice White, Senior SEO Strategist at Mod Op
- AI and Automation, Content Strategy and Marketing, Customer Experience (CX), Data Management and Analytics, Digital Transformation, Lead Gen / Lead Mgmt, Managing Org Transformation, Managing Your Career, Martech Stacks, Other Martech, Platform and Data Integration, Sales and Marketing Orchestration, Strategy and Trends
In 2026 and beyond, SEO is no longer just about “search engine optimization.” It’s rapidly becoming search experience: a discipline that connects content, UX, development, PR, paid media, and AI.
The Martechify team sat down with Gareth Cunningham, Director of Search Experience at Mod Op, and Maurice White, Senior SEO Strategist at Mod Op, to talk about how generative AI is reshaping search, what still hasn’t changed, and what marketers should actually do next.
The Martechify team sat down with Gareth Cunningham, Director of Search Experience at Mod Op, and Maurice White, Senior SEO Strategist at Mod Op, to talk about how generative AI is reshaping search, what still hasn’t changed, and what marketers should actually do next.
Watch the full interview with Gareth Cunningham and Maurice White, where they share how you can stay ahead of the SEO changes in 2026. This is a must watch interview!
From SEO to search experience: What is really changing?
For Gareth, the acronym may be evolving, but the fundamentals stayed the same. SEO is now becoming GEO, where “search” is replaced with “generative” engine optimization. “The only thing that’s really changed is the letter within the acronym,” said Gareth.
He cautioned against the common misconception that AI will somehow eliminate the need for strong SEO fundamentals: “If your foundational elements for SEO, historic or traditional SEO, aren’t there, your generative search might not perform in the same way as you might be hearing from some of your favorite YouTubers or TikTokers… SEO is still important, but GEO opens up a whole new universe of users.”
Marketers now have to operate at a different altitude, “As the CFO of OpenAI said, ‘We need to be on the cutting edge of the cutting edge every day.’ And as marketers, we need to be there too,” said Gareth.
He cautioned against the common misconception that AI will somehow eliminate the need for strong SEO fundamentals: “If your foundational elements for SEO, historic or traditional SEO, aren’t there, your generative search might not perform in the same way as you might be hearing from some of your favorite YouTubers or TikTokers… SEO is still important, but GEO opens up a whole new universe of users.”
Marketers now have to operate at a different altitude, “As the CFO of OpenAI said, ‘We need to be on the cutting edge of the cutting edge every day.’ And as marketers, we need to be there too,” said Gareth.
“The future of SEO was released years ago”
Maurice argued that many of the “future of SEO” conversations are actually about catching up with changes that started long before generative AI.
“The future of SEO was released five or six years ago through various algorithm updates,” said Maurice. What truly reshaped the landscape back then was Google’s shift toward intent-based search, an evolution that fundamentally changed how content is discovered, evaluated, and ranked.
Gareth added, “The shift within the marketing industry toward intent-based, answer-based content was something not new to us at Mod Op. We have been championing the need for clients to lean into content… For the last probably four to five years, we have been really consulting with our clients around making sure that the content holds all of the who, what, how, when, and why, so that no question is left unanswered.”
“The future of SEO was released five or six years ago through various algorithm updates,” said Maurice. What truly reshaped the landscape back then was Google’s shift toward intent-based search, an evolution that fundamentally changed how content is discovered, evaluated, and ranked.
Gareth added, “The shift within the marketing industry toward intent-based, answer-based content was something not new to us at Mod Op. We have been championing the need for clients to lean into content… For the last probably four to five years, we have been really consulting with our clients around making sure that the content holds all of the who, what, how, when, and why, so that no question is left unanswered.”
Competing for AI summaries: The new “page one”
In the old world, the goal was simple: page one rankings. Now, brands are fighting for inclusion in a tiny cluster of sources surfaced in AI summaries.
That’s where Mod Op’s internal “generative AI periodic table” comes in. Maurice described it as a framework to understand and track AI-era ranking factors.
“The generative AI periodic table is really all about working in unison with your marketing team to be able to expand your digital presence via organic and non-organic marketing avenues.”
Instead of obsessing over single keywords, the focus shifts to:
— Brand mentions and citations across the digital ecosystem
— Consistent messaging on site, social, YouTube, PR, and beyond
— Answer-first content that fully addresses user intent
Measurement is also more complex in this world:
“Measurability of generative AI visibility is a mystery at the moment. And if anybody tells you they understand it, please don’t believe that.”
For now, their team looks at:
— Citations and mentions in AI outputs
— AI-mode keyword visibility
— Traditional analytics and engagement metrics
— Most importantly: conversions and revenue
“At least what we focus on within an organic search is increasing your conversions, which leads to increasing your bottom line, your revenue.”
That’s where Mod Op’s internal “generative AI periodic table” comes in. Maurice described it as a framework to understand and track AI-era ranking factors.
“The generative AI periodic table is really all about working in unison with your marketing team to be able to expand your digital presence via organic and non-organic marketing avenues.”
Instead of obsessing over single keywords, the focus shifts to:
— Brand mentions and citations across the digital ecosystem
— Consistent messaging on site, social, YouTube, PR, and beyond
— Answer-first content that fully addresses user intent
Measurement is also more complex in this world:
“Measurability of generative AI visibility is a mystery at the moment. And if anybody tells you they understand it, please don’t believe that.”
For now, their team looks at:
— Citations and mentions in AI outputs
— AI-mode keyword visibility
— Traditional analytics and engagement metrics
— Most importantly: conversions and revenue
“At least what we focus on within an organic search is increasing your conversions, which leads to increasing your bottom line, your revenue.”
AI vs. human content: Why “AI slop” won’t win
With AI content tools everywhere, the question comes up constantly: Will search engines prioritize human-written content?
Gareth pointed back to how Google’s stance has evolved: “They updated the Google Webmaster Guidelines and said that anything to do with AI was permissible… But the search engine is increasingly starting to retrofit and retro-penalize brands for using nothing but AI.”
He connected this to older ideas like Author Rank, where content is tied to real people: “What we’re seeing now is extremely important… Whenever you produce a piece of content, make sure that you have your author bio in there.”
At Mod Op, they are actively building AI-powered tools to support content creation, but always with a human in the loop. Gareth said, “There’s always going to be the likes of myself or Maurice to make sure that everything clicks together in a way that actually makes sense.”
Maurice put it even more plainly: “The search engine doesn’t like AI slop. That’s really what the point of our conversation is. You can use AI to help you with your strategy, but if you just depended on AI, you’re not going to get the results you’re looking for.”
And he was quick to remind brands that human writers are still central: “Shout out to all the copywriters and content creators out there because you are very valuable to this process.”
Gareth pointed back to how Google’s stance has evolved: “They updated the Google Webmaster Guidelines and said that anything to do with AI was permissible… But the search engine is increasingly starting to retrofit and retro-penalize brands for using nothing but AI.”
He connected this to older ideas like Author Rank, where content is tied to real people: “What we’re seeing now is extremely important… Whenever you produce a piece of content, make sure that you have your author bio in there.”
At Mod Op, they are actively building AI-powered tools to support content creation, but always with a human in the loop. Gareth said, “There’s always going to be the likes of myself or Maurice to make sure that everything clicks together in a way that actually makes sense.”
Maurice put it even more plainly: “The search engine doesn’t like AI slop. That’s really what the point of our conversation is. You can use AI to help you with your strategy, but if you just depended on AI, you’re not going to get the results you’re looking for.”
And he was quick to remind brands that human writers are still central: “Shout out to all the copywriters and content creators out there because you are very valuable to this process.”
Search is now a team sport: SEO, UX, dev, PR, and paid
One of the biggest shifts Gareth and Maurice are noticing is not in the algorithm, but in how teams work together. Maurice explained that at Mod Op, SEO has long been integrated with other disciplines, something many organizations are only now adopting: “What will change for some search marketers is working more closely with other marketing disciplines like development… like the UX and UI team… to create an experience that not only follows best practices for those disciplines but also incorporates search as the foundation.”
The collaboration could be broken down into the following supporting systems:
1. Development and technical SEO
— Solid information architecture
— Schema markup implementation
— Clean metadata and heading hierarchy
— Proper technical signals for indexation
2. UX/UI and content design
— Thoughtful sitemaps and page organization
— Clear page summaries and headings
— Bullet points, FAQs, and cited sources
— Answer-first content structures
3. Paid media and PR
— Search visibility across organic and paid
— PR-driven brand mentions and citations
— Consistent brand messaging across channels
“It’s no longer just about organic search or paid media or branding,” said Maurice. “It’s all about everybody working together.”
To illustrate this point, Gareth used a powerful military analogy: “It’s like saying that the sum total of the US military is Delta Force… You’re not going to win the war with that. You need the Air Force, you need the Navy, you need the Marines, you need the logistics… What AI is forcing is more of a 360 view.”
The collaboration could be broken down into the following supporting systems:
1. Development and technical SEO
— Solid information architecture
— Schema markup implementation
— Clean metadata and heading hierarchy
— Proper technical signals for indexation
2. UX/UI and content design
— Thoughtful sitemaps and page organization
— Clear page summaries and headings
— Bullet points, FAQs, and cited sources
— Answer-first content structures
3. Paid media and PR
— Search visibility across organic and paid
— PR-driven brand mentions and citations
— Consistent brand messaging across channels
“It’s no longer just about organic search or paid media or branding,” said Maurice. “It’s all about everybody working together.”
To illustrate this point, Gareth used a powerful military analogy: “It’s like saying that the sum total of the US military is Delta Force… You’re not going to win the war with that. You need the Air Force, you need the Navy, you need the Marines, you need the logistics… What AI is forcing is more of a 360 view.”
Technical health still makes or breaks everything
Under all the AI buzz, the unglamorous layer of technical SEO still quietly decides whether your content can even participate in AI and search.
Maurice walked the Martechify team through some of their core tools and use cases:
— Screaming Frog to crawl sites and understand information architecture and indexing issues
— Ahrefs to analyze link profiles, migrations, and potential toxic links
— Semrush for keyword and topic research, rank tracking, and audits
— Airtable to collect, prioritize, and track recommendations
— Internal Mod Op brand agents (their own closed AI system) to surface additional insights
He shared a striking example of how a hidden technical issue stalled an entire SEO program: “We had optimized this site for over a year, and we weren’t seeing any uptick. There happened to be a hidden code that was blocking indexation. Once we were able to resolve that issue, boom—the traffic upped. Then boom—it opened the floodgates.”
For Gareth, that level of detail is non-negotiable: “Details, details, details… It’s all about the details… What is the data telling us? Follow the data.”
Maurice walked the Martechify team through some of their core tools and use cases:
— Screaming Frog to crawl sites and understand information architecture and indexing issues
— Ahrefs to analyze link profiles, migrations, and potential toxic links
— Semrush for keyword and topic research, rank tracking, and audits
— Airtable to collect, prioritize, and track recommendations
— Internal Mod Op brand agents (their own closed AI system) to surface additional insights
He shared a striking example of how a hidden technical issue stalled an entire SEO program: “We had optimized this site for over a year, and we weren’t seeing any uptick. There happened to be a hidden code that was blocking indexation. Once we were able to resolve that issue, boom—the traffic upped. Then boom—it opened the floodgates.”
For Gareth, that level of detail is non-negotiable: “Details, details, details… It’s all about the details… What is the data telling us? Follow the data.”
Toxic links, cloaking, shorteners, and hashtags: What still matters
Some classic SEO risks haven’t gone away. Below are a few examples:
1. Toxic links and negative SEO
Gareth defined toxic links as: “Very low-quality backlinks, very low-quality citations that are clearly there for the manipulation of search engine results… different farms… things that really go against Google Webmaster guidelines.”
Their approach mixes automation with manual review to avoid overusing disavow and accidentally harming legitimate authority.
2. Cloaking and deceptive redirects
Gareth was equally blunt about tactics like cloaking and doorway pages: “Don’t get involved in cloaking anybody.” Past examples (including a major car brand being deindexed) show that search engines still take these violations seriously.
3. URL shorteners
URL shorteners themselves are neutral; what matters is how you use them. For Maurice, “Using URL shorteners that will then redirect to a correct URL path on your website, that’s completely okay; using them for deceptive practices—that’s a problem.”
4. Hashtags on YouTube and social
Are hashtags still worth using? Gareth’s view: “I think it doesn’t do any harm… Hashtags do serve a purpose.” Maurice suggested thinking of them not as magic bullets but rather as relevance signals. He provided an example from the music industry: “I don’t think the days of Soulja Boy going and tagging all of his content as ‘Beyonce’ and driving up his views works anymore. You want to make sure your content is relevant.”
1. Toxic links and negative SEO
Gareth defined toxic links as: “Very low-quality backlinks, very low-quality citations that are clearly there for the manipulation of search engine results… different farms… things that really go against Google Webmaster guidelines.”
Their approach mixes automation with manual review to avoid overusing disavow and accidentally harming legitimate authority.
2. Cloaking and deceptive redirects
Gareth was equally blunt about tactics like cloaking and doorway pages: “Don’t get involved in cloaking anybody.” Past examples (including a major car brand being deindexed) show that search engines still take these violations seriously.
3. URL shorteners
URL shorteners themselves are neutral; what matters is how you use them. For Maurice, “Using URL shorteners that will then redirect to a correct URL path on your website, that’s completely okay; using them for deceptive practices—that’s a problem.”
4. Hashtags on YouTube and social
Are hashtags still worth using? Gareth’s view: “I think it doesn’t do any harm… Hashtags do serve a purpose.” Maurice suggested thinking of them not as magic bullets but rather as relevance signals. He provided an example from the music industry: “I don’t think the days of Soulja Boy going and tagging all of his content as ‘Beyonce’ and driving up his views works anymore. You want to make sure your content is relevant.”
Visual content in an AI era: Original vs. generated
Brands are also experimenting heavily with AI-generated images and video. Does that help or hurt?
Maurice took it back to search fundamentals: “Make sure your alt text is there on your images. Make sure the image file name makes sense. Make sure your video has schema markup… That ecosystem, building on that ecosystem, that’s what raises your rank, not just if it’s AI-generated or human generated.”
For Gareth, visuals are part of the broader authorship and authenticity equation: “There needs to be that connection… your digital footprint.” AI visuals can support storytelling and branding, but they don’t replace the need for authority and real value behind the content.
“If you think that an AI-generated asset is going to rank number one in image search, it’s not… They want essence and they need authority behind it.”
Maurice took it back to search fundamentals: “Make sure your alt text is there on your images. Make sure the image file name makes sense. Make sure your video has schema markup… That ecosystem, building on that ecosystem, that’s what raises your rank, not just if it’s AI-generated or human generated.”
For Gareth, visuals are part of the broader authorship and authenticity equation: “There needs to be that connection… your digital footprint.” AI visuals can support storytelling and branding, but they don’t replace the need for authority and real value behind the content.
“If you think that an AI-generated asset is going to rank number one in image search, it’s not… They want essence and they need authority behind it.”
Beyond rankings: From traffic to true impact
In a world of shrinking organic real estate and AI answers, traffic alone is no longer the signal of success.
Gareth underscored the importance of relevance and outcomes: “If search drives an increase of say 200–300% of focused traffic, but your UX is off or your content doesn’t provide that layer of information that feeds them down into whatever conversion funnel you have, you’re just basically shooting into the wind.”
Maurice added, “People can get you to rank higher in visibility, but is that relevant traffic that’s then leading into a conversion, leading into increased revenue, leading into a new hire, leading into a new subscription? That’s really what it’s all about—having that relevant impact.”
And for Gareth, that means every discipline stepping up and owning business outcomes: “A client comes in and says, ‘This is what I want to do, this is what I want to achieve,’ and you own that business like it’s your own… It’s all about impact for us.”
Gareth underscored the importance of relevance and outcomes: “If search drives an increase of say 200–300% of focused traffic, but your UX is off or your content doesn’t provide that layer of information that feeds them down into whatever conversion funnel you have, you’re just basically shooting into the wind.”
Maurice added, “People can get you to rank higher in visibility, but is that relevant traffic that’s then leading into a conversion, leading into increased revenue, leading into a new hire, leading into a new subscription? That’s really what it’s all about—having that relevant impact.”
And for Gareth, that means every discipline stepping up and owning business outcomes: “A client comes in and says, ‘This is what I want to do, this is what I want to achieve,’ and you own that business like it’s your own… It’s all about impact for us.”
Key takeaways for marketers in 2026 and beyond
If you’re planning your SEO and search experience strategy for the next few years, Gareth and Maurice’s advice can be boiled down to a few priorities:
— Nail the fundamentals like technical health, information architecture, metadata, and crawlability.
— Invest in authentic, answer-first content that solves real problems and reflects real experts.
— Treat search as a team sport across SEO, UX, development, PR, content, and paid media.
— Use AI as a strategist and assistant, not a full content replacement engine.
— Measure impact, not just rankings. Think conversions, revenue, and meaningful engagement.
Ultimately, sustainable SEO success will come from blending solid fundamentals with human expertise, and letting AI amplify, not replace, that foundation.
Because in the generative AI era, the brands that win won’t be the ones who game the system, but the ones who build trust, authority, and genuine usefulness, and let search experience be the layer that connects it all.
— Nail the fundamentals like technical health, information architecture, metadata, and crawlability.
— Invest in authentic, answer-first content that solves real problems and reflects real experts.
— Treat search as a team sport across SEO, UX, development, PR, content, and paid media.
— Use AI as a strategist and assistant, not a full content replacement engine.
— Measure impact, not just rankings. Think conversions, revenue, and meaningful engagement.
Ultimately, sustainable SEO success will come from blending solid fundamentals with human expertise, and letting AI amplify, not replace, that foundation.
Because in the generative AI era, the brands that win won’t be the ones who game the system, but the ones who build trust, authority, and genuine usefulness, and let search experience be the layer that connects it all.
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