BlogInsightsCommunity and Content: The Real Future of SEO and AI

Community and Content: The Real Future of SEO and AI

In our latest episode of the Grow to Market Podcast, I had a fascinating discussion with Dariia Panchenko, Marketing Manager at Fractional Teams, who specialises in SEO, AI, and community-driven growth. Together, we explored the complex and evolving landscape of modern marketing—particularly how traditional SEO practices, the rapid growth of AI-driven content, and community platforms like Reddit and Quora are coming together to shape a new era in digital marketing.

Contrary to popular claims that “SEO is dead,” Dariia passionately explained that foundational SEO practices still play a crucial role, especially for startups and emerging tech businesses. While some marketers prematurely declare traditional techniques such as guest blogging, directory listings, and authentic link-building obsolete, Dariia firmly believes these methods still hold significant value if executed thoughtfully and genuinely.

We also dived into the explosive growth of AI-generated content. Dariia shared insights into how, despite AI’s power to streamline content creation, the internet is increasingly flooded with robotic, repetitive articles that lack genuine human perspective. Drawing from personal experience, she recalled encountering a surprisingly insightful article from 2007 that felt refreshingly human compared to the automated outputs common today, highlighting a critical lesson: readers (and search engines) still appreciate genuine human expression.

Our conversation then moved towards community-driven platforms like Reddit and Quora. Dariia offered valuable advice on how businesses can successfully engage these platforms—not by overt selling, but by providing genuine value, answering questions, and building authentic relationships. She reminded us that the techniques to succeed on these platforms align closely with traditional SEO principles, further reinforcing that quality, relevancy, and authenticity remain vital to effective marketing.

We continued discussing the increased challenge marketers face with attribution in an era dominated by featured snippets, zero-click searches, and AI-driven results. Here, Dariia pointed out the importance of content that not only ranks well but genuinely connects with readers, inspiring meaningful actions rather than just attracting superficial clicks.

For startups and businesses operating on tight budgets, Dariia emphasised that achieving marketing success doesn’t require massive ad spend. Instead, smart and sustainable growth can come from strategically blending classic SEO methods, genuine community engagement, and careful AI integration.

About Grow2Market

If this is your first time hearing about Grow2Market, welcome! This podcast is where I share actionable sales and marketing strategies, tailored especially for the B2B tech industry. My goal is to combine real-world experiences with practical advice to help you master the challenges of business growth.

Let’s Connect

If you’re interested in navigating the exciting and sometimes confusing intersection of SEO, AI, and online communities, this episode with Dariia Panchenko is a must-listen.

Connect with Dariia on LinkedIn to follow her insights and stay up to date with her latest advice and strategies.

This article has been written to support an episode of the same name in the Grow2Market podcast series, dedicated to exploring sales and marketing strategies in the B2B tech industries.

Please don’t hesitate to reach out to us with any questions, comments, or support with any of the topics addressed.

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Grow2Market podcast series is all about sharing transformational ideas and real-life experiences to help telco, cloud and IT businesses, whether they are startups, established or pivoting.

Hi! I'm Tim Meredith, CEO at Fractional Teams. I write about the latest industry insights and give advice on Unified Comms development and growth.