HOW YOU GET CITED IN AI OVERVIEWS
Technical SEO, AI Overviews, ChatGPT citations, schema markup, and what is actually changing in search in 2026. Practical and measurable.
→ Read the SEO, AEO & GEO guide first ← Back to all topics
AI Overviews vs AI Mode: The Difference, and What Each Does to Your Traffic
AI Overviews vs AI Mode, clearly separated: what each one is, how each affects your traffic, and what you optimise differently for the two surfaces.
Google AI Mode and SEO in 2026: What Actually Changes (and What Doesn't)
A calm, sourced operator read on Google AI Mode and SEO in 2026: what the Pew data really shows, what is overblown, and what still earns citations.
llms.txt Explained (2026): What It Is, How to Write One, and Whether It Works
What llms.txt is, how to write one, the difference from llms-full.txt and robots.txt, and an honest take on whether AI crawlers actually use it in 2026.
9 AI search keyword research tools compared (2026): ChatGPT, Perplexity, AI Overview coverage
9 tools for AI search keyword research compared on coverage, accuracy, price, and the killer feature each one nails. Honest 2026 review including the free option I built.
X-Robots-Tag vs robots meta tag: when each one tells Google to skip a page
Two ways to noindex a page: the meta robots tag in HTML, or the X-Robots-Tag in the HTTP header. They do the same job and they are not interchangeable. Here is the decision matrix and the defence-in-depth pattern used on this site.
301 vs 302 vs 307 vs 308: the redirect code decision matrix for SEO migrations
Four HTTP redirect codes, four different behaviours. Pick wrong on a migration and you lose 20-40% of organic traffic in the first 60 days. Here is the decision matrix and how to verify the right code is shipping.
410 vs 404 status codes for SEO: when each tells Googlebot something different
Google treats 404 and 410 differently. 404 keeps URLs in the index for months; 410 drops them in days. Picking the right code shaves weeks off any migration cleanup with thousands of retired URLs.
AEO vs GEO vs traditional SEO keyword research: what actually changes when AI engines do the answering
Three names -- AEO, GEO, AI search optimisation -- for one new discipline. The honest comparison against traditional SEO keyword research, term by term.
How to do AI search keyword research: the 7-step playbook for 2026
Concrete 7-step workflow for AI search keyword research in 2026. Free tools, paid tools, the order they go in, and the output that informs real content briefs.
AI search keyword research in 2026: what it is, why traditional SEO research no longer fits
Traditional keyword research optimises for blue links. AI search optimises for being cited inside the answer. The methodology, the tools, and the gap between them in 2026.
How I use Claude Code for technical SEO audits in 2026
A 6x faster SEO audit workflow built on Claude Code with a real MCP stack: Puppeteer + Filesystem + Postgres + Lighthouse. The exact prompt, the five phases, what AI still cannot do here.
Best SERP Tracking Tools in 2026: 10 Ranked, AI Search Included
After running organic for HostList.io and across Seahawk Media client engagements, here is the SERP tracking stack I would actually pay for in 2026 -- Google blue links, AI Overviews, and ChatGPT search included.
LSI keywords in 2026: what they are, what they are not, what actually matters
LSI keywords are a partly-mythological SEO concept Google has explicitly said it does not use for ranking. What people actually mean when they say it, why the concept persists, and what to do instead.
How much do SEO agencies charge in 2026
SEO agencies charge 500 to 100K USD per month in 2026. Real ranges by tier, what drives cost up, hidden costs proposals skip, how to spot overcharging.
What do SEO agencies actually do in 2026
SEO agencies do four kinds of work: technical SEO, content SEO, authority building, and reporting. The full operator view of what good agencies deliver and what theatre to avoid.
How I Run a Technical SEO Audit With Screaming Frog & GSC
I've audited thousands of sites and I still come back to the same two tools every single time. Here's my exact process -- no agencies, no $500/month platforms, no fluff.
How to Build a Redirect Map for a 20,000-URL Site Migration
Migrating a 20,000-URL site without a solid redirect map is how you hand Google a reason to tank your rankings overnight. Here's the exact process I use, tooling, triage, and all the bits most guides skip.
Enterprise SEO Audit: What to Demand From Any Agency
Most enterprise SEO audits are glorified PDF exports from Semrush with a price tag attached. Here's what a real audit looks like -- and how to demand it before you sign anything.
Headless CMS SEO: When SSR Hurts and How to Fix It
Everyone said "go headless, SSR will sort your SEO." Three years and dozens of broken crawls later, here's what they didn't tell you -- and how to actually fix it.
Shopify to Headless Migration Without Killing SEO
Headless Shopify promises speed and flexibility -- but a botched migration can wipe out years of organic rankings in weeks. Here's how to move without losing what you've built.
Crawl Budget on Large Sites: Indexing 91,000 Pages
After spending months wrestling Googlebot through 91,000 pages on a single site, I picked up lessons no documentation prepares you for. Here's exactly what broke, what I fixed, and what I'd do differently.
Schema Markup at Scale: JSON-LD for 91,000 Pages
Generating schema markup for 91,000 pages isn't a plugin problem -- it's an architecture problem. Here's exactly how we solved it at Seahawk, and what broke along the way.
JavaScript SEO in 2026: When SSR Wins and Where It Hurts
Googlebot can render JavaScript now -- sort of. But "sort of" is doing a lot of heavy lifting in that sentence. Here's what actually matters for JavaScript SEO in 2026, and when SSR is the wrong answer.
Log File Analysis for Crawl Budget on 50K-Page Sites
On a 50,000-page site, Googlebot doesn't read every page -- and your server logs will tell you exactly which pages it's wasting time on. Here's how to actually fix that.
What Technical SEO Services Actually Cost in 2026
Everyone quotes you a number. Nobody explains what's inside it. Here's a frank breakdown of what technical SEO actually costs in 2026 -- audits, retainers, tools, and where agencies quietly pad the bill.
My Site Migration SEO Checklist for 20,000-Page Sites
I've migrated sites with 20,000+ pages and watched rankings crater because someone skipped a redirect audit. Here's the exact checklist I use at Seahawk -- before, during, and after the switch.
Technical SEO Audit Checklist for Sites Over 10,000 Pages
Auditing a 10,000-page site isn't just a bigger version of auditing a 50-page site. The failure modes are completely different. Here's the checklist I actually use at Seahawk Media.
AEO and GEO in 2026: a practical playbook with Tavily, Winston, and schema
Most SEO advice for AI search is still vague. This is the working playbook we use to get cited by ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Google AI Overviews -- Tavily for research, Winston for verification, schema for structure.