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Daily SEO Brief

Tuesday, January 13, 2026

7 articles published

Final brief

What You Need to Know

On January 13, 2026, SEO professionals are urged to adapt to the evolving landscape shaped by AI's influence on search results and marketing strategies. Articles highlight the importance of addressing misinformation in AI-generated content, adopting effective link-building strategies, and understanding the challenges of AI's probabilistic nature to protect brand reputation and optimize visibility.

Must-Read Highlights

1

Brands should monitor Google's AI Overviews for inaccurate representations of their reputation and respond to misinformation promptly.

How brands can respond to misleading Google AI Overviews
2

Creating long-form content that tackles multiple related questions is crucial as SEO professionals adjust to how AI understands and ranks content.

Google Downplays GEO – But Let’s Talk About Garbage AI SERPs
3

In the AI SEO era, selecting a link building agency should prioritize those that emphasize relevance, authority, and a content-driven strategy.

How to choose a link building agency in the AI SEO era
4

An analysis reveals that while Core Web Vitals (CWV) don’t significantly improve AI search rankings, poor CWV can harm user trust and engagement.

What 107,000 pages reveal about Core Web Vitals and AI search
5

Marketers must align automated processes with strategic objectives and ensure regular human review of AI-driven decisions to close the insight gap.

Search Marketing’s Insight Gap: When Automation Replaces Understanding

All Articles from This Day

How brands can respond to misleading Google AI Overviews
SEL
Jan 13, 2026•Anthony Will
High Importance

How brands can respond to misleading Google AI Overviews

AI Analysis
  • ●Google's AI Overviews often prioritize content from forums like Reddit and Quora, which can lead to inaccuracies and amplification of negative opinions.
  • ●Brands and ORM professionals should monitor these AI summaries and respond effectively to misinformation that might impact public perception.
  • ●A notable trend is the resurfacing of outdated threads, which can present resolved issues as current problems, thus affecting brand reputation.
Why it matters: The article addresses emerging challenges in ORM due to Google's AI Overviews, which can significantly impact brand perception and requires immediate attention from SEO professionals.
AI OverviewsOnline Reputation ManagementSEO StrategiesGoogle SearchContent Accuracy
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Google Downplays GEO – But Let’s Talk About Garbage AI SERPs via @sejournal, @martinibuster
SEJ
Jan 13, 2026•Roger Montti
High Importance

Google Downplays GEO – But Let’s Talk About Garbage AI SERPs via @sejournal, @martinibuster

AI Analysis
  • ●SEO professionals should refrain from breaking content into bite-sized chunks for AI, as this approach does not align with how Google's systems understand and rank content.
  • ●Focus on creating long-form content that addresses multiple related questions beyond the initial query, which aligns with the evolving nature of search engines.
  • ●Consider the implications of query fan-out on search referrals, as multiple pages may rank for a single query, impacting traffic to individual sites.
Why it matters: The insights on avoiding content chunking in favor of human-centric writing reflect significant shifts in SEO strategy amidst evolving search algorithms.
SEOAI in SearchContent StrategyLongform ContentQuery Fan-out
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How to choose a link building agency in the AI SEO era by uSERP
SEL
Jan 13, 2026•USERP
High Importance

How to choose a link building agency in the AI SEO era by uSERP

AI Analysis
  • ●Link building practices are evolving due to the increasing influence of AI in search engine visibility and rankings.
  • ●Choosing a link building agency should focus on their understanding of relevance, authority, and their ability to provide traffic guarantees to ensure effective link-building strategies.
  • ●A content-driven approach is vital; agencies that produce linkable assets like studies and expert commentary are more likely to succeed in securing valuable links.
Why it matters: This article provides important insights into adapting link building strategies for an AI-driven SEO landscape, which is crucial as SEO professionals navigate changes in search engine algorithms.
link buildingAI SEOagency selectiondigital PRsearch engine optimization
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2026 Guide To Hiring A Link Building Agency In The AI Search Era via @sejournal, @jmoserr
SEJ
Jan 13, 2026•Jeremy Moser
High Importance

2026 Guide To Hiring A Link Building Agency In The AI Search Era via @sejournal, @jmoserr

AI Analysis
  • ●Link building strategies have drastically changed, focusing now on quality and relevance instead of just domain authority or ratings.
  • ●Agencies need to track both search engine rankings and AI visibility to ensure that links validate expertise and drive revenue.
  • ●Focusing on content-driven strategies, including digital PR and original research, is essential for acquiring natural backlinks.
Why it matters: The article discusses significant shifts in link-building strategies that could impact SEO professionals' effectiveness in the evolving landscape influenced by AI.
Link BuildingSEO StrategiesAI in SEOContent MarketingDigital PR
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How Much Can We Influence AI Responses? via @sejournal, @Kevin_Indig
SEJ
Jan 13, 2026•Kevin Indig
High Importance

How Much Can We Influence AI Responses? via @sejournal, @Kevin_Indig

AI Analysis
  • ●LLM outputs are inherently probabilistic, making consistent influence over AI answers challenging for SEO professionals.
  • ●A new research paper from Columbia University reveals methods to manipulate AI visibility effectively, illustrating varying results based on content optimization strategies.
  • ●The rapid evolution and complexity of AI models necessitate continuous adaptation of SEO tactics, reminiscent of previous challenges faced during Google's algorithm changes.
Why it matters: The article discusses recent research on AI visibility and highlights challenges in influencing LLM outputs, making it essential for SEO professionals navigating the evolving landscape.
AI SEOLLM ImpactContent OptimizationSearch Engine TrendsSEO Research
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What 107,000 pages reveal about Core Web Vitals and AI search
SEL
Jan 13, 2026•Dan Taylor
High Importance

What 107,000 pages reveal about Core Web Vitals and AI search

AI Analysis
  • ●An analysis of over 107,000 pages reveals that Core Web Vitals (CWV) do not significantly enhance AI search rankings, but poor CWV can adversely affect trust and engagement.
  • ●The study emphasizes the importance of evaluating CWV distributions rather than relying solely on average scores, as individual pages matter more in AI contexts.
  • ●Correlation between CWV and AI visibility is minimal, indicating that simply optimizing CWV does not guarantee increased visibility in AI search systems.
Why it matters: The article provides critical insights into how Core Web Vitals relate to AI visibility, especially challenging existing assumptions that could impact SEO professionals' strategies.
Core Web VitalsAI SearchSEO AnalysisUser ExperienceRanking Factors
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Search Marketing’s Insight Gap: When Automation Replaces Understanding via @sejournal, @coreydmorris
SEJ
Jan 13, 2026•Corey Morris
Good to Know

Search Marketing’s Insight Gap: When Automation Replaces Understanding via @sejournal, @coreydmorris

AI Analysis
  • ●Reinforce marketing strategy by ensuring that automated processes are aligned with documented objectives to avoid merely executing tasks without purpose.
  • ●Implement regular human reviews of AI-driven decisions to bridge the 'insights gap' and ensure that teams understand the reasons behind performance changes.
  • ●Enhance team capabilities to interpret search data rather than just monitoring it, ensuring that marketing efforts are strategically informed by insights.
Why it matters: While the article discusses relevant insights into automation and strategy in SEO, it doesn’t address any critical updates or changes to search engines or tech tools that demand immediate attention.
SEOAutomationSearch MarketingData InterpretationAI in Marketing
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