SEO changed overnight. Backlinks died. Brand authority won. Here are 15 strategies to exploit the shift right now.

​​If having trouble with any links, you can read the online version here​

Hey Guys,

There's a massive shift happening in marketing right now, and most people are too busy looking at their 2015 playbooks to notice.

We used to think that the person with the most backlinks won. We thought ranking was just about keywords. But there's a new "gatekeeper" in town—one that doesn't care how many links you bought, but cares deeply about who's talking about you.

A small group of marketers has figured out how to manipulate this new reality. They're turning "boring" businesses into millions, ranking hundreds of pages overnight, and getting ChatGPT to recommend their product over the competition.

If you aren't using "Parasite Properties" or "Query Fan-out" strategies yet, you're fighting a war with sticks and stones against laser-guided missiles.

Here's the new playbook.

➡️ Your Complete Implementation Guide

Before we dive into today's curated content, I've created something special for you. Every single video in this newsletter now includes:

✅ 4-Paragraph Executive Summary - Get the core strategy without watching the full video

✅ 25 Key Takeaways - Actionable insights you can implement immediately

✅ Step-by-Step Checklists - Copy-paste implementation guides for each strategy

This isn't just information - it's a complete action plan. Grab the full implementation package here: CLICK HERE​

No more "I'll watch this later" excuses. You've got everything you need to execute right now.

TL;DR – The Fast Track

• SEO is changing: Brand mentions are now 3x more important than backlinks
• The "Exit" Trap: Why saying "No" to a $1M buyout might be the smartest move you make
• Local SEO hack: You can rank for hundreds of cities using "Programmatic SEO" templates
• Free Traffic: Reddit is the best place to get customers today (if you don't act like a salesperson)
• Money Makers: "Boring" niches (like printer ink) often make more than "sexy" tech startups

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​If the video doesn't open, click here to watch on YouTube​

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1. Stop Chasing Backlinks. Do This Instead.

Video:The Backlink Arms Race Is Over​
​Difficulty: Intermediate

If you're still building links like it's 2015, you're wasting money. Google's AI and LLMs (Large Language Models) have moved to a "Brand Authority" model. This video breaks down the "Sphere of Relevance" framework and why getting your brand mentioned (even without a link) is the new currency of SEO.

What You'll Learn:

• Why 80% of SEOs believe unlinked mentions now directly impact rankings
• The "Zero-Click" Reality: How to get recommended by AI when users never visit a website
• The "Proactive Hunt" Strategy: How to pitch data-driven stories to journalists to get massive authority

2. The "Concept" Hack for AI Rankings

Video:The AI Keyword Research Hack That Works​
​Difficulty: Beginner

Traditional keyword research tools tell you volume, but they don't tell you intent. AI search engines look for "concepts," not just keywords. This tutorial shows you how to use a "People Also Ask" extractor to build a content map that dominates AI search results.

What You'll Learn:

• The Workflow: How to turn one keyword into a flowchart of 20+ article ideas using free tools
• The Prompt: A copy-paste ChatGPT prompt to filter your research into a perfect content plan
• The Fix: Why you should stop writing for keywords and start writing for "problem concepts"

3. How to Steal Customers from Reddit (Without Getting Banned)

Video:How to Market Your SaaS on Reddit​
​Difficulty: Beginner/Intermediate

Reddit hates marketers. But if you know how to "aggressive market" correctly, it's the fastest way to get users. This guide shows you exactly how to comment, post, and recommend your product so it looks like a natural endorsement, not a spammy ad.

What You'll Learn:

• The "Software Recommendation" Comment: How to pitch your product alongside competitors to build trust
• The 2-Step Reply: A sneaky tactic to get upvotes before dropping your link
• Finding Your Crowd: How to use Reddit's ad tools to find hidden communities full of buyers

4. Boring Products that Print Money

Video:7 BORING Ecommerce Niches Quietly Making Millions​
​Difficulty: Beginner

Stop trying to invent the next iPhone. The real money is in "boring," unsexy products that people need urgently. From funeral urns to HVAC parts, this video analyzes seven businesses making millions because they solve immediate, high-pain problems.

What You'll Learn:

• The "Urgency" Factor: Why selling replacement parts is better than selling trendy gadgets
• The "Door-Knocking" Billionaire: How one founder built a $15M/year business just by visiting construction sites
• The Pattern: How to spot a profitable niche by looking for forum complaints (like the Jeep tweeter guy)

5. Walking Away from a $1,000,000 Check

Video:I turned down a $1,000,000 offer for my startup​
​Difficulty: Intermediate (Business Strategy)

Why would a lean, two-person team say no to a cool million dollars? This video takes you inside the M&A process, revealing the traps that founders fall into when competitors come knocking.

What You'll Learn:

• The Distraction Trap: How the acquisition process steals focus from day-to-day operations
• Valuation vs. Strategy: Why "multiples" don't matter if a buyer needs you for strategic reasons
• The Red Flag: How to spot if a buyer is just "fishing" for data or trying to buy you at a discount

6. Automating Local Domination (Programmatic SEO)

Video:How I Use Programmatic SEO to Launch 100s of Pages Fast​
​Difficulty: Advanced

Most local businesses build 10 pages and stop. This strategy shows you how to build 100+ pages (e.g., "Locksmith in Manchester," "Locksmith in Liverpool") in an afternoon using a database and a WordPress plugin.

What You'll Learn:

• The Tech Stack: The exact free tools (MPG, Google Sheets) needed to clone your best landing page 100 times
• The Database: How to format your spreadsheet so every page looks unique and local
• The Lead Capture: Integrating forms that track exactly which city page the customer came from

7. The 5 AI Prompts that Rank Local Businesses #1

Video:I Ranked 200+ Businesses #1 Using 5 AI Prompts​
​Difficulty: Intermediate

If your Google Business Profile says one thing and your website says another, you won't rank. This masterclass gives you the exact ChatGPT prompts to align your "entities" and skyrocket your local map pack rankings.

What You'll Learn:

• The "Mismatch" Killer: Why 60% of local businesses fail to rank (it's a Title Tag issue)
• The Service Silo: How to turn a 5-service GMB profile into a 25-page authority website in one weekend
• The "Link Finder" Prompt: A prompt that finds every sponsorship and chamber of commerce opportunity in your city in 5 minutes

8. Optimizing for "Answer Engines" (AEO)

Video:What Is AEO? How to Get Your Brand Found in AI Search​
​Difficulty: Intermediate

Is ChatGPT traffic going to overtake Google? Maybe. This discussion between HubSpot and SEO pros explains "Answer Engine Optimization" (AEO)—how to structure your content so robots (LLMs) can read it and recommend you.

What You'll Learn:

• The Pricing Hack: Why putting your pricing in plain HTML (not JavaScript) can triple your AI visibility
• The "Raffle Ticket" Strategy: Why you need the same statistic mentioned across multiple sites to create "consensus"
• Don't Bury the Lead: Why the "Answer First" format is critical for being cited by AI

9. Ranking on ChatGPT (The Masterclass)

Video:How To Rank Your Website On ChatGPT​
​Difficulty: Intermediate

ChatGPT now searches the web in real-time. If you want to be the source it cites, you need "Entity Clarity." This video breaks down the specific ranking factors for AI search, which are different from Google's traditional factors.

What You'll Learn:

• The BLUF Method: "Bottom Line Up Front"—why you must answer the user's question in the first paragraph
• The "Citation" Trust Signal: Why having your brand on Wikipedia and Reddit is more important than ever
• Technical Checklist: How to update your robots.txt to welcome AI crawlers instead of blocking them

10. The "Query Fan-Out" SEO Update

Video:The Google Update That's Changing SEO​
​Difficulty: Advanced

Google is quietly changing how it handles commercial queries. They're using "AI Overviews" to push products directly in the search results. This video explains "Query Fan-Out"—how AI breaks a complex question into small sub-queries and how you can rank for them.

What You'll Learn:

• Targeting Listicles: Why getting on "Best X for Y" lists is the shortcut to showing up in AI results
• Brand Radar: How to use SEO tools to find the exact pages feeding the AI's answers
• The Trust Gap: How AI Overviews remove "analysis paralysis" and drive higher conversion rates

11. AI Website Builders: The Honest Truth

Video:I Tried 20 AI Website Builders — Honest Results​
​Difficulty: Beginner

Thinking of using AI to build your site? Watch this first. After testing 20 tools, the verdict is clear: most of them are marketing hype. This review saves you hours of frustration by showing which tools actually work and which produce "creepy" or broken results.

What You'll Learn:

• The "Template" Problem: Why AI sites all look the same (everyone gets "Elevate Your Game" as a headline)
• The Editor Nightmare: Why using a chat prompt to move an image is 10x slower than drag-and-drop
• The Recommendation: Which tools (like Replit or Base44) show promise, and when to stick with Squarespace

12. How to Audit Your AI Visibility

Video:How To Do an AI Search Optimisation Audit​
​Difficulty: Intermediate/Advanced

You can't fix what you can't measure. This guide shows you how to use Semrush's new tools to see exactly what AI thinks of your brand—including your "Sentiment Score."

What You'll Learn:

• Sentiment Analysis: Is the AI telling users your product is "overpriced"? Here's how to find out and fix it
• Share of Voice: How to compare your AI visibility directly against your competitors
• The Fix: How to change the narrative drivers so AI starts recommending you as the "market leader"

13. Profitable AI Businesses for 2026

Video:The 6 Most Profitable AI Businesses to Start in 2026​
​Difficulty: Beginner (Business Idea Phase)

If you're looking for a business model, not just a marketing tactic, this video outlines six high-growth areas. These aren't "get rich quick" schemes, but B2B services that big companies are desperate to pay for.

What You'll Learn:

• The "Compliance" Goldmine: Helping companies navigate new AI laws (EU AI Act)
• AI Lead Gen Agencies: Trading dollars for more dollars by automating outreach
• Cyber Security: Why "Deepfake Defense" is about to be a billion-dollar industry

14. The Dark Truth About SEO Scaling

Video:From Google Wiping Out My Entire Business to Scaling 1,000+ Sites​
​Difficulty: Advanced (Podcast)

A veteran SEO reveals how he lost everything in 2012 and how history is repeating itself with AI spam today. He shares the "safe" way to scale using "Parasite SEO" and building genuine assets rather than churn-and-burn sites.

What You'll Learn:

• The "Parasite" Strategy: How to rank Medium articles and Reddit threads instead of your own weak domain
• Don't Force It: Why you shouldn't try to rank low-authority sites for hard keywords (do this instead)
• The 301 Redirect Warning: Why buying domains just for redirects is a ticking time bomb

15. The "Self-Plug" Listicle Strategy

Video:The Shockingly Easy Way to Rank: Listicle Self-Plugs​
​Difficulty: Intermediate (Podcast)

Can you really just write a "Top 10" list, put yourself at #1, and fool the AI? According to recent data discussed here, yes—for now. This conversation covers the "Wild West" of AI search and why it's currently easy to manipulate.

What You'll Learn:

• The "Product Manager" SEO: Why SEOs need to start thinking about product funnels, not just traffic
• Medium as a Weapon: How to use Medium profiles to rank for "Alternative to [Competitor]" keywords in days without backlinks
• The LinkedIn Hack: Why you should be treating LinkedIn comments as a lead-generation database

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🚨 URGENT: Is ChatGPT Recommending Your Competitors Instead of You?

I started to build out some free tools to use as lead magnets.

Here's the first one.

​Inspired by Matt Diggity post a few days ago.

Here's a snippet from Matt's post…

"Most businesses accidentally block AI bots without realizing it.

Check your robots.txt file right now. Make sure you're not blocking ChatGPTbot or OAI-SearchBot.

Many security tools started automatically blocking these in July 2025. Your site could be invisible to AI without you knowing."

Free tool i built

🤖 AI Bot Checker - Free Tool

👉 https://aibotchecker.site​

What it does:

* Scans your robots.txt

* Checks 35+ AI crawlers

* Shows what's blocked vs. allowed

* Tells you EXACTLY how to fix it

The results? Eye-opening.

Big brands ARE accidentally blocking AI.

Meanwhile, competitors who allow it are getting all the AI traffic

This is lead gen gold for anyone in:

- Local services

- B2B SaaS

- E-commerce

- Professional services

Try it + let me know what you find 👇

(P.S. This is the first of several free marketing tools I'm building. Keep an eye on the newsletter, we will add a new one weekly,
or join the WhatsApp group for a free Daily Tool for the next 30 days!)

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Want the Unfair Advantage?

If you're serious about staying ahead of the curve (instead of constantly playing catch-up), you need more than just intel. You need:

• ​The Social Listening System​ that finds these opportunities before they hit mainstream it's Free!
• ​​TubeScraper LITE​ which you can use to gather content daily for the social listening system, it's free too!
• ​​Viral Content Pilot​ turn any link into traffic-generating machines. Free LITE version!
• ​​The 4-Step Email Sequence​ that converts cold leads into buyers while you sleep. This works! (Free GPT)
• ​​ConverKit Free Newsletter Plan​ (Up to 10,000 subscribers)
• ​​Access to our private community​ where the real strategies get shared first

The marketers making serious money aren't just reading about these strategies – they're implementing them with proven systems that actually work.

Your Next Move: Turn Information Into Action

Look, I know what happens with most newsletters. You save them to read later, bookmark a few videos, and then... nothing. The strategies stay theoretical while your competitors are executing.

Here's my challenge to you: Pick ONE strategy from this newsletter. Just one. Use the implementation checklist to execute it today. Don't try to do everything—speed of execution beats perfect planning every single time.

The marketers who win aren't the ones who know the most strategies. They're the ones who execute the fastest. While everyone else is still "learning," you can already be testing, getting feedback, and iterating.

Information without action is just entertainment. You've got the complete action plan now—what you do with it is up to you.

Talk soon,

- Tony