Beatrice, Jake, and Brithney headed down south to attend October’s BrightonSEO conference. With three of our team in attendance, we knew we’d be getting a plethora of valuable and actionable information from some of the industry leaders, and boy, did we get just that!
After sifting through their camera roll full of snazzy flat whites and independent shops and restaurants, we’ve managed to extract each of their key takeaways from their two days by the sea:
Beatrice’s key BrightonSEO takeaways:
Feed the top of the marketing funnel!
We need to feed the top of the marketing funnel if we want anything to come out of the bottom.
The industry is suffering from a prominent focus on conversions, pushing money into paid acquisition, but struggling to show a return-on-investment (ROI). We need to adapt our way of thinking and diversify our organic traffic as a key strategy in 2025.
In a world filled with ‘Shop Now’ and ‘Buy X’, brands need to diversify their communication to catch attention, or, on the flip side, to subliminally get their key messages to their audience.
This is hyper-relevant in Q4, when most hospitality brands are all trying to cut through, whether that be Black Friday, Christmas gifting, festive bookings and so much more.
Answer your audience’s key search queries with PPC Ads
Answer your audience’s key search queries with your PPC Ads, rather than feeding them irrelevant information just because it makes your brand look good.
Did you know that 64.4% of people click on ads and that globally the marketing industry is spending £100 million a day on Google Ads?
What we need to do is research the terms people are searching for in relation to our product or sector, then use pay-per-click (PPC) ads to answer these!
For example, don’t use your precious PPC budget to tell people you’re multi-award winning if what they’re searching for is related to the functionality, price, or ingredients of your product. At this point in their customer journey, they couldn’t care less about the trophies on your shelves!
PPC ads can be used for brand awareness
Another interesting takeaway was the need to reframe our mindset around the purpose of PPC ads as solely conversion drivers.
61% of people are still using search engines to ask questions and 81% of all search entries are questions – these are people who need answers, and could your product or service be the answer?
These people are likely not in the purchasing phase of their journey just yet, but they will be soon, and you can put your brand front of mind by answering their initial questions with your PPC ads.
Social media is the default platform for brand awareness for a lot of brands, but we cannot control what happens on those platforms and a lot of things are changing on social, so we need to diversify our brand awareness efforts across different online channels.
Jake’s key BrightonSEO takeaways:
The future of web SEO is still built on Search and Crawling
Google has forecasted that by 2026, the overall volume of searches conducted through traditional search engines may decrease by 25%, due to the growing influence of AI-powered chatbots.
These AI chatbots, such as ChatGPT and Perplexity, provide users with direct answers to their questions without requiring them to manually browse through search engine results. Despite this projected decline, many experts in the industry remain confident that search engines will continue to play a vital role in the future of the web.
The reason for this confidence lies in the fact that large language models (LLMs) like ChatGPT and Perplexity depend on the data they acquire from crawling websites indexed by search engines.
Features in search such as featured snippets and reviews have and will become more prominent in the future, leading to the instruction of more structured data features.
Find out more: Customer vs Algorithm – the future of search
SEOs need to get involved in Migrations as early as possible.
Migrating a website can be a daunting task for most SEO experts. However, the biggest and most common issues during website migrations usually stem from a lack of time, which often leads to 301 redirects not being implemented properly and many unintended pages being included in your sitemap.
To prevent this, it's crucial for SEOs to be involved in the migration process early on by gaining access to a list from developers and working through a checklist.
The goal is to get content on the website as early as possible during the migration.
Category pages are the key to website growth
Developing well-optimized category pages that target keywords currently ranked between 5th and 15th place is an effective way to increase relevant website traffic.
In addition, you need to ensure there is a solid internal linking structure to help increase page authority.
Adding value vs. Copying content
When targeting keywords or search terms, the content that is often found is typically similar or ordinary despite being well-optimised. When creating content to rank your on-site SEO pages, ask yourself:
"Has this type of content been done before by our competitors?"
It’s crucial to focus on how you can add value to the user (customer), rather than simply summarizing content found elsewhere. Remember Google doesn't penalise duplicate content, it rewards content that is unique.
Google Search Console Recommendations:
According to John Mueller, there will be a growing emphasis on enhancing the recommendations provided for optimizing your website. Google Search Console is expected to play a larger role in offering actionable insights and suggestions.
For example, it will help webmasters leverage structured data to improve visibility in various search result features, such as Map Packs, Local Business listings, and other technical SEO enhancements.
These features will allow websites to appear more prominently in specialised search result snippets, providing greater opportunities for increased traffic and engagement.
BONUS: Will AI be less biased than traditional search engines?
There’s currently an investigation into how LLMs like ChatGPT and Perplexity are less biased and more impartial than traditional search engines.
When attending the talk on this topic, the expert speaker investigated the subject and put LLMs to the test and discovered that searches such as "Best Gaming Laptops" or "Best Microwaves" were showing affiliate links to these products.
He cross-checked these products on top review sites, such as Yelp and found that most of these products were shown to be not appearing in traditional search engine results as the best recommended product.
Brithney’s key BrightonSEO takeaway:
How to get the best bang for your buck: Shopping UX
Marketers should leverage Meta's features to enhance product visibility, using eye-catching designs like “SALE” or “DISCOUNT” borders from Canva. Focus on a range of conversions; if “Add to Cart” actions exceed purchases, consider adjusting CTAs or launching campaigns to drive conversions.
Experiment with Meta's features while prioritising audience insights to refine strategies. Such experimentation could see serious results, with one speaking reporting the following increases after trying out different CTAs instead of simple “link clicks”:
- Add Payment Info: +29%
- Initiate Check Out: +28%
- View Content: +100%
- Add to Cart: +16%
- Purchase: +100%
Diversify your Adscape
Relying solely on Meta, YouTube, and TikTok may exclude key markets. For younger audiences like Gen Z, platforms such as Spotify can be effective since many users listen to ads on the free version.
Weare8, a socially conscious platform that donates ad revenue to charity, also engages users focused on social and environmental issues. Understanding your audience is crucial; advertising on the right platforms enhances results.
Here are a few eye-opening channel stats they shared:
- Meta ads reach 54.7% of the UK population & 27.1% of global population
- 626m+ monthly active users on Spotify with 92% daily use
- 75% of Spotify users say they remember ads more when it’s related to what they’re listening to
However, compared to Meta ads, Spotify saw:
- 44% more clicks (compared to 2% for Meta)
- 23% lower bounce rate (compared to 59% for Meta)
- 82% agree they’re happy to listen to ads
- 2 in 3 feel more positive after listening to an ad
Appeal to the “Digital Generation”
While Gen Z cares about sustainability, immediate concerns like the cost of living are more pressing. Marketing strategies must avoid stereotypes and address genuine pain points.
The rise of social search highlights the need for brands to adjust SEO strategies, as Gen Z often seeks instant answers on platforms for food, clothing, and inspiration.
Diversifying beyond Google
With Google facing scrutiny over monopoly and privacy issues, it's essential to explore emerging platforms. Users are increasingly turning to social media and AI systems like ChatGPT for authentic feedback, as traditional search results are often dominated by ads.
This shift has prompted Google to integrate AI, such as Gemini, into its search engine, impacting traditional SERP visibility. Social search is key, as user-generated content and reviews provide valuable insights.
Don’t forget to report on your campaigns
Understanding your audience is vital for effective reporting. Tailor your use of jargon, ROI references, report length, and metrics to meet audience expectations. Ensure relevance by including:
- Introduction: Explain the report's purpose and what you're tracking.
- Middle: Present relevant information concisely.
- Ending: Summarize findings and provide recommendations if necessary.
A succinct, clear report creates actionable insights that everyone on the team can understand, taking your next ad campaign or SEO strategy to new heights.
Wondering what SEO even is?
Read our guide on mastering the art of search engine optimisation for local hospitality businesses like yours, or get in touch and let’s take the industry by storm together.
Beatrice Galloway
From the halls of Birmingham City University to the client-facing expertise of Brew, Beatrice hit the ground running with fast-paced brands like Wadworth and never looked back.
