Hey Reader,
This week is packed with things like:
Thank you to this week's WTSNewsletter sponsors: Croatia Summit, KRM Digital ,ICS-digital & withFrontier
Let's get started =)
Brilliant work by our brilliant members
1) Aleyda Solis - The 10 Key Characteristics of AI Search Winning Brands
2) Bengu Sarica Dincer -Reporting Uncertainty Without Losing Credibility
3) Celeste Gonzalez - How to build FAQs that power AI-driven local search
4) Katarina Dahlin - A Guide to Off-Page LLM Optimization
5) Oshen Davidson - How Commercial Content Earns Citations in AI Search
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For future editions, if you’d like to recommend any articles (and yes, you can totally recommend your own work!), fill out this form:
WTS Exclusive: 30% Off Croatia SEO Summit
[Headline Sponsor: Croatia Summit]
Here's one for the WTS community: Croatia SEO Summit is offering 30% off all ticket tiers, exclusively for WTS members.
Join 20 speakers - including WTS members Amanda King, Lily Ray, & Nikki Parsons - for two days of workshops, masterminds, and talks on the Adriatic coast in Šibenik.
With the WTS coupon:
- White Hat costs
€330 €230 for lectures, party, lunch & networking.
- Gray Hat costs
€500 €350 and adds workshops and masterminds.
- Black Hat VIP costs
€1275 €890 and includes reserved seats, a private speaker dinner, and a boat tour.
June 11-12, 2026. Come and enjoy the sea, sun and SEO.
30% off discount code: WTSEO331
Share your message with 8,500+ SEOs & Marketers -
Transparent pricing & details
Our latest WTSKnowledge
A practical app store optimisation playbook by Nourhan Gamal, showing how Custom Product Pages (CPPs) & Custom Store Listings (CSLs) turn generic app store experiences into high-converting, intent-driven journeys.
Learn how to:
- Match store pages to intent & campaigns
- Personalise with CPPs (Apple) & CSLs (Google Play)
- Align with ads to boost CVR & lower CPI
- Segment audiences for relevance
- Track CVR, retention & cost
Users decide fast and not all of them are looking for the same thing. Sending everyone to one static page means missed conversions.
By matching store content to what users actually care about in that moment, you reduce friction, increase installs, and make your acquisition strategy far more efficient.
Master GA4 Without the Headache: Your Shortcut to Actionable Analytics
[Spotlight Sponsor: KRM Digital]
GA4 doesn't have to be a time-sink.
For most SEOs & marketers - the struggle is how to build custom explorations, fix attribution gaps, & automate reporting without losing half a day.
This GA4 course is built for those who already use the platform but know they aren’t using it to its full potential.
This is a deep dive into the high-value features: server-side tracking nuances, advanced segmentations, & turning raw data into boardroom-ready insights.
Created by Kyle Rushton McGregor, who has spent 5 years auditing complex setups for massive organisations. He cuts out the basics and focuses on the technical insights that actually make a difference.
Level up your reporting:
- Advanced Explorations: Go beyond standard reports to find hidden "why" behind the traffic.
- Accuracy Audits: Identify and fix the tracking gaps that ruin your conversion data.
- Pro-Level Efficiency: Learn the shortcuts that save hours of manual data digging.
Share your message with 8,500+ SEOs & Marketers -
Transparent pricing & details
See you soon, Rose City 🌹!
WTSFest Portland is just around the corner, and we’re so excited to see our community for our second edition in Rose City 🌹!
Join hundreds of marketers, SEOs, & community-minded friends for 10 brilliant talks by 10 inspiring speakers — all designed to help you learn, belong, & grow.
📍Portland | May 7th, 2026
Building Community as Marketing Infrastructure in the AI Era
Visibility resets. Trust is you durable advantage in the AI era.
As content production & visibility becomes a commodity, we're seeing people shifting back to people as their trustworthy source of information.
Areej AbuAli takes you through this shift and how to approach community intentionally, exploring:
- Community as marketing infrastructure & an owned ecosystem
- Her simple community framework: Launch, Grow, Scale
- The opportunity community holds for your brand
Your WTSFest conference countdowns
We'd love to see YOU at one of our upcoming full-day marketing events!
⏳ 29 days - Portland on May 7th, 2026
🎟️ 10 Final call tickets remaining!
⏳ 176 days - Philadelphia on October 1st, 2026
🎟️ 4 early bird tix ($399) before standard tix ($499)
⏳ 345 days - London on March 19th, 2027
🎟️ 19 super early bird tix (£299) before early bird tix (£399)
🎥 2026 On-demand Insights - From AI Search to Real Influence & Trust
🎟️ £99 for all 10 talks
Use our Dear Boss template to request budget to attend!
Content Marketing & Technical SEO
[WTSPartner Feature: ICS-digital]
We love seeing WTSPartners team up!
Martin Calvert of ICS-digital is joined by the brilliant Danielle Escaro of Oncrawl to discuss 2026 technology content strategy.
They discuss:
- Working with external contributors
- The enduring value of blog content
- Tackling "audience amnesia"
- The role of community and authenticity in content marketing
It's a thoughtful listen packed with insights you can take back to your own content strategy and execution.
🌊 WTS x brightonSEO UK April 2026
We’re heading back to brightonSEO, and we couldn’t be more excited!
The full WTS team will be there across both days, alongside a huge lineup of WTS members taking the stage (including our very own Areej & Erin!).
From AI search and content strategy to trust, community, and the future of SEO, our community is seriously showing up.
Come find us:
👋🏽 Visit the WTS stand (First Floor, outside 2Bar)
📸 Snap a selfie with our banner for a chance to win a WTSFest London ticket
🍹 Join our Meet & Greet Drinks (Thu, 5:45-7pm - no ticket needed!)
💬 Connect via our dedicated Slack channel before & during the event
Whether you’re attending solo or with your team, we’d love to meet you - come say hi and support your fellow WTS members 🫂
[WTSNewsletter Series] Improving AI Visibility for local businesses through sponsorships
Series Author: Ellen Sartin
Ellen is the Client Success & Growth Manager at ZipSprout.
A research-driven Local SEO nerd with over 12 years of experience in marketing and business development, and a background in applied statistics and data analysis, Ellen explores how community partnerships between brands and nonprofit organizations drive real local visibility and engagement - and how AI is shaping Local SEO.
Missed Part 1? Check it out here!
Part 2: Why Local Trust Signals Matter in AI Search
Unlike traditional search engines, AI search is powered by Large Language Models (LLMs) which don’t have access to many of the traditional SEO metrics.
So, what do AI search tools look for? Trust.
Trust shows up as a cluster of signals that make your business easy for AI to understand and verify across the web. These signals include:
- Consistent NAP data across key listings and relevant sites
- Machine-readable information on your site that the models can read (i.e. text, not images or graphics)
- Real local activity that reflects participation in the community
- Community involvement through support for local causes (hint-hint: sponsorships!)
- Clear online connections that link the entities together in a way AI models can read and understand, including how you represent sponsorships on your own site
This explains why local and contextual relevance often outweigh general site authority for AI search. A small number of strong, locally relevant mentions, can matter more than numerous high authority links with no geographic or community connection.
All this means that if a business lacks sufficient contextual and entity-level signals, it’s less likely to be surfaced in AI summaries or responses.
Sponsorships Can Help Bridge This Gap
The big takeaway?
As we mentioned in part one of this series, even though our survey data shows businesses care about visibility, many don’t engage in sponsorship activity in ways that strengthen these trust signals.
This is a major opportunity. Investing in local sponsorships can help bridge the gap to strengthen trust signals and lead to improved visibility and long-term growth.
In next week's Part 3 of “Improving AI Visibility for Local Businesses Through Sponsorships”, I will explore the power of long-term, meaningful sponsorship activity with local organizations.
Job openings in SEO & marketing across the world!
[WTSNewsletter Job Sponsor: withFrontier]
🇬🇧 Senior Technical SEO Consultant
Salary: Up to £90,000
Location: Fully remote (UK)
Details:
→ Deep technical SEO across large, complex sites
→ Strong stakeholder management at C-suite level
→ Solve complex challenges (logs, JavaScript, advanced SEO)
🇬🇧 Technical SEO Consultant (AI Search SaaS)
Salary: £75,000-£100,000 + equity
Location: London (5 days/week)
Details:
→ Work across SEO, AEO, and GEO in an AI-first environment
→ Hands-on role shaping AI search visibility
→ Partner with founders and product teams
🇬🇧 SEO Manager (Luxury Outdoor Brand)
Salary: £45,000-£52,000 + perks
Location: London (2 days/week)
Details:
→ First SEO hire with full ownership of strategy
→ Manage agency and support delivery
→ Connect SEO to commercial performance
🇺🇸 SEO Director (Regulated Industries)
Salary: $130,000-$135,000
Location: Remote (US)
Details:
→ Lead SEO pod with full P&L ownership
→ Own strategy while staying hands-on
→ Work across regulated sectors
🇦🇺 Senior SEO Manager (Agency)
Salary: $150,000 + perks
Location: Sydney (Australia)
Details:
→ Lead and grow a high-performing SEO team
→ Focus on AEO, GEO, and Digital PR
→ Drive commercial impact with founders
If you've made it this far, thank YOU!
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Our goal is to amplify all the brilliant folks of marginalised genders in our industry - so the more people who subscribe, the more amplification!
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- Areej, Erin, & Himee
