Search with Candour

Candour
  • 5.0 (4)
  • MARKETING
  • UPDATED WEEKLY

Every Monday, Jack Chambers-Ward has in-depth conversations with SEO experts from around the world. Covering topics from attribution in GA4 to networking tips for introverts and everything in between. Search With Candour is the perfect way to kickstart your working week! https://withcandour.co.uk/podcast

  1. 2D AGO

    SEO News Recap (April–May 2026): Google AI Mode in SERPs, How to Build Agent-Friendly Websites & Gemini in Chrome

    Jack Chambers-Ward delivers an SEO news recap covering key stories from April 2026 into early May. He highlights Google testing AI Mode directly in the “All” tab, AI Mode’s agentic restaurant bookings, AI Mode side-by-side browsing in Chrome desktop (US), and Google’s Audio Overviews appearing on SERPs beyond Search Labs. He also discusses Google’s official guidance on building agent-friendly websites—how agents use screenshots, raw HTML, and the accessibility tree—and notes Gemini in Chrome rolling out worldwide, potentially boosting Gemini adoption. Google tests AI Mode in the main search tab - https://brodieclark.com/notes/#apr-2026  Google Search Console impressions error - https://xcancel.com/brodieseo/status/2040311550406472112  Agentic restaurant bookings - https://xcancel.com/Google/status/2042626811083853857  AI Mode can open in side-by-side view - https://blog.google/products-and-platforms/products/search/ai-mode-chrome/  Google tests Audio Overviews - https://www.seroundtable.com/google-testing-audio-overviews-wild-41207.html  How to build agent-friendly websites - https://web.dev/articles/ai-agent-site-ux  Gemini in Chrome - https://www.linkedin.com/posts/nataliawitczyk_yes-gemini-integrated-in-chrome-is-now-rolling-activity-7456789716202508288-He8k/ Get your tickets for SearchNorwichXL: https://searchnorwich.org/  Time stamps 00:00 Intro 01:22 AI Mode hits main search tab 05:38 Search Console impressions bug 07:35 AI restaurant booking agents 11:09 AI Mode adds split-screen mode in Chrome 18:47 Audio Overviews on SERPs 21:51 How to build agent-friendly websites 30:15 Gemini in Chrome goes global 38:28 Wrap up

    41 min

  2. MAY 4

    The Efficiency Paradox: Why AI Isn’t Actually Making Your Life Easier (Live at Ironworks Studios in Brighton)

    In this eighth live collaboration between SEO Mindset and Search with Candour, the hosts discuss the “efficiency paradox” and why AI can increase overwhelm rather than make life easier. Jack Chambers-Ward, Sarah McDowell and Tazmin Suleman debate the pressure to use AI, environmental and job concerns, hallucinations and misuse for legal/medical advice, de-skilling, declining human interaction, and the value of friction and curiosity. Audience Q&A covers practical uses (timestamps, concise messages, event planning), handling forced AI adoption with boundaries, and a discussion of physical books and focus. Sponsors Sponsored by SISTRIX Sponsored by Majestic Follow The SEO Mindset Podcast https://theseomindset.co.uk/  Follow Search with Candour Watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL8c8k5Yy8FltVNsIsP1iUCSXDfE5cq2pM Follow on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4AILSpWLI74daOhECb8Hm0 Chapters 00:00 Live Show Kickoff 01:23 Meet the hosts 02:48 Sponsors and SISTRIX Data 07:33 Majestic Books and Q&A 09:35 Efficiency Paradox Setup 11:00 AI Overwhelm and Pressure 17:48 Expectations vs Reality 21:52 Hallucinations and Misuse 26:00 Deskilling and Bad Bread 31:14 Maps Memory and Connection 37:34 Productivity as Self Worth 37:55 Rest As Productivity 38:35 Efficiency Versus Quality 40:50 AI Replacing Coworkers 42:36 Friction Builds Skills 47:56 Embrace Failure And Process 50:13 Life Beyond Work 55:46 Audience Q And A Uses 01:01:07 Forced AI And Boundaries 01:11:50 Profit Motives And Reliance 01:16:02 Books Comeback And Focus 01:22:57 Wrap Up And Thanks

    1h 24m

  3. APR 27

    Do People Also Ask Questions Improve Rankings? + Google’s Crackdown on Self-Promo “Best” Listicles

    Jack Chambers-Ward and Mark Williams-Cook are back in the Candour studio to discuss if People Also Ask questions improve rankings and Google’s recent crackdown on self-promotional listicles. Sponsored by Trendos No demo required. No paywall. Free plan available. Check your brand’s AI visibility now → Trendos.com They discuss a Chris Green study using AlsoAsked API, SERP scraping, and OpenAI to score whether top-20 ranking pages fully/partially answer related People Also Ask questions, finding a strong correlation in the top five positions, strongest for commercial/transactional queries and weaker for informational/navigational. The conversation shifts to geographic personalisation in search and AlsoAsked’s city-based selector, plus upcoming talks referencing regional question differences. They then cover major traffic losses seen around late January for sites relying on self-promotional “best X” listicles and programmatic comparison pages, noting some core product pages survived while other pages were suppressed. Chris Green’s AlsoAsked study: https://alsoasked.com/insights/paa-ranking-correlation  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_9dfEjlmZx0  Time stamps 00:00 Introduction 01:18 Back in the studio with Mark 02:48 PAA study setup 06:03 Methodology and scoring 08:10 Why commercial queries win 11:58 Regional PAA insights 16:40 Sponsor: Trendos 20:39 Listicle crackdown begins 23:37 Self promo listicles 26:15 Traffic drop fallout 28:57 Honesty beats hype 31:25 Gemini warning cards 34:17 No awards strategy 37:37 Fan out award signals 41:56 Wrap up and upcoming events

    43 min
  4. The mental health crisis in SEO & digital marketing (and how to fix it) | Jasmine Granton

    APR 20

    The mental health crisis in SEO & digital marketing (and how to fix it) | Jasmine Granton

    Jasmine Granton joins Search with Candour to discuss the mental health crisis in SEO and digital marketing. Jasmine’s experience as both a digital PR professional and a qualified psychotherapeutic counsellor means she’s especially qualified to discuss this topic. They explore how always-on culture, Slack urgency, KPIs, AI-driven expectations, and perfectionism keep marketers in fight-or-flight, reducing creativity and productivity. Jasmine shares practical techniques, including setting boundaries, “closing loops” at the end of the day, tracking energy and feelings, and building a “wins” folder to counter negativity bias and boost self-compassion. Time stamps 01:14 Introduction 03:00 Welcome Jasmine Granton 05:09 Why marketing feels harder 07:44 Perfectionism and self-worth 12:24 Spotting burnout early 15:08 Journaling and closing loops 21:37 ‘Always on’ culture 27:10 Psychological safety at work 30:30 Learning from failure 32:30 Control circles and change 34:17 Building downtime into work 35:56 Creative focus time at work 37:17 Building self-compassion 38:22 Closing failure loops 40:32 Celebrating your wins 48:21 Track your feelings 49:55 Safety checks 55:22 Recommendations 01:04:00 Where to find Jasmine 01:05:26 Episode wrap-up

    1h 6m
  5. Social media SEO: Keyword research, search intent & content strategy (with Annie-Mai Hodge from Girl Power Marketing)

    APR 12

    Social media SEO: Keyword research, search intent & content strategy (with Annie-Mai Hodge from Girl Power Marketing)

    Annie-Mai Hodge, founder of Girl Power Marketing and creator of the Social Tea newsletter, makes her triumphant return to Search with Candour to discuss how to do SEO for social media. Annie-Mai explains practical keyword research for social using tools such as TikTok Creator Search Insights and AlsoAsked, and existing SEO tools, then consolidating ideas into a simple spreadsheet and testing performance via platform analytics. They cover everything from captions, on-screen text, audio, and profiles without keyword stuffing; how to choose channels and formats by researching native results, spotting content gaps, and repurposing across platforms; and why posting time matters less than you may think. Follow Annie-Mai: 🌟 Girl Power Marketing: https://www.girlpowermarketing.co.uk/ 🌟 Social media SEO workbook: https://offers.hubspot.com/view/social-media-seo-workbook 🌟 The Social Media Tea: https://www.girlpowermarketing.co.uk/newsletter 🌟 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anniemaihodge/ 🌟 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/girlpowermarketing/ 🎧 Annie-Mai’s previous episode: https://withcandour.co.uk/podcast/tiktok-as-a-search-engine-with-annie-mai-hodge ▶️ Watch Search with Candour on YouTube: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL8c8k5Yy8FltVNsIsP1iUCSXDfE5cq2pM&si=K24FYKx9JiTMfWsh ▶️ Follow on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4AILSpWLI74daOhECb8Hm0 Chapters 00:00 Welcome Back Annie-Mai 00:52 Why Social SEO matters 02:43 Keyword research tools 06:02 Testing keywords in analytics 09:07 Client audits and strategy 12:43 Avoid keyword stuffing 14:57 Posting times and expectations 20:21 Choosing content formats 25:20 Search intent on social 29:24 Repurposing across platforms 33:52 Trends vs core content 35:54 Meme trend pitfalls 36:36 Viral origins stories 38:58 Brand consistency 42:43 Human first optimisation 48:18 Profile basics that work 52:15 Are followers or views better? 56:24 Recommendations: Actionable tips, tools and Project Hail Mary 59:23 Wrap up

    1h 2m

  6. APR 6

    SEO News Recap: Google Discover & Core Updates, Bing AI Performance Metrics, Web MCP & UCP (Agentic Commerce)

    Jack Chambers-Ward hosts a solo episode of Search With Candour, recapping the last 6 weeks of SEO news from the Core Updates newsletter. Jack covers Google’s February 2026 Discover update, a fast March spam update, and the ongoing March 2026 core update. He then highlights Bing Webmaster Tools, adding AI Performance reporting, Google’s WebMCP new UCP features. 📧 Core Updates: https://coreupdates.com/ 🤝 SearchNorwichXL: https://searchnorwich.org/ Google updates 🔗 https://status.search.google.com/incidents/mYbNTqV1ytDc2fA8hUz4 🔗 https://status.search.google.com/incidents/VbnSXAH4SmEcxPtx4YSD 🔗 https://status.search.google.com/incidents/7eTbAa2jWdToLkraZj5y Bing’s AI performance report 📊 https://blogs.bing.com/webmaster/February-2026/Introducing-AI-Performance-in-Bing-Webmaster-Tools-Public-Preview 📊 https://about.ads.microsoft.com/en/blog/post/march-2026/the-ai-performance-dashboard-your-view-into-where-your-brand-appears-across-the-ai-web UCP and MCP 🛒 https://developer.chrome.com/blog/webmcp-epp 🛒 https://block.github.io/goose/blog/2026/03/17/webmcp-for-beginners/ 🛒 https://ppcnewsfeed.com/ppc-news/2026-03/google-publishes-help-page-universal-commerce-protocol/ 🛒 https://blog.google/products-and-platforms/products/shopping/ucp-updates/ Chapters 00:00 SEO news rundown 00:47 Google Discover Update 02:42 March Spam Update 03:43 March Core Update 05:15 Bing AI metrics debut 06:55 Inside AI Performance Report 11:03 New Bing AI metrics 14:42 WebMCP explained 18:06 UCP Agentic Checkout 20:43 UCP new features 22:45 Walmart vs ChatGPT conversions 25:02 Wrap up and next steps 25:44 Newsletter and event plug 27:16 Final thanks and teaser

    28 min

  7. MAR 30

    How to get technical SEO tickets prioritised & shipped | Alison Moss

    Alison Moss joins Search with Candour to discuss how to prioritise technical SEO fixes and get development tickets actioned. Together, they cover common pitfalls like lack of buy-in and unclear requirements, emphasising translating SEO needs into business outcomes and developer-friendly acceptance criteria, using ticket templates, and providing references. Alison explains prioritising by impact versus effort, helping teams order “high priority” items, and acknowledging SEO competes with other business priorities while building relationships with product and dev teams and supporting testing. Links 🔗Follow Alison on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alison-moss-804a5537/  🎫SearchNorwichXL early bird tickets: https://searchnorwich.org/  🎟️Buy tickets for the Live podcast in Brighton: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/the-efficiency-paradox-why-al-doesnt-make-your-life-easier-live-podcast-tickets-1982302667641?aff=erelexpmlt Time stamps 00:00 Get your dev tickets prioritised with Alison Moss 01:28 Introduction 05:41 Why tech SEO gets stuck 08:29 Sell fixes for buy in 15:25 How to write clear dev tickets 22:06 Prioritise issues smartly 26:47 Pick your battles and quick wins 32:19 Frameworks and relationships 42:47 Handling senior pushback 47:53 Explaining SEO value 48:10 Writing better seo tickets 50:56 Developer context links 52:13 Resurrecting backlog work 54:26 Using external proof 56:42 Don’t be afraid to jump on a bandwagon 59:56 Recommendation: Actionable tip 01:01:08 Recommendation: Tools and software 01:03:06 Recommendation: Butter, Project Hail Mary and Dungeons & Dragons 01:15:06 Where to find Alison 01:16:36 Conclusion

    1h 19m
  8. The key to client partnerships in SEO | Jessica Bettis

    MAR 23

    The key to client partnerships in SEO | Jessica Bettis

    Jack Chambers Ward is joined by Jessica Bettis, Candour’s Director of Strategy, to discuss what makes a strong collaboration between SEO specialists and client partnership/account management. Jack and Jessica discuss their experience of working with clients together, and Jessica explains how client partners define success, translate work into business impact, manage resources and expectations, and nurture trust through onboarding and ongoing check-ins. Follow Jessica: Website: https://withcandour.co.uk/about/team/jessica-bettis LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jessica-bettis/ Jessica’s recommendations: Spend 5–10 minutes aligning before key meetings or responding to feedback.Maintain a dedicated, shared digital space for client context and information.Wuthering Heights (2026) 00:00 Welcome, Jessica Bettis 01:25 Important client partner traits 03:12 How to build respect and trust with your clients 05:18 Commercial context matters 10:20 Building client trust 11:48 Matching teams to clients 16:59 The behind-the-scenes value 24:57 Skills and training balance 30:21 Onboarding and roadmap 34:28 How to prevent client churn 37:10 Resource management 39:52 The joy of surprise rebrands 46:29 Upskilling and training clients 49:56 Team collaboration magic 52:29 Recommendation: Actionable tip  55:31 Recommendation: Tool/software 58:59 Recommendation: Wuthering Heights (2026) 01:04:10 Where to follow Jessica

    1h 5m
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Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
4 Ratings

About

Every Monday, Jack Chambers-Ward has in-depth conversations with SEO experts from around the world. Covering topics from attribution in GA4 to networking tips for introverts and everything in between. Search With Candour is the perfect way to kickstart your working week! https://withcandour.co.uk/podcast

Information

  • Creator
    Candour
  • Years Active
    2019 - 2026
  • Episodes
    360
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Candour
  • Show Website
    Search with Candour

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