Voices of Search Podcast

Episode Summary: Automating SEO with Experimental Strategies That Drive Growth

Date: September 22, 2025
Host: Tyson Stockton
Guest: Tom Mensell (VP of Organic Performance, Crowd)

Episode Overview

In this episode, Tyson Stockton and guest Tom Mensell explore the rapid changes in the SEO landscape, specifically focusing on the growing importance of automation and experimentation to drive growth. The conversation highlights how SEOs can leverage large language models (LLMs) and automation tools to improve research, auditing, and strategic processes while carefully balancing risk and maximizing human contribution. Listeners are guided through practical automation tactics, change in industry mindset, and actionable steps to remain competitive in the evolving search ecosystem.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Disruptive Evolution of SEO

• Tom expresses excitement about ongoing disruptions in SEO, stating that the pace and nature of change in the past two years have outstripped the previous 25 years.
  • "All of these changes...it's arguably been more disruptive than the last kind of like 25 years of search. And I think, you know, that gives us an exciting challenge." (01:41, Tom Mensell)
• Both agree that expanding collaboration with other departments and broadening SEO’s influence represent major opportunities:
  • "Now the spotlight's on, but at the same time, it's like for so long we've been complaining as almost being like forgotten in the corner...now is kind of that time to lean into it." (02:39, Tyson Stockton)
• SEOs must adapt, integrating their expertise across organizations and updating skills to align with broader marketing strategies.

2. Shifting Search Ecosystem: Beyond Google

• The dominance of Google is waning, with content discovery happening across platforms through social search, online communities, and AI-powered experiences.
  • "We're seeing evidence that [Google’s dominance] is beginning to change. We've got social search, we've got communities, we've got AI powered search experiences..." (04:43, Tom Mensell)
• Tom describes Crowd’s “Search Anywhere” proposition: adopting a platform-agnostic approach to reach audiences wherever they search.

3. Off-site Signals & Digital PR Resurgence

• Off-site mentions and digital PR are increasingly vital, especially for visibility in LLM-powered and AI-driven search environments.
  • "Brand mentions are definitely the new visibility currency, certainly within AI powered search experiences... we've seen a real resurgence in digital PR." (06:45, Tom Mensell)
• LLMs gather brand understanding from across the web, not just from a company’s own assets.
• Influencing third-party sources and customer sentiment is now central to search success.

4. Foundation of SEO Automation

• Tom defines SEO automation as using machines to save time, scale processes, and enhance output quality.
  • Primary automation areas:
    • Research: Trend/topic identification, keyword research, topic clustering, data narrative extraction.
    • Auditing: Automating tactical checks and repeatable guidelines through structured prompts.
    • Strategy: Understanding brand perception and strategic content recommendations using LLMs.
  • "Three things. Research, auditing, strategy. Those are things that we have been very lent into over the last 18 months at Crowd." (11:17, Tom Mensell)

5. Content Generation vs. Analysis

• Tom cautions against over-reliance on full automated content creation, emphasizing a hybrid approach.
  • "You can definitely use it to a point from kind of like research building briefs... but I wouldn't let it do the whole end to end process. Right. And my advice would be use it to a point, but...for the specific output...that's where the human element is still super, super valuable." (12:16, Tom Mensell)
• The most effective automation relieves manual data analysis while preserving human editorial oversight.

6. Integrating Automation Tools

• Practical tools and approaches were discussed:
  • Using LLMs with strong prompting skills.
  • In-house tools that leverage LLMs via API for brand analysis.
  • No-code/low-code solutions like Zapier and Python scripts for those with basic technical skills.
• Examples: Using AI for content gap analysis, trend detection, planning for niche industries, and identifying influential sources in PR.

7. Experimentation & Risk Management

• Organizations need a culture of experimentation: balancing automation innovation with risk tolerance and clear measurement frameworks.
  • "With SEO automation, low risk is the report in the insights, the research, using it as your assistant...High risk is the tactical automation, the content creation, optimizaton..." (17:55, Tom Mensell)
• Start automation in low-risk areas (research/reporting) to build credibility, freeing up time and resource for higher-risk, higher-reward experimentation.
  • Example: Testing content blocks on product pages and measuring impact via A/B group revenue share (23:36, Tom Mensell).

8. Tactical Action Steps (25:38)

Tom’s 3 recommendations for SEOs starting out with automation:

1. Begin with Low-Risk Areas: Focus on reporting, insights, and research using LLMs or automation tools.
2. Iterative Experimentation: Build clear measurement strategies (control vs. variant groups, clear KPIs).
3. Extract Actionable Insights: Use prompt engineering to discover sentiment, uncover gaps, and identify opportunities for digital PR and content placement.

- *"If you can demonstrate efficiency drivers in the low risk areas, then that sets you off on a good platform to roll that out further and unlock more experimentation, budget within a business."* (25:38, Tom Mensell)

9. Competitive Edge with LLMs

• Leverage LLMs’ data-processing power to:
  • Generate more precise content recommendations
  • Analyze sentiment and competitor positioning
  • Go beyond surface-level keyword overlap to more nuanced organic growth
• "If I could put a strap line on it, it would be you need more content in more places..." (29:38, Tom Mensell)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the new SEO opportunity:
  "SEO has always been in a bit of a silo in the corner, but...now around...the different teams...are going to impact the value that we can deliver...I think it's a really exciting time." (03:33, Tom Mensell)

• On off-site visibility:
  "The large language models themselves aren't just coming to your website...They're looking at all of those off site sources, third party sources, what your customers are saying..." (06:45, Tom Mensell)

• On human vs. AI in content:
  "Where you can start to fall into a bit of a trap is where you're trying to use it to speed up elements and potentially sacrificing quality... there's still a very important part for a human." (12:16, Tom Mensell)

• On measuring experiments:
  "We were testing the impact of copy blocks on product lister pages...we measured...the percentage share of revenue that came from organic search...it jumped from around 19% to 21%...a 10% lift." (23:36, Tom Mensell)

• On the future of content placement:
  "You need more content in more places. The more of that you can extract from the large language models...is going to give you a massive opportunity to win in AI powered search experiences." (29:38, Tom Mensell)

Important Segment Timestamps

• 00:43 – Tyson sets the stage: “Where do we start with SEO automation?”
• 01:41 – Tom on embracing disruption and expanded SEO influence
• 04:43 – Rise of alternative search experiences (social, AI-powered)
• 06:45 – Brand mentions, LLMs, and resurgence of digital PR
• 09:20 – 3 Pillars of Automation: Research, Auditing, Strategy
• 12:16 – Content generation: human oversight vs. automation
• 15:06 – Tools: APIs, prompting, practical AI for non-coders
• 17:55 – Managing experimentation, risk, and organization culture
• 23:36 – Example: Measured impact of content blocks
• 25:38 – Tom’s tactical steps for automation
• 29:38 – Importance of content ubiquity and LLM insights

Summary & Takeaways

This episode encourages SEOs to embrace the transformative power of automation, to experiment thoughtfully, and to look beyond Google-centric approaches by targeting omnichannel visibility. Automation should first be applied where it improves efficiency and minimizes risk, such as research and analysis. Human judgment remains crucial for high-quality content and impactful decision-making. A deliberate, metrics-driven approach to experimentation—matched to organizational culture and risk tolerance—will drive sustainable SEO growth as the industry reshapes itself for the age of AI.