Kitchen Side: From Traffic to Influence - Marketing in the Age of AI (and AI Mode)

In this Kitchen Side episode of The Long Game Podcast, the Omniscient Digital team dives into Google's new “AI Mode” for search and the broader implications of generative AI across content marketing and SEO. They explore the shift toward conversational, zero-click search experiences, the erosion of attribution data, and how marketers need to adapt in a world where AI Overviews and LLMs are changing how users discover information. With insights on content visibility, LLM optimization, brand mentions, measurement challenges, and even some “gray hat” strategies, this episode captures the tension between innovation and uncertainty in the age of AI-enhanced search.

Key Takeaways

• Google’s AI Mode Redefines Search: The new Gemini-powered interface transforms Google into a conversational AI assistant, bypassing traditional search paths.
• Attribution is Getting Murkier: AI Mode and zero-click searches are making it harder to track SEO performance and justify investment.
• Brand Mentions Beat Backlinks: LLMs prioritize citations and visibility across platforms more than technical SEO or link-building.
• SEO is Shifting from Keywords to Visibility: Context, off-site presence, and how content is referenced matter more than keyword density.
• Marketers Need First-Principles Thinking: Foundational tactics still apply—like voice of customer and content structure—but need reframing for the AI era.
• Creative “Gray Hat” Tactics Exist: Ideas like editing Wikipedia, acquiring cited domains, or seeding Reddit threads can boost LLM citations.
• Measurement Will Require New Playbooks: Marketers must blend traditional analytics with self-reported attribution and qualitative feedback.

Show Links

• Connect with David Khim on LinkedIn and Twitter
• Connect with Alex Birkett on LinkedIn and Twitter
• Connect with Allie Decker on LinkedIn and Twitter
• Connect with Omniscient Digital on LinkedIn or Twitter

What is Kitchen Side?

One big benefit of running an agency or working at one is you get to see the “kitchen side” of many different businesses; their revenue, their operations, their automations, and their culture.

You understand how things look from the inside and how that differs from the outside.

You understand how the sausage is made. 

As an agency ourselves, we’re working both on growing our clients’ businesses as well as our own. This podcast is one project, but we also blog, make videos, do sales, and have quite a robust portfolio of automations and hacks to run our business.

We want to take you behind the curtain, to the kitchen side of our business, to witness our brainstorms, discussions, and internal dialogues behind the public works that we ship.

Past guests on The Long Game podcast include: Morgan Brown (Shopify), Ryan Law (Animalz), Dan Shure (Evolving SEO), Kaleigh Moore (freelancer), Eric Siu (Clickflow), Peep Laja (CXL), Chelsea Castle (Chili Piper), Tracey Wallace (Klaviyo), Tim Soulo (Ahrefs), Ryan McReady (Reforge), and many more.

Some interviews you might enjoy and learn from:

Actionable Tips and Secrets to SEO Strategy with Dan Shure (Evolving SEO)

Building Competitive Marketing Content with Sam Chapman (Aprimo)

How to Build the Right Data Workflow with Blake Burch (Shipyard)

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