What's The Theory?

Search Theory
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What's the theory is an exciting new SEO podcast that explores the theories and myths surrounding the search industry's tactics, trends, algorithmic changes and AI. Think of us like the myth busters, but for SEO. Your hosts aren't Adam Savage and Jamie Hyneman though, so you'll have to make do with David Vernon and Sara Kavanagh, the co-founders of Search Theory with a combined experience spanning decades. David and Sara have worked with brands like Berghaus, Kickers, Mitre, Lloyds Banking Group, Speedo, Yamaha and JD Sports Group. It's fair to say they've got a bit of skin in the game. Want us to explore a search theory you've been thinking of? Let us know by providing feedback and telling us what you want us to explore next.

Episodes

  1. 4d ago

    Is The Rise In Young Leadership A Good Thing?

    Is the rise in young leadership a good thing? David and Sara share their experiences with dealing with leadership challenges early in their career.

    40 min

  2. Jun 9

    Is Paid Media Impacted By AI?

    Everybody is talking about AI taking over the digital advertising world right now. But is it actually optimising your paid media, or is it just creating a silent black hole for your hard-earned ad spend? In this episode of What's the Theory?, we’re pulling back the curtain on how AI is quietly rewriting the rules of PPC and Paid Social. While the organic search world faces highly visible disruptions right on the SERP, the paid media landscape has been undergoing a massive, hidden backend transformation. We’re diving deep into the automated match types making a sudden comeback, the death of historical search query data, and the aggressive moves by platforms like Meta and ChatGPT to monetise conversational interfaces. Spoiler alert: You can't just flip an automated switch and walk away. We are officially busting the theory that AI is a completely hands-off, set-and-forget solution for your ad accounts, and breaking down exactly why your human strategic brain is still your ultimate paid media superpower. What You'll Learn (Takeaways)The Illusion of Automation: Why modern machine learning engines look seamless on the surface, but can initially serve low-quality placements if left entirely unguided.The Data Black Hole: How the death of exact search query metrics and the shift toward "thematic" terms are forcing advertisers to completely change how they track consumer intent.The Creative Level-Up: How to weaponise new generative features like Google's Asset Studio to spin up high-quality video assets from static images on a bootstrap budget.Platform Showdowns: The real-world pros and cons of Google's rapid deployment vs. Meta's non-transparent "black box" approach and ChatGPT's early-stage ad formatting.Chapters00:00 The Paid Media AI Revolution06:45 PPC Then vs. Now: The Aggressive Return of Broad Match13:20 Phasing Out DSA: Navigating the Mandatory Migration to Performance Max19:55 The Transparency Problem: Losing Granular Search Query Data25:10 Platform Showdown: Google vs. Meta Advantage+ vs. ChatGPT Ads29:35 Levelling the Playing Field: AI Video Generation in Asset Studio34:15 Behind the Scenes: Riverside Platform Technical Bloopers & Outtakes To find out how to keep your human strategy ahead of evolving digital trends, visit the team at www.searchtheory.co.uk.

    36 min

  3. May 29

    Can Claude Really Run Your SEO?

    Everybody is screaming about AI taking over the search world right now. But is it actually fixing SEO, or is it just breaking the internet? In this episode of What's The Theory, we’re pulling back the curtain on the massive AI hype machine. Look, tools like ChatGPT are great for brainstorming, but relying purely on bots to build your search strategy is a shortcut to disaster. We’re diving into the dark side of automated content, the heavy skepticism blowing up the industry, and the very real limitations these tools face. Spoiler alert: Google still wants humans writing for humans. We are officially busting the theory that AI is a magic silver bullet for your traffic, and breaking down exactly why your human brain is still your ultimate SEO superpower. What You'll Learn (Takeaways)The Illusion of Smart Tools: Why AI software looks brilliant on the surface but fundamentally fails at deep SEO strategy.The Collateral Damage: How over-relying on automated content can actually tank your hard-earned rankings.The Human Advantage: Why Google's latest algorithms crave real human experience, and how to weaponize your unique expertise.Chapters00:00 The AI SEO Hype Train08:50 The Reality Check: What AI Tools Actually Can (and Can't) Do15:14 Why Everyone Is Suddenly Skeptical21:26 The Human Element Google Craves35:47 Theory Busted: Why Bots Won’t Steal Your Rankings

    34 min

  4. May 19

    Is BrightonSEO All It's Hyped Up To Be?

    What The Theory? Episode 1: The Truth Behind Brighton SEO & The GEO MythSearch Theory Co-Founders David Vernon and Sarah Kavanagh pull back the curtain on the latest industry trends from Brighton SEO, exposing why the heavily marketed concept of GEO (Generative Experience Optimisation) is mostly a sales gimmick. They reveal the real reason behind mysterious organic traffic drops, the changing behaviour of modern consumers, and why the absolute basics of technical SEO still beat AI hype every single time. David Vernon and Sarah Kavanagh are veteran search marketers and the Co-Founders of Search Theory, an agency built on transparent, data-driven strategies. With years of experience managing campaigns for leading brands across the UK, they launched What The Theory? to debunk industry myths, challenge lazy agency narratives, and help businesses find what actually moves the needle in modern search. They explain:The "GEO" hype cycle and why it’s just a repackaging of old-school long-tail SEOThe silent analytics mistake currently hiding up to 30% of your organic trafficHow LLMs actually crawl data, and why standard crawl budgets make cheap link-building uselessWhy keyword strategies are shifting from simple queries to 120-word conversational promptsThe transparency crisis between brands and agencies that is quietly killing campaign performanceTimestamps00:00 Intro & Welcome to What’s The Theory?01:31 Moving Past the AI Doom-and-Gloom of Last Year02:15 Exposing the Birth of the "GEO" Narrative03:27 You Can Rank Number One on Google and Still Lose05:11 Going Back to the Bare-Bones Basics of Search07:50 Real Market Share Data: Google vs. ChatGPT, Gemini & Perplexity08:32 The No-Click Problem: How Sponsored Ads are Taking Over the SERP09:25 Marketers Don't Have a Conversion Problem—They Have an Attribution Problem11:10 The Tracking Nightmare: How Old UA Code is Screwing Your GA4 Data13:15 Consent Mode Updates and Losing 30% of Your Visible Traffic16:15 What Does GEO Actually Mean?17:55 Analysing the Data: Why People Use 120-Word Prompts on LLMs21:40 The Ultimate Truth: "Good GEO is Just Good SEO"23:00 Why You Can't Wisely Optimize Product Pages for Conversational Prompts26:30 The Technical Risk: Crawl Bloat, Site Speed, and Tanking Core Web Vitals28:45 For God's Sake, Use Formatting! (Paragraphs, Headings, and Citations)31:00 The Rebirth of Link-Building Farms: How Agencies Rebrand to Survive35:30 YouTube: Capitalizing on the World's Second-Largest Search Engine37:15 The Cross-Platform Consumer Journey (Reddit, YouTube, and Verification)39:48 Rant Time: Laziness and AI-Generated Presentations at Brighton SEO41:10 The Surprising Environmental and Carbon Cost of AI Search43:00 Outro: Becoming the Mythbusters of Digital Marketing Enjoyed the episode? Share the episode with fellow marketers and businesses navigating the shifting landscape of search: Have a theory or an SEO myth you want David and Sarah to bust in the next episode? Let us know in the comments below! Visit www.searchtheory.co.uk for more information.

    46 min
  • 4 Episodes

About

What's the theory is an exciting new SEO podcast that explores the theories and myths surrounding the search industry's tactics, trends, algorithmic changes and AI. Think of us like the myth busters, but for SEO. Your hosts aren't Adam Savage and Jamie Hyneman though, so you'll have to make do with David Vernon and Sara Kavanagh, the co-founders of Search Theory with a combined experience spanning decades. David and Sara have worked with brands like Berghaus, Kickers, Mitre, Lloyds Banking Group, Speedo, Yamaha and JD Sports Group. It's fair to say they've got a bit of skin in the game. Want us to explore a search theory you've been thinking of? Let us know by providing feedback and telling us what you want us to explore next.

Information

  • Creator
    Search Theory
  • Years Active
    2K
  • Episodes
    4
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © 2026 Search Theory