The Edward Show

E1006: Mr. David Quaid joins the podcast for a deep, practical discussion about what is really working in SaaS SEO right now.
Edward and David start with audience questions on link building and break down the real risk-to-reward tradeoffs behind different approaches. David explains why relying too heavily on domain authority misses the bigger picture, why page-level context matters more than most people think, and why some of the best link opportunities still come from real business relationships, partner networks, local communities, clients, and integration ecosystems.
The conversation then moves into topical authority, People Also Ask pages, internal linking, and what happens when pages rise, fall, and get rotated out of search. Edward and David talk through how they test SEO ideas in the real world, how they think about authority decay, and why some pages rank with very little content while others stall even when they seem fully optimized.
They also spend time on guest posting, programmatic SEO, thin content, exact match anchors, keyword cannibalization, SaaS competitor pages, attribution, and the tension between SEO teams and brand teams. Later in the episode, they get into the current GEO discussion, why so much of the advice around it is misleading, and why most of the fundamentals still come back to search intent, rankings, page relevance, and user behavior.
Topics covered include:
- Different link building methods and how to think about risk versus reward
- Why domain authority can be misleading when evaluating link opportunities
- The difference between site-wide relevance, page relevance, and topical authority
- Using real-world relationships, integrations, and local business networks for links
- Press releases, broken link building, Wikipedia links, and government site outreach
- When guest posting still works and when it does not
- How PAA pages can help grow authority and support more valuable pages
- Why low-competition pages can outperform long-form content
- The difference between thin content and weak content
- Programmatic SEO for SaaS and why scale without authority often fails
- Internal linking, PageRank decay, and common over-optimization mistakes
- Keyword cannibalization and how similar pages can block each other
- Slugs, titles, headings, and how much on-page SEO is actually necessary
- Measuring SEO impact in SaaS when attribution is messy
- The role of product-led growth versus content-driven lead generation
- Why many GEO claims are recycled SEO myths under a new label
- What SaaS teams should focus on instead of chasing the latest narrative
If you work in SaaS SEO, B2B SEO, or content strategy, this episode is a useful deep dive into how experienced practitioners think through rankings, testing, authority, and growth.
⭐️ David Quaid on 𝕏 - https://x.com/DavidGQuaid
⭐️ David Quaid on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidquaid/
⭐️ David Quaid's agency - https://primaryposition.com/
🚀 Edward's SEO Articles - https://edwardsturm.com/articles/search-engine-optimization/
💎 Compact Keywords - My SEO Course - Get paying customers through SEO - Clear step-by-step video breakdowns - SEO templates to be copied and adapted for your products and services: https://compactkeywords.com/
00:00 Welcome and Agenda
00:43 Link Building Beyond Domain Authority
02:27 Network Based Link Building
03:22 Backlink Lists as Keyword Intel
05:16 Satellite Sites and PAA Hack
10:25 Traffic Links vs High DA
13:52 Relevance and Topical Authority
16:19 YMYL Links and Broken Links
18:18 Wikipedia and Gov Link Tactics
21:05 Guest Posts and Author Bios
26:25 Networking for SEO Referrals
31:25 SEO Subreddit and GEO Hype
43:30 Programmatic SEO vs Authority
47:35 Internal Links Need Authority
48:21 AI FAQs and Page Strategy
50:22 Testing Rankings and Pulling Pages
51:13 Rotation Out and Rehoming URLs
53:45 SEO Takes Time Myth
55:48 Sitewide Quality and Hockey Sticks
01:00:36 Low Volume High Intent SaaS Keywords
01:04:00 Too Much SEO and Internal Linking
01:09:28 Over Optimization and Minimal SEO
01:15:19 Measuring Content vs Product Led Growth
01:25:17 Brand Rules and Keyword Placement
01:28:58 Episode Wrap and Thanks
The Edward Show. Your daily search engine optimization podcast: https://edwardsturm.com/the-edward-show/
#searchengineoptimization #startups #growthhacking #growthmarketing

E1005: How to get high-quality backlinks for health websites.
I came across a discussion from someone struggling to compete with sites that have thousands of backlinks, many of them low quality. This episode walks through what matters in YMYL niches like health, and why chasing volume is often the wrong approach.
If you understand the principles in this episode, you can apply them to any niche where trust, authority, and quality matter.
What we cover:
- Why the health niche (and YMYL overall) is held to a higher standard by Google
- Why low-quality backlinks can hurt your rankings instead of helping
- How a small number of authoritative links can outperform thousands of weak ones
- When guest posting still works, and when it doesn't
- Why long tail keywords are one of the fastest ways to build authority early
- How satisfying search intent (and avoiding pogo-sticking) can build rankings without links
- A step-by-step approach to using AI + journalist outreach to earn high-authority backlinks
- How to use HARO, Featured, and similar platforms to land real media coverage
- Why most people fail at outreach (and how simple follow-ups can compound results)
- Additional backlink sources like directories, podcasts, and product launches
- Why relying on a single link building strategy can look unnatural
Key ideas:
- In health SEO, quality and relevance matter far more than raw backlink count
- Authority can be built through rankings, not just links
- The best backlinks come from real publications, real traffic, and real trust
- Consistency beats trying to do everything at once
This episode is based on real strategies, real examples, and what is currently working in competitive, high-trust niches.
If you are working on a health site, or any YMYL business, this will give you a clearer direction on what to focus on and what to ignore.
⭐️ The AI System to Find Relevant Journalists, Land Coverage, and Earn Ongoing High-Authority Backlinks - https://edwardsturm.com/articles/articles_ai-system-find-journalists-earn-high-authority-backlinks/

⭐️ The Reddit Thread - https://www.reddit.com/r/linkbuilding/comments/1ryw2ji/how_to_build_backlinks_for_health_niche_website/
🚀 Learn SEO for free - https://freeseoknowledge.com/
💎 Compact Keywords - My SEO Course - Get paying customers through SEO - Clear step-by-step video breakdowns - SEO templates to be copied and adapted for your products and services: https://compactkeywords.com/
00:00 Healthcare Backlinks Thread Breakdown
00:39 Health SEO Trust Rules
01:04 Guest Blogging Nuance
01:44 Long Tail Authority Hack
02:42 Outreach Budget Debate
03:14 AI Journalist Outreach
05:06 Pillar Content Reality Check
05:43 Quality Links Win
06:07 HARO Success Story
06:29 Mix Strategies Naturally
07:03 Targeted Pitching Tips
07:43 Daily Link Building Plan
08:17 Wrap Up
The Edward Show. Your daily search engine optimization podcast: https://edwardsturm.com/the-edward-show/
#searchengineoptimization #seo #linkbuilding #digitalmarketing

E1004: Answering listener questions about some of the biggest topics in SEO right now: AI writing, outbound links, ranking without backlinks, and whether SEO is still worth doing.
I talk through when it makes sense to link out from your content, including blog posts and bottom-of-funnel pages, and why linking to useful sources can make your content more credible. I also explain how I think about citing statistics, supporting claims, and using outbound links in a way that helps both readers and search performance.
I also respond to a question about AI writing and what people usually get wrong. The issue is not that your writing has to become worse or less polished to avoid sounding AI-generated. The real problem is leaving in the most obvious patterns that make writing feel generic or untrustworthy. I explain which signals tend to stand out and how to reduce them without flattening your voice.
I get into a comment about ranking without backlinks. This is one of my favorite parts of the discussion. I explain why relevance, topical authority, site structure, pruning weak pages, and reducing pogo sticking can often matter more than people think. For many sites, improving those fundamentals is more realistic and more useful than obsessing over getting stronger backlinks.
I also answer an honest question about whether it is time to move on from SEO altogether, especially with Google pushing harder into AI. I share why I still think SEO is one of the best marketing channels available, especially if you sell something and can target people who are actively looking for it. I also explain why SEO is getting harder for top-of-funnel publishers who rely on ads or affiliate revenue, and why having a product or service to sell changes the equation.
I cover:
- When to link out from blog posts, landing pages, and sales pages
- Why citing sources can improve trust and clarity
- How to think about outbound links without hoarding authority
- What makes AI writing feel obvious to readers
- Why you do not need to make your writing worse to make it sound human
- Which AI writing patterns are most likely to hurt trust
- How some sites rank without strong backlink profiles
- Why relevance and topical authority still matter so much
- The role of site architecture and pruning in SEO performance
- Whether SEO is still worth doing in a changing search landscape
- Why SEO is strongest when tied to something you actually sell
- Why videos should support the same keywords you target on your site
If you are trying to figure out what still works in SEO, and what matters less than people say, this episode should help.
And if you have a question you want me to answer in a future episode, leave it in the comments.
⭐️ E1003: Stop Hoarding SEO Authority: Nofollow Links Don't Work the Way You Think - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xjlDk8yO5RY
⭐️ E999: How to Humanize AI Content (Before It Destroys Your SEO) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t8CoElpldtk
⭐️ E974: Google's New AI Patent Could Replace Your Website - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0kTEYwiRBbg
🚀 Learn SEO for free - https://freeseoknowledge.com/
💎 Compact Keywords - My SEO Course - Get paying customers through SEO - Clear step-by-step video breakdowns - SEO templates to be copied and adapted for your products and services: https://compactkeywords.com/
00:00 Listener Qs Kickoff
00:27 When To Link Out
01:07 Citing Sources Builds Trust
02:39 Humanizing AI Writing
03:40 Avoid AI Giveaways
06:04 Ranking Without Backlinks
08:24 Google AI Patent Fears
10:47 Should SEOs Move On
12:28 Sell Something With SEO
13:16 Wrap Up And Thanks
The Edward Show. Your daily search engine optimization podcast: https://edwardsturm.com/the-edward-show/
#searchengineoptimization #seo #marketingstrategy #digitalmarketing

E1003: Breaking down an SEO video funnel that can work especially well for high-ticket offers.
You create short videos that answer real top-of-funnel keywords people already have. Those videos rank and send people to a form. The form qualifies them. AI buckets the leads. Then, before the sales call, you automatically send follow-up videos tailored to the type of prospect they are.
This works well because the person is not arriving cold. They have already watched your content, heard you explain something useful, taken time to fill out the form, and seen material that speaks to their specific situation before they ever get on a call.
I walk through the full process from start to finish.
What I cover:
- The tools you need to build this funnel
- How to choose the right top-of-funnel keywords
- Examples of video topics for different business types
- How to record short mobile videos quickly
- How to edit videos with AI
- Why less competitive questions are a good place to start
- How to use a memorable domain as your call to action
- What to put on the form page
- Why the form should qualify leads instead of only maximizing conversions
- How to use seven form fields to segment prospects
- Connecting the form to Zapier and Google Sheets
- How to group leads into customer archetypes
- How to send different follow-up videos based on each archetype
- What those longer follow-up videos should look like
- Why these videos can improve trust before the sales call
- What to do if someone does not close on the call
- How to follow up with a short-term discount and more tailored content
- Why bottom-of-funnel SEO should be part of the wider strategy
Tools mentioned:
- Ahrefs, Moz, or Semrush for keyword research
- Typeform or a form on your site
- Zapier for automations
- Descript for recording and editing
- Mailchimp or Zapier for email flows
- A memorable domain with a 301 redirect
- Calendly for call booking
- Google Sheets for organizing lead data
A few key ideas:
- Short videos can rank quickly for the right search terms
- Personalized follow-up content can make the sales call much warmer
- Bottom-of-funnel SEO keywords usually have stronger buying intent
If you sell a high-ticket service, coaching offer, software product, or subscription and want a practical way to connect SEO with sales calls, this episode lays out a full process you can adapt.
The form prompt:
Write only the output for a high-converting ToF lead form (no explanations), including a compelling headline, a short subheadline that sets a realistic expectation (they'll receive relevant content based on their answers, not a fully personalized plan), and exactly 7 concise, low-friction form fields: (1) name, (2) email, (3–6) four broad, industry-agnostic questions that uncover the user's current situation, goal, main challenge, and key context for segmentation into 4–5 archetypes, and (7) a final field/CTA that directs them to book a call via a calendar link; keep everything short, conversational, and ensure the questions are general enough to work across any niche while still enabling clear segmentation; now generate the output for this business: [INSERT BUSINESS].
⭐️ My Exact Social Media Posting Strategy - https://edwardsturm.com/articles/social-media-posting-strategy/
🚀 Learn SEO for free - https://freeseoknowledge.com/
💎 Compact Keywords - My SEO Course - Get paying customers through SEO - Clear step-by-step video breakdowns - SEO templates to be copied and adapted for your products and services: https://compactkeywords.com/
00:00 High Ticket Funnel Overview
00:42 Tools You Need
01:54 Top of Funnel Video SEO
03:27 Editing With Descript
04:37 Keyword Competition Strategy
06:51 Form Setup And CTA
08:14 Lead Segmentation Automations
09:00 Archetype Warm Up Videos
12:05 Sales Call And Follow Up
16:14 Wrap Up And Goodbye
The Edward Show. Your daily search engine optimization podcast: https://edwardsturm.com/the-edward-show/
#searchengineoptimization #salesfunnels #marketingfunnels #seo

E1002: We break down one of the most persistent SEO myths: the idea that you can "hoard" or control SEO authority by using nofollow links.
This belief has been around for over a decade, and despite Google addressing it years ago, many SEOs and marketers still structure their sites around it. They avoid linking out. They overuse nofollow. They try to channel authority internally.
It doesn't work.
This episode explains what actually happens when you use nofollow links, why PageRank sculpting is no longer a viable tactic, and what you should focus on instead.
We walk through insights originally shared by former Google Head of Web Spam Matt Cutts and explain how they still apply today.
What you'll learn:
- What PageRank is and how it flows through links
- Why the idea of "saving" SEO authority is flawed
- What changed when Google updated how nofollow works
- Why nofollow links don't redistribute authority - they discard it
- Why avoiding outbound links can hurt your site
- When (and when not) to use nofollow
- How internal linking actually influences rankings
- Why site architecture matters more than link sculpting
- How to think about linking from high-authority pages
- What to focus on instead of outdated SEO tactics
We also cover:
- Why linking out to relevant, high-quality sources can be beneficial
- How Google evaluates link behavior today
- Practical ways to improve your internal linking structure
- The role of usability and crawlability in SEO performance
If you've been trying to control link flow with nofollow or avoiding outbound links altogether, this episode will help you reset your approach.
Focus on clear site structure, useful content, and logical linking. That's what moves rankings.
⭐️ PageRank sculpting - https://www.mattcutts.com/blog/pagerank-sculpting/
🚀 Learn SEO for free - https://freeseoknowledge.com/
💎 Compact Keywords - My SEO Course - Get paying customers through SEO - Clear step-by-step video breakdowns - SEO templates to be copied and adapted for your products and services: https://compactkeywords.com/
00:00 The SEO Myth
00:43 Matt Cutts Context
01:19 PageRank Basics
03:16 What Nofollow Does
03:48 Why PageRank Sculpting Fails
05:57 What To Do Instead
08:05 Outbound Links Matter
11:27 Wrap Up And Thanks
The Edward Show. Your daily search engine optimization podcast: https://edwardsturm.com/the-edward-show/
#searchengineoptimization #seo #pagerank #digitalmarketing