niche surfer - Wave Issue 137

AI Writers Galore; Google's Topic Authority Revealed; SGE is Out in the Wild; My Midjourney pSEO Process; No-Bureaucracy Link Building; and Much More!

Author

Yoyao
May 27, 2023

FIRST …

Lots of talk this week about 1-Click AI Writers…

No tool is just one click. And you wouldn’t want it if it was either.

You want to have control over the process. Things like:

  • Picking the sources used for article generation. Only using relevant ones.

  • Creating outlines to make sure you’re filling in the information gaps.

  • Adding in keywords for the AI to include in specific sections.

  • Writing style, POV, and other options.

SurferSEO’s AI Writer launched with its high base pricing of $29 per article. That’s on top of their regular monthly pricing. Word on the web is they’re looking at a more affordable option. Their contention is they are using GPT-4 32k as the model.

PageOptimizer Pro is also be launching their AI Writer on Monday. They are also using the GPT-4 32k model and prices will come out to around $5 for 1000 word articles.

Frase.io has had their AI writer for quite some time (9+ months) and recently launched an update that gives you the flexibility and control to have the AI write what you want in each section OR to make it a 3-5 click process. They have a sample writer here so you can see how it works with the content optimizer and other tools together. Frase uses Davinci for the articles and GPT-3.5-turbo for other non-article writing. They’re working on integrating GPT-4.

Zimmwriter is another one that gives you control and flexibility too over the content. It’s made for PCs, but I use it for free on my Mac with Wineskin. There’s a great doc made by the community that explains how to use it. Mac is coming soon and the LTD deal will be going bye-bye. This uses your own OpenAI key, so it’s very affordable and allows you to use Davinci, 3.5-turbo, or GPT-4.

Koala.sh is one that if you haven’t heard being promoted, I hope you haven’t been living under a rock. There’s a sample writer too that you can use for free for 500 words. They use 3.5-turbo and GPT-4 with different prices.

Cuppa.sh is currently a free tool that enables you to use your own OpenAI key, so you’re paying at-cost without paying for the overhead of teams. It’s done a nice job of emulating Koala. This tool just changed owners and there’s currently a LTD deal that will end on May 31st. So if you want a cheaper Koala, this could be it. They use 3.5-turbo and GPT-4 with your own API keys, so it’s at-cost.

Others - There are plenty of others like that I just haven’t tried or had enough time with. Don’t forget all the AppSumo deals for AI Writers. I’ve tried so many of them briefly and quickly wrote them off due to the poor quality when they first launched.

My current go-to writers are Frase and Zimmwriter, with each serving slightly different uses due to different types of content. The content and writing are more in tune with the quality I want for my sites.

If there’s interest, maybe I’ll find the time to check out different ones and give my thoughts.

SEO

Google has announced the previously-private "topic authority" ranking system to enhance its search algorithm for searches about news. It’s been in use for several year now.

This tool prioritizes expert sources for specific topics like health, politics, or finance, making it easier for Google Search and Google News users to find relevant and knowledgeable content. A few of the more prominent ranking signals:

  • How notable a source is for a topic or location

  • Influence and original reporting

  • Source reputation

My Take: Don’t be surprised if they have a “Topic Authority” system for non-news queries as well. If you’ve ever had any doubts about topical authority as a ‘thing,’ this should quash those doubts.

Open up your inbox and check for the email with the news of your access! If you haven’t signed up for the waitlist yet, get yourself on the list here.

  1. Easily get up to speed on a new or complicated topic.

  2. Uncover quick tips for your specific questions.

  3. Discover a range of products and things to consider while shopping.

Early users like Lily Ray are already seeing SGE displaying content without citing sources…Google SearchLiaison responds with “Generative responses [do cite! (You just need to find it)]”

My Take: It will be interesting to see how Google responds and adjusts, if they do at all.

SEO Ripples:

TOOLS AND RESOURCES

Sumit from SerpNames has launched SerpNamesFinder.com to more easily find the domain metrics for expiring domains on GoDaddy auctions. It’s a cool tool that’ll help you find something interesting.

@NashSitoi on Twitter wanted to know how I used Midjourney on my SOSP pSEO project. Unfortunately, there’s no elegant way that I’ve found, like with an official API, so I keep things a bit more manual.

CONTENT

Keyword Insights covers the significant but often overlooked issue of 'Orphan Pages' in SEO, pages that are not linked to from any other page on the same website.

The article explains why orphan pages can harm your SEO, reducing visibility in search results, providing a poor user experience, wasting crawl budget, and more.

Learn how to find your orphan pages and suggestions for dealing with them, such as internally linking them, setting them as no-index, deleting them, redirecting them to relevant pages, and preventative measures to stop them from occurring in the future.

Ashley Simpson answers the intriguing question: How much do YouTubers make? It clarifies that earnings vary greatly between channels, and not all YouTubers make money from their videos.

To earn from views, one must qualify for the YouTube Partner Program, requiring 1,000 subscribers and 4,000 watch hours within a year or 10 million public shorts views in the last 90 days. On average, a YouTuber makes $65,999 annually or about $18 per 1,000 views. Earnings can also come from affiliate marketing or merchandise sales.

AI

AI Ripples:

  • Hot Midjourney prompt for food recipe images. Just copy/paste the list of ingredients directly as a prompt. I tried this and it works great for dishes, but not that great when it comes to baked goods and desserts.

  • OpenAI’s Sam Altman writes about the governance of superintelligence because it poses potential existential risks that we can't merely react to but need to proactively manage. He and others propose a global authority to inspect, audit, and ensure compliance with safety standards in superintelligence efforts.

  • Apple restricts use of OpenAI's ChatGPT for employees, Wall Street Journal reports. Can’t use Microsoft-owned Github’s Copilot for writing software code.

  • Nvidia’s earnings report on Wednesday afternoon, May 24th, reaffirmed that AI companies are not going anywhere and are here to stay. They’re about the join the trillion-dollar market cap club with Apple, Microsoft, Alphabet, and Amazon.

LINK BUILDING

Charles Floate speaks for the last time at any SEO conference that’s not his own. This is a great overview of the current link building world. When Charles talks about links, you should listen.

He coveres everything about the current market, buying and selling links, the true cost of links, and a very interesting “internal redirect” old school case study in there too at the end.

He does say it’s black hat, but says it works and has survived multiple algorithm updates. But this is also because he doesn’t like redirecting aged domains to his sites.

Jenny Abouobaia discusses how event link building is a unique way to land killer links that your competitors can’t easily replicate.

Event link building is a strategy to get links to your website by participating in or sponsoring local, national, or global events.

Links can be earned either by hosting an event or sponsoring one, and they are typically from third-party event sites, blogs, and press, which can be relevant both topically and geographically.

Jake Serota discusses outlines a strategic approach for creating unique, compelling infographics to generate high-quality backlinks. He shares well-executed infographics can boost site traffic by up to 12% and enhance site rankings.

Key steps include determining the topic, designing a captivating graphic, and effectively promoting the infographic through social media, infographic directories, and email outreach.

MARKETING

Social media reputation management isn’t about controlling the narrative — it's about listening, learning from feedback, and responding in a way that builds trust in your brand.

With the growth of generative AI cutting into organic traffic, building that brand and driving social media traffic is more important. This is a good primer on understanding brands, business and personal, on social media and how you can start managing your reputation.

EDUCATION

Ahrefs free affiliate marketing course for beginners guiding you through the entire process of creating a successful revenue-generating affiliate site. The course is divided into five modules, each focusing on a crucial aspect of affiliate marketing:

  • Module 1: Affiliate Marketing Basics

  • Module 2: Finding and Qualifying Affiliate Niches and Programs

  • Module 3: Planning Your Affiliate Site and Conducting Keyword Research

  • Module 4: Content Creation for Affiliate Sites

  • Module 5: Link Building for Affiliate Sites

BUSINESS IDEAS

Nick Chi at Empire Flippers talks about market normalization, valuations dropping, listings sitting longer, and the Online Business Value Crash. He talks about why 2021 saw inflated multiples and why we may not see them again fro many years.

But all is not lost, and in fact, it’s better than it was in 2018 and 2019, and we'll explain how to continue to sell successfully through what has become a buyer's market.

Roland Fraiser explores how SEO consultants can elevate their income by transitioning from traditional payment models to equity-based compensation.

This alternative model leverages their knowledge, skills, and connections, compensating them for long-term contributions and growth in business value. Roland emphasizes the importance of strategic positioning, collaboration, and effective communication.

He also outlines steps to successfully consult for equity, which include focusing on businesses with cash flow, quantifying the value they can bring, and negotiating terms reflecting their added value. For consultants willing to put in the effort, this can pave the way for higher earnings and quality of life.

My Take: This is an interesting model, especially if your potential clients are more cash-strapped. If anyone has done this, I’d love to hear your experiences. Reply back and let me know!

NEWS

  • Elon Musk's Neuralink wins FDA approval for human study of brain implants. In the future, all you’ll need to do is get a brain implant to start curing certain conditions, as well as browse the web.

  • Elon Musk’s other company, Twitter, has a new API offering, the Pro level for $5,000 per month for a million tweets - which is similar to the free API access that was available up till February 2023.

  • Meta hit with record-breaking $1.3 billion fine over Facebook EU data transfers to the US. Complaints started way back in 2013.

  • Starting in December 2023, Google may delete your account and contents if it has not been used or signed into for at least 2 years – including content within Google Workspace (Gmail, Docs, Drive, Meet, Calendar) and Google Photos. The policy only applies to personal Google Accounts, and will not affect accounts for organizations like schools or businesses.

  • Wordfence’s latest Vulnerability Report is a remind to keep your plugins updated. 82 vulnerabilities were disclosed in 59 WordPress Plugins and 11 WordPress themes, along with 6 in WordPress Core. Don’t think that a “big” company’s plugin is safe. In fact, those are probably gone after the most because they have the most users.

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