https://page2pod.com - What happens when the gatekeepers of search stop sending traffic, but still take the content? In this milestone Episode 90, Marshall Simmonds (Defined Media Group) joins us to trace SEO’s journey from white-text-on-white-backgrounds to log-file analysis, AIO, and LLM.txt—plus what publishers must do right now. He even shares the wild story of spinning up a mirror test server so Google (and others) could pound on About.com to refine their crawlers.

We dig into why watching server logs matters more than ever, how “dark traffic” is back, and why author authority and structured content still win—despite shifting consumption and murky attribution in AI-assisted search.

Marshall also takes us behind the scenes on unlocking The New York Times archive (and why it crushed for traffic and revenue), plus a pragmatic take on AIO monetization, blocking AI training vs. real-time access, and the early but evolving role of LLM.txt.

🧠 In This Episode:
• The About.com “test server” era: letting engines crawl a mirror site to improve their bots—what Marshall learned by “watching the watchers.”
• Why log files are mission-critical again as dark traffic surges and LLM crawlers multiply.
• Enterprise-grade log tooling & options: Sitebulb, Screaming Frog, Splunk—what to use when.
• Crawl budget signals hiding in plain sight: the Search Console “Crawl stats” report.
• NYT archive strategy: opening history for scale, membership, and revenue (and why it worked).
• E-E-A-T before the acronym: building human authority into content and authorship.
• LLM.txt today: yes, it’s crawled; no, standards aren’t settled; how teams are exposing it.
• AIO reality check: impressions up, clicks down; what’s converting (and why patience pays).
• Blocking AI training vs. real-time use: robots.txt limits, legal gray zones, and first-line defenses.
• Holistic marketing > channel silos: brand, email, social, search, Discover—working together.

If you've ever wondered where SEO has been and where it's headed, this conversation with Marshall Simmonds is essential listening.

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💬 Comment below: How are you adapting your SEO strategy in the age of AI and dark traffic?

🔗 Links & Resources Mentioned
• Marshall Simmonds LinkedIn
• Defined Media Official Site
• Page 2 Podcast Noah Learner episode

Sponsored by Moving Traffic Media

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https://page2pod.com - What does it take to run a multi-brand content machine—and decide what not to publish? Ryan McGonagill, VP of Content at Centerfield, breaks down how his team powers 10+ owned brands like business.com and security.org while keeping content simple, useful, and relentlessly user-first. We dig into why personalization beats flashy interactives, and how to design for real decisions—not vanity metrics.

You’ll hear the refresh system that keeps nothing older than a year (and why ISP deal pages may need updates every ~2 weeks), plus how seasonality (think moving season) reshapes the calendar. Ryan also unpacks verticalized expertise, the team’s “gold standard” quality bar, and why user value beats dwell-time games every time.

On the PR side, we talk about crafting hooks that surprise and earn coverage, the DEI pronoun study that drew massive press (and even an Elon Musk reply), and how Ryan thinks about links vs. referral traffic. We close with a pragmatic take on AI, where human judgment is non-negotiable and LLMs assist without replacing expertise.

Finally, Ryan shares why content structure may matter even more as AI overviews evolve—and the single best link he’s ever earned.

🧠 In This Episode
• Centerfield’s model: owning acquisition end-to-end and publishing across ~10 brands, from business.com to security.org.
• Personalization > “cool” interactives: give users simple, relevant tools (even a basic calculator).
• “User first” beats dwell-time hacks—ship what helps people decide, not what inflates metrics.
• The refresh playbook: nothing older than a year; ISP pages reviewed ~biweekly; plan around seasonality (e.g., moving May–Sep).
• Verticalized writers + editors and a non-negotiable “gold standard” (third-party + firsthand expertise, real photos).
• How to prioritize: fortify winners before chasing breadth; align SEO (traffic/rank) with content’s profit focus.
• PR that lands: lead with surprising data and media-worthy angles; why links > referral traffic from research.
• AI in the workflow: frequent LLM upgrades, but keep human touchpoints for judgment, reviews, and accuracy.

This episode is a tactical blueprint for scaling content that _actually helps people decide_—and earns the kind of links and trust that last.

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💬 Comment below: What's your biggest challenge with content personalization or AI in your workflow?

🔗 Websites & Brands:

• Centerfield Official Site
• Ryan on LinkedIn

🧪 Notable Studies/Articles Referenced:

• DEI Pronoun Study – A viral study Ryan produced that got national media coverage (including a comment from Elon Musk).
• Marketing Interns Study on Job Market – Innovative research using interns to analyze the job market.
• LLM Comparison Article on Business.com – Compared outputs from various AI models for quality.

Sponsored by Moving Traffic Media

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https://page2pod.com - Most marketers are only using 20% of Google Analytics 4’s capabilities — and it’s costing them big. In this episode of the Page 2 Podcast, we sit down with Brie Anderson, founder of Beast Analytics and one of the earliest voices bringing clarity to the chaotic transition from Universal Analytics to GA4.

Brie shares why small tracking errors can lead to massive strategic blind spots, how to fix bad data before it misleads you, and why GA4’s Advertising tab is a goldmine — even if you never run ads. She also breaks down her BEAST Framework, revealing exactly how to audit, analyze, and act on your data for real business growth.

Whether you’re an SEO, media buyer, or marketing strategist, this conversation is packed with actionable insights to make your analytics truly accessible and actionable.

📊 In This Episode:
• Why most marketers only tap into a fraction of GA4’s potential
• The high cost of bad data — and how to prevent it
• Brie’s BEAST Framework for reliable, strategic analytics
• Common GA4 migration mistakes (and how to fix them)
• Unlocking the hidden power of GA4’s Advertising tab
• How to spot and leverage multi-touch attribution data
• Tips for integrating Google Search Console with GA4
• Future trends in AI-driven analytics (and their pitfalls)

Brie delivers a masterclass in making your marketing data work harder for you — with a healthy dose of real talk about the industry’s blind spots.

Subscribe to never miss a deep dive into the tools, tactics, and trends shaping digital marketing.

💬 Comment below: What’s the most valuable insight you’ve learned from your analytics data lately?

🔗 Links & Resources Mentioned
• Brie Anderson on LinkedIn
• Brie Anderson on YouTube
• Beast Analytics Official Site

Sponsored by Moving Traffic Media

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• Page 2 Podcast on Youtube
• Page 2 Podcast on Linkedin
• Page 2 Podcast on Facebook

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• Jon Clark on Bluesky
• Jon Clark on Linkedin