SEO is a staple for any marketing campaign and since AI is a new thing (or still a buzzing thing), programmatic SEO has become an additional buzzword that many marketers and businesses are ready to explore. Programmatic SEO is an SEO strategy that pushes automation and technology to create and optimize a ton of web pages at one time in hopes to rank for multiple keywords per updated page. This method allows for the rapid expansion of content, potentially driving substantial traffic growth in a short period.
An example that sticks out is Perplexity. The platform has seen an increase in organic traffic, up by 14.9 million visits in the last 30 days. Impressive numbers, right? To cap it off, it showcases just how effective programmatic SEO can be. However, as most things of this nature, it could just be too good to be true. The success story of Perplexity illustrates the allure of programmatic SEO: massive traffic gains, increased visibility, and a surge in potential leads and conversions.
If you’ve been in the marketing world for a few years, or heck, even 25 some years, you’ll get the same feedback: short term hacks and rapid growth strategies were once the go-to methods. Now, the immediate results mindset is something hard to reset and it’s hard to resist when competition continues to scale.
However, these shortcuts suck in the long-run. While programmatic SEO can deliver great results, it usually fails to sustain its effectiveness down the road. Those who rely on these tactics will find themselves punching the mirror later on. If they had opted for more sustainable, organic growth strategies from the beginning, their enterprises might have been significantly larger and more robust today.
With programmatic SEO being implemented, one of the issues is over-reliance on automation. Yes, automation can handle large-scale content creation, keyword research, and optimization, but it lacks the understanding of user intents and content quality that manual effort provides. Google continues to update their search engine in order to push quality content, relevant content, and just better content to the top of the search engine. Automated content that focuses on keyword stuffing and garbage optimization is most likely to be penalized. For now, the traffic looks sexy. Later on, your rankings will tank…
It sounds like a broken record of “cautionary tales” which highlights the current landscape of SEO in terms of what the future looks like. The takeaway should be that there is the most value in the “slow and steady” approach. Even if it takes longer to see results, generate revenue, and drive more traffic, this strategy sets a solid foundation for enduring success. When you’re implementing, I don’t know, normal (?) strategies, you focus on creating high-quality content, user-centric content that adheres to search engine guidelines. This approach not only ensures long-term visibility but also builds trust and authority in the eyes of both search engines and users.
AI continues to seep into the buzz. Programmatic SEO can seem like an enticing shortcut, powered by AI, when it comes to SEO. However, it’s very important to consider the long-term impacts. A more thorough approach not only ensures compliance for search engines but builds a scalable, organic online presence. As the saying goes, "Good things come to those who wait," and in the world of SEO, patience and perseverance are often the keys to lasting success.