Brian Dean Interview - Backlinko growth, SEO today, AI in Search & Youtube

The video is an interview with Brian Dean, the founder of Backlinko, discussing his start in SEO, the evolution of SEO tactics, and the success of his website.

The video is an interview with Brian Dean, the founder of Backlinko, a website that provides SEO tips and strategies. Brian talks about how he got into SEO after leaving his PhD program and how he started Backlinko to fill a gap in the market for actionable SEO strategies. He also discusses his journey from black hat SEO to white hat SEO and his first success in the personal finance space. The interview covers topics such as the skyscraper technique, AI in search, and YouTube SEO.

• Brian got into SEO after leaving his PhD program and reading "The 4-Hour Work Week" by Timothy Ferris.
• He started Backlinko because he couldn't find any resources that explained SEO strategies in detail.
• When he started, SEO was considered a fringe activity that only weirdos did, and it was mostly black hat SEO.
• SEO tactics have evolved to focus on creating great content, building relationships, and providing a good user experience.
• AI is now being used in search, which means SEOs need to focus on creating content that answers specific questions and provides value.
• Brian waited almost a year to monetize the site.
• AI is already being used in SEO, especially for things like content creation and optimization.
• The process involved outlining all the chapters and then writing the post, which took 20 to 25 hours per post.
• Initially, work-life balance was not good as there was a lot of work and pressure to produce content.

Brian Dean Interview - Backlinko growth, SEO today, AI in Search & Youtube - YouTube

Brian's Start in SEO

• Brian got into SEO after leaving his PhD program and reading "The 4-Hour Work Week" by Timothy Ferris.
• He saw SEO as a way to get traffic for his online business.
• When he started, SEO was considered a fringe activity that only weirdos did, and it was mostly black hat SEO.
• He had temporary successes but got hit by updates like Panda and Penguin.
• He started a site in the personal finance space after Penguin and used white hat SEO, which led to his first real success.

Starting Backlinko

• Brian started Backlinko because he couldn't find any resources that explained SEO strategies in detail.
• He didn't have high expectations for the site but saw a gap in the market.
• The skyscraper technique case study helped put Backlinko on the map and legitimize it as a resource for learning new things.
• The brand of Backlinko is based on showing actionable strategies that can't be found anywhere else.
• The site now has a large email list and millions of visitors per year.

The Evolution of SEO Tactics

• When Brian started, black hat SEO was the norm, but it gradually became less effective and more trouble than it was worth.
• White hat SEO is now the best option.
• SEO tactics have evolved to focus on creating great content, building relationships, and providing a good user experience.
• AI is now being used in search, which means SEOs need to focus on creating content that answers specific questions and provides value.
• YouTube is also becoming more important for SEO, and optimizing videos can help drive traffic to a site.

Brian Dean Interview - Backlinko growth, SEO today, AI in Search & Youtube - YouTube

Advice for SEOs

• Focus on creating great content that provides value to users.
• Build relationships with other sites and influencers in your niche.
• Provide a good user experience on your site.
• Use AI to your advantage by creating content that answers specific questions.
• Optimize your videos for YouTube to drive traffic to your site.

Link Building Strategies

• Skyscraper was Brian's main link building strategy.
• He also did a lot of infographics and a little bit of guest posting.
• Before the technique became popular, people were more receptive to pitch emails.
• Nowadays, link building is totally different and Brian uses different strategies.
• He will discuss his current link building strategies later in the interview.

Monetizing the Site

• Brian waited almost a year to monetize the site.
• He wanted to create a backlog of content and have a system in place before monetizing.
• Within six months, the site was getting around 10,000 visitors a month.
• The first course launch didn't go great, but it was enough to show that the site could be a real business.
• It took about a year before the monetization really took off.
• Brian decided to create courses instead of running an agency or doing consulting.

Creating Blog Posts

• Brian would start by finding a keyword and then figure out which template to use.
• He had different templates for list posts, guides, case studies, etc.
• Using templates made it easier to fit the topic into a specific format.
• Outlining the post was the next step, especially for list posts.
• After outlining, Brian would write the post and then edit it multiple times.

AI in SEO

• AI is already being used in SEO, especially for things like content creation and optimization.
• AI can help with things like keyword research, content optimization, and even link building.
• However, AI is not a replacement for human expertise and creativity.
• AI can help with some tasks, but it's important to have a human touch as well.
• AI will continue to play a bigger role in SEO in the future.

Content Creation Process

• The process involved outlining all the chapters and then writing the post, which took 20 to 25 hours per post.
• Designers came in after and did the graphics, screenshots, and editing.
• Custom coding was done if required.
• Industry studies took up to 200 hours to complete.
• Initially, one post was published every four to six weeks, which eventually scaled to twice a month.

Work-Life Balance

• Initially, work-life balance was not good as there was a lot of work and pressure to produce content.
• Writing 2,000 words a day every weekday for two years was stressful and soul-crushing.
• Although work ended early, the pressure to write 2,000 words a day was not healthy.

Data Collection for Massive Data Study Posts

• The first time, data was collected in-house, which was a nightmare as scraping a million results is difficult.
• Partnering with someone who already has the data is easier and a win-win situation.
• Partnering with data partners like Buzzsumo and Pitchbox made the process easier.
• For small studies, data was collected manually.

Frequency of Publishing

• Initially, one post was published every four to six weeks.
• Eventually, it scaled to twice a month.
• There were only 23 posts in a year, which is doable even if doing good stuff.

Data Posts and Original Research

• Using data partners for opportunities in data posts.
• Curating data that's already out there and combining it with original research.
• Stats pages can work really well for link building.
• Original research is the best because you are the only one that has it.
• First mover advantage is huge.

Edge in a Competitive Space

• Writing about what worked in SEO and showing people how to do it.
• Never pretending to be the all-knowing SEO master.
• Approaching SEO from experimenting and learning.
• Being honest about trying stuff out and what worked.
• Coming at it from a different angle than in-house SEOs or agencies.

Feelings about the Sale to SEMrush

• Feeling great and happy.
• Occasionally missing the outlet of writing blog posts.
• Learning new things all the time with a new startup.
• Being a good steward to something that was built.
• Still being involved with Backlinko today.

Exploding Topics Startup

• Launched in December 2019.
• Started building on the side of Backlinko.
• Hired a developer because of potential in the trend discovery space.
• Google Trends has limitations.
• Exploding Topics uses AI to discover emerging topics.

Starting and Growing Exploding Topics

• Brian Dean wanted to create a tool that showed what's trending in a space without having to do any work.
• He tried to build it on the side but it didn't go well.
• He found an Indie hacker project that was what he had envisioned but way better.
• He did an aqua hire deal and bought it, had the founder come on as a co-founder, and rebranded it to Explore New Topics.
• They launched on Product Hunt and it was the product of the month, which was a huge difference.
• They focused on growing the audience and figuring out what the best move was, with no monetization for a year.

Growth Strategy for Exploding Topics

• They are already committed to SEO and publishing four or five high-quality posts a week.
• Their standard is the McKinsey blog, and they are at 400,000 visitors a month.
• They are focused on hitting bottom of the funnel stuff and having an affiliate program.
• The tool itself brings in quite a bit of traffic on its own because it's valuable in and of itself.
• Stats have been huge for them, and the home page itself gets a lot of links.
• They are looking at having an affiliate program as well.

Link Building Today

• You need to have something on your site worth linking to.
• The value needs to be more tangible, and tools are probably the best way to do it.
• Creating an AI content detector that was free would be a gold mine of links.
• Stats are another way to get links, whether they're original or curated.
• Reverse Outreach is creating content designed to get in front of journalists, and it's working super well for them.
• It's much more strategic where you're looking for keywords that journalists are searching for when they're citing articles.

Conclusion

• Brian Dean started Exploding Topics to create a tool that showed what's trending in a space without having to do any work.
• They are already committed to SEO and publishing high-quality posts a week.
• Tools and stats are the best way to get links, and Reverse Outreach is working super well for them.
• They are focused on hitting bottom of the funnel stuff and having an affiliate program.

Creating Content for Journalists

• Journalists are looking for specific information, such as the number of users for a particular product or service.
• Creating content that provides this information in an easily accessible way can lead to links and increased visibility.
• Publicly traded companies often release this information in earnings calls or reports, which can be a good source for content.
• Creating content that provides supporting data, such as growth over time, can add value and increase the likelihood of links.
• Creating this type of content doesn't have to be a huge industry study, but can be as simple as doing a little research and presenting the information in an accessible way.

The Role of AI in Content Creation

• AI tools can be useful for exploring topics and classifying information, but they are not a replacement for human writers.
• AI tools can be used to write basic descriptions of products or services, but for blog posts and other content, human writers are preferred.
• Human content is more likely to provide the originality and spark needed to rank well in search results.
• At the end of the day, people want to read content written by humans, not AI.
• Backlinko is doubling down on human writers and making a bet that human content is the future of content creation.

Topical Authority and Website Structure

• While there may be something to the idea of topical authority and website structure, it has not been seen to significantly move the needle in terms of search rankings.
• Backlinko intentionally did not focus on topical authority or clusters, and still achieved success in search rankings.
• Some companies may use the idea of topic clusters as a way to sell services, but it may not be necessary for all websites.
• Ultimately, providing high-quality, original content is more important than website structure or topical authority.

Clubhouse and Other Social Media Platforms

• Clubhouse was a popular social media platform for a time, but ultimately lost popularity and was replaced by other platforms like Twitter Spaces.
• Naval Ravikant recently launched a new social media platform called AirChat.
• While social media platforms can be useful for marketing and promotion, they are not a replacement for high-quality content.
• Backlinko is focused on creating original, well-researched content rather than relying on social media platforms for promotion.
• Ultimately, providing value through high-quality content is the key to success in SEO and online marketing.

SEO Tactics and Authority

• Google looks at a site's authority on certain topics to determine rankings.
• Internal linking and clusters are not as important as having authority on specific topics.
• Links and offline reputation are the main factors in determining authority.
• Author pages and transparency about reviews can be helpful, but not a huge factor.
• Creating a linkable asset and mapping out keywords are important for a new website.

Creating Quality Content

• Creating a list of keywords and finding the best person to write about them is important.
• For example, hiring a plumber to write about plumbing will result in better content.
• Creating a few linkable assets is more important than creating a lot of content.
• Quality content is more important than internal linking and clusters.
• Optimizing titles and tags can help with YouTube SEO, but creating great videos is the most important factor.

Getting Started on YouTube

• Creating videos on YouTube was an untapped market in the SEO space.
• Creating quality videos is the most important factor in succeeding on YouTube.
• Optimizing titles and tags can help, but creating great videos is more important.
• It's important to learn the process of creating great videos in order to succeed on YouTube.
• Deleting bad videos and starting over can be helpful in improving content quality.

Importance of Link Building

• Link building is still an important factor in SEO.
• Creating a linkable asset is important for getting links to a new website.
• Links from high authority sites are more valuable than links from low authority sites.
• Guest posting can be a good way to get links, but it's important to do it in a natural way.
• Link building should be done in a natural way and not through spammy tactics.

Making YouTube Videos

• Writing a word-for-word script for the video.
• Going to a professional studio with lights, cameras, and soundproofing.
• Editing the video with an editor who chops up all the cuts and puts them together.
• Adding animations and transitions with a visuals guy.
• Collaborating on the video with a tool like frame.io.

Taking a Break from YouTube

• Brian Dean didn't like the process of making YouTube videos anymore.
• He was focused on launching more courses to grow his business.
• Eventually, the process needs to change.
• It didn't make sense to do YouTube videos after a while.
• He was living in the studio and felt like a machine.

Returning to YouTube

• Brian Dean wasn't expecting the hit in views after taking a break.
• He realized the importance of keeping the YouTube Gods happy by uploading consistently.
• He has 500,000 subscribers, but many of them found him through Google searches.
• He's not sure how much of his audience is a real audience.
• He's seen channels take huge breaks and still have a real audience.

Advice for Making YouTube Videos

• Don't take a perfectionist approach.
• People want to see you stumble a little bit and be a person.
• It's nice to watch a really tight video, especially for how-to stuff.
• People also want to see your personality.
• Find a process that works for you and stick with it.

Backlinko's Goal for the Channel

• The goal is to create opportunities and gravity to come to Brian Dean.
• Having a YouTube channel with early traction can be huge.
• The untapped opportunity was to create great videos and build an audience again.
• There is no specific end game chess move.
• The goal is to make YouTube videos again.

Brian Dean's Preferred Type of Business

• SAS is the preferred business because it is a subscription business.
• Courses are relatively easy to create, but they are hard to sell.
• Competition for courses is not just other courses, but also YouTube videos and free information.
• SAS helps accomplish things faster and opens up new verticals.
• Courses are nice, but it is hard to scale them to eight figures and beyond.
• SAS happens all the time and is a natural path for people with audiences.

AI in Search and SEO

• SEO is not dead, even though people have been saying it for years.
• There is a wait and see approach to the recent announcement of Google's search experiment.
• The impact of the experiment is unknown.
• There have been many changes in the game over the years.
• It is important to adapt to changes and stay up to date with SEO tactics.

Impact of AI on SEO

• AI will have an impact on SEO, but it's hard to predict how much.
• There may be fewer clicks to publishers and websites.
• It's easy to get lost in the technology, but the cream rises to the top if people want it.
• Search and chat interfaces will likely live in parallel.
• Mobile caused a similar freakout, but the number of people searching skyrocketed.
• It's easy to freak out, but it's better to focus on executing and growing traffic.

Future of SEO

• It's hard to predict the future of SEO.
• Google doesn't even know how consumers will react to AI.
• It's easy to get attention by predicting the sky is falling, but it's not productive.
• Instead, focus on executing and growing traffic.
• Brian Dean is now publishing on his YouTube channel.
• Thanks for having me!

Watch the video on YouTube:
Brian Dean Interview - Backlinko growth, SEO today, AI in Search & Youtube - YouTube