SEO & Brand Journalism: A Conversation with Katie Wagner

In this episode of the Unscripted SEO podcast, host Jeremy Rivera interviews Katie Wagner, President & CEO of KWSM Digital Marketing Agency. They dive deep into the evolution of SEO, the importance of brand journalism, and how businesses can adapt to the changing digital landscape including AI overviews and LLM-based search. Guest Information Katie Wagner President & CEO, KWSM Digital Marketing Former CNN Television Anchor (15 years in journalism) Founded KWSM in 2010 Expert in lead generation and brand journalism Connect with Katie: Website: kwsmdigital.com LinkedIn: Katie Wagner (red dress profile picture) Host Information Jeremy Rivera Founder, SEO Arcade Host, Unscripted SEO Podcast SEO Expert & Consultant Connect with Jeremy: About: Jeremy Rivera Bio Podcast: Unscripted SEO Key Topics Discussed 1. The Evolution of SEO From Google reverse engineering to brand journalism Impact of AI overviews and rich snippets The rise of LLM-based search (ChatGPT, Claude) How E-E-A-T and helpful content updates changed the game 2. Brand Journalism Strategy Creating deeper stories around the humans in a business Two-tier content approach: top-funnel educational vs. bottom-funnel conversion Quality over quantity in traffic and conversions Building credibility through authentic storytelling 3. Revenue-Focused Marketing Moving beyond vanity metrics to actual revenue generation Importance of understanding profit margins and business fundamentals Customer journey mapping and conversion optimization The sales process beyond initial website conversions 4. Near Bound Marketing Leveraging existing customer relationships for growth Strategic partnerships and referral systems Using customer testimonials and case studies effectively IP detection and heat mapping for customer journey insights 5. Case Study: Save Fry Oil Brand recognition challenges in search results Creating the "Restaurant Talks" podcast strategy 248% organic traffic increase through brand journalism Building authority through industry-specific content 6. PR and Media Relations Modern press release strategy (not for links, but for audience access) Press digest approach to journalist outreach Transferring trust through media placements Content repurposing from media appearances 7. Content Creation and Distribution "Create once, distribute forever" philosophy Podcasts as ultimate keyword research (30k-40k words per episode) Every brand must be a content creator Repurposing video content for SEO benefits Resources & Tools Mentioned Companies & Agencies KWSM Digital Marketing - Katie's agency Right Thing Agency - Nashville SEO agency SEOteric - Matt Brooks' company Save Fry Oil - Case study company Podcasts & Content Restaurant Talks by Save Fry Oil - Industry podcast case study