Duane Forrester
@duaneforrester.bsky.social
COO at LynxPulse, Past: SVP of Search, Indexr.ai, VP, Industry Insights @Yext SEO @MSN & Bing Webmaster Tools guy. Author: How To Make Money With Your Blog & Turn Clicks Into Customers. Guitar Builder.
Fresh article on my Substack: Same AI, same question, different answers. Your brand can fade or strengthen in AI answers depending on context you can’t control. duaneforresterdecodes.substack.com/p/the-ai-con...
The AI Consistency Paradox
Why the Same AI Gives Different Answers (And What That Means for Your Brand)
duaneforresterdecodes.substack.com
November 23, 2025 at 3:35 PM
Fresh article on my Substack: Same AI, same question, different answers. Your brand can fade or strengthen in AI answers depending on context you can’t control. duaneforresterdecodes.substack.com/p/the-ai-con...
Proof. I mean, literally, this is the proof copy from Amazon for my new book. It’s real! 🙂 Naturally, I ordered some copies for myself, and they’ll arrive the day after launch day (Dec 1st). Getting excited for this project all over again!
November 19, 2025 at 11:18 PM
Proof. I mean, literally, this is the proof copy from Amazon for my new book. It’s real! 🙂 Naturally, I ordered some copies for myself, and they’ll arrive the day after launch day (Dec 1st). Getting excited for this project all over again!
Out Dec 1 on Amazon: My new book, The Machine Layer. I discuss how AI systems judge trust and visibility long before people see your work. If AI impacts your career, this one’s for you. Please consider grabbing a copy!
November 17, 2025 at 9:16 PM
Out Dec 1 on Amazon: My new book, The Machine Layer. I discuss how AI systems judge trust and visibility long before people see your work. If AI impacts your career, this one’s for you. Please consider grabbing a copy!
AI answers are growing. Trust decides who gets cited. If your brand isn’t verifiable, it won’t be visible. Full post: duaneforresterdecodes.substack.com/p/the-role-o...
The Role of Brand Authority and E-E-A-T in the AI Search Era
Why trust and verifiable expertise, not just rankings, will decide which brands are visible when AI systems write the answers.
duaneforresterdecodes.substack.com
November 16, 2025 at 10:42 PM
AI answers are growing. Trust decides who gets cited. If your brand isn’t verifiable, it won’t be visible. Full post: duaneforresterdecodes.substack.com/p/the-role-o...
68,486 words. 324 pages. 14 chapters. Years of experience distilled into my new book.
"The Machine Layer" drops soon. Ready to understand how to protect and grow your career in the new world of AI search?
"The Machine Layer" drops soon. Ready to understand how to protect and grow your career in the new world of AI search?
November 14, 2025 at 12:05 AM
68,486 words. 324 pages. 14 chapters. Years of experience distilled into my new book.
"The Machine Layer" drops soon. Ready to understand how to protect and grow your career in the new world of AI search?
"The Machine Layer" drops soon. Ready to understand how to protect and grow your career in the new world of AI search?
Every decade the web invents a new way to say “Trust me.”
This time it’s llms.txt.
Here’s why the engines and platforms are politely ignoring it (for now).
duaneforresterdecodes.substack.com/p/llmstxt-th...
This time it’s llms.txt.
Here’s why the engines and platforms are politely ignoring it (for now).
duaneforresterdecodes.substack.com/p/llmstxt-th...
llms.txt: The Web’s Next Great Idea, or Its Next Spam Magnet
A look at the promise, the risk, and the platform hesitation.
duaneforresterdecodes.substack.com
November 9, 2025 at 7:27 PM
Every decade the web invents a new way to say “Trust me.”
This time it’s llms.txt.
Here’s why the engines and platforms are politely ignoring it (for now).
duaneforresterdecodes.substack.com/p/llmstxt-th...
This time it’s llms.txt.
Here’s why the engines and platforms are politely ignoring it (for now).
duaneforresterdecodes.substack.com/p/llmstxt-th...
Traditional SEO taught us to optimize for algorithms. Now we optimize for models.
The stack has split from crawl & index to retrieval, reasoning, and response.
The future of visibility starts here:
duaneforresterdecodes.substack.com/p/the-new-op...
The stack has split from crawl & index to retrieval, reasoning, and response.
The future of visibility starts here:
duaneforresterdecodes.substack.com/p/the-new-op...
The New Optimization Stack: Where SEO Meets AI Retrieval
Why the old SEO layers still matter and how new retrieval and reasoning systems are redefining visibility
duaneforresterdecodes.substack.com
November 2, 2025 at 9:18 PM
Traditional SEO taught us to optimize for algorithms. Now we optimize for models.
The stack has split from crawl & index to retrieval, reasoning, and response.
The future of visibility starts here:
duaneforresterdecodes.substack.com/p/the-new-op...
The stack has split from crawl & index to retrieval, reasoning, and response.
The future of visibility starts here:
duaneforresterdecodes.substack.com/p/the-new-op...
Browsers are evolving from passive windows to active agents that think, decide, and act. When that happens, discovery, trust, and marketing itself all change. Here’s what happens when the browser starts doing the work for the user: duaneforresterdecodes.substack.com/p/how-agenti...
How Agentic Browsers Will Change Digital Marketing
As browsers learn to think and act, marketers must learn to adapt.
duaneforresterdecodes.substack.com
October 26, 2025 at 8:52 PM
Browsers are evolving from passive windows to active agents that think, decide, and act. When that happens, discovery, trust, and marketing itself all change. Here’s what happens when the browser starts doing the work for the user: duaneforresterdecodes.substack.com/p/how-agenti...
AI assistants and search engines don’t always agree. The good news: you can measure where they overlap and where they diverge.
This article suggests the math marketers can actually test.
duaneforresterdecodes.substack.com/p/measuring-...
This article suggests the math marketers can actually test.
duaneforresterdecodes.substack.com/p/measuring-...
Measuring When AI Assistants and Search Engines Disagree
Suggesting a Marketer’s math framework to test where assistants and search overlap.
duaneforresterdecodes.substack.com
October 19, 2025 at 8:21 PM
AI assistants and search engines don’t always agree. The good news: you can measure where they overlap and where they diverge.
This article suggests the math marketers can actually test.
duaneforresterdecodes.substack.com/p/measuring-...
This article suggests the math marketers can actually test.
duaneforresterdecodes.substack.com/p/measuring-...
Your content is being cited by ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini and Copilot right now.
You just can’t see it in your analytics.
Here’s how to start measuring AI citations before they become your biggest blind spot:
duaneforresterdecodes.substack.com/p/your-brand...
You just can’t see it in your analytics.
Here’s how to start measuring AI citations before they become your biggest blind spot:
duaneforresterdecodes.substack.com/p/your-brand...
Your Brand Is Being Cited by AI. Here’s How to Measure It.
Measuring brand visibility in the answer layer above search
duaneforresterdecodes.substack.com
October 12, 2025 at 8:27 PM
Your content is being cited by ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini and Copilot right now.
You just can’t see it in your analytics.
Here’s how to start measuring AI citations before they become your biggest blind spot:
duaneforresterdecodes.substack.com/p/your-brand...
You just can’t see it in your analytics.
Here’s how to start measuring AI citations before they become your biggest blind spot:
duaneforresterdecodes.substack.com/p/your-brand...
Google’s new AI Mode is shaking up how search behaves and what it means for publishers & SEOs.
Roger at Search Engine Journal gathered insights from some sharp industry minds (and I chimed in too) on what’s changing and what’s next.
Read it here: www.searchenginejournal.com/googles-ai-m...
Roger at Search Engine Journal gathered insights from some sharp industry minds (and I chimed in too) on what’s changing and what’s next.
Read it here: www.searchenginejournal.com/googles-ai-m...
Google's AI Mode: What We Know & What Experts Think
Google AI Mode introduces a different logic for ranking and rewards content that fits into this new way to discover information.
www.searchenginejournal.com
October 6, 2025 at 9:58 PM
Google’s new AI Mode is shaking up how search behaves and what it means for publishers & SEOs.
Roger at Search Engine Journal gathered insights from some sharp industry minds (and I chimed in too) on what’s changing and what’s next.
Read it here: www.searchenginejournal.com/googles-ai-m...
Roger at Search Engine Journal gathered insights from some sharp industry minds (and I chimed in too) on what’s changing and what’s next.
Read it here: www.searchenginejournal.com/googles-ai-m...
Why should SEOs care about 2026? It’s the year AI assistants reach mass adoption and start to change how discovery works. Search moves upstream, where assistants decide what to trust and what to surface. Visibility is shifting.
duaneforresterdecodes.substack.com/p/2026-when-...
duaneforresterdecodes.substack.com/p/2026-when-...
2026: When AI Assistants Become the First Layer
ChatGPT reaches mass adoption in 4 years. Google took 9. Visibility is moving upstream.
duaneforresterdecodes.substack.com
October 5, 2025 at 6:42 PM
Why should SEOs care about 2026? It’s the year AI assistants reach mass adoption and start to change how discovery works. Search moves upstream, where assistants decide what to trust and what to surface. Visibility is shifting.
duaneforresterdecodes.substack.com/p/2026-when-...
duaneforresterdecodes.substack.com/p/2026-when-...
Massive thanks to everyone who’s joined my Substack, Duane Forrester Decodes! 🙏 Big shout-out to the 18 readers supporting my writing directly, thank you! More ahead: off-page factors in AI, an exec resource guide, and a big 2026 prediction.
October 2, 2025 at 3:09 AM
Massive thanks to everyone who’s joined my Substack, Duane Forrester Decodes! 🙏 Big shout-out to the 18 readers supporting my writing directly, thank you! More ahead: off-page factors in AI, an exec resource guide, and a big 2026 prediction.
SEO isn’t just concerned about crawlability anymore. In the retrieval era, clean chunks and embeddings decide if you get seen. Here’s why vector index hygiene is part of a new layer of technical SEO: duaneforresterdecodes.substack.com/p/vector-ind...
Vector Index Hygiene: A New Layer of Technical SEO
How clean chunks and embeddings decide if your content gets retrieved in AI answers.
duaneforresterdecodes.substack.com
September 29, 2025 at 6:10 PM
SEO isn’t just concerned about crawlability anymore. In the retrieval era, clean chunks and embeddings decide if you get seen. Here’s why vector index hygiene is part of a new layer of technical SEO: duaneforresterdecodes.substack.com/p/vector-ind...
Are you or were you an inhouse search marketer? This survey is for you! Please take a moment to fill it in and share what you can. Ash (the surveyor) is a great guy! docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F...
Hiring Practices for In-House SEO Roles
This anonymous survey seeks to understand how businesses of different sizes hire in-house SEO professionals. Your input will help reveal hiring trends across industries. The survey takes ~10-15 minute...
docs.google.com
September 24, 2025 at 1:31 AM
Are you or were you an inhouse search marketer? This survey is for you! Please take a moment to fill it in and share what you can. Ash (the surveyor) is a great guy! docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F...
Websites aren’t disappearing, but their role is about to change. Agents will become the new interface, and that changes the value of domains, SEO, and visibility.
I break down what this means here: duaneforresterdecodes.substack.com/p/when-agent...
I break down what this means here: duaneforresterdecodes.substack.com/p/when-agent...
When Agents Replace Websites
How Agentic Systems Devalue Websites and Domains
duaneforresterdecodes.substack.com
September 21, 2025 at 7:38 PM
Websites aren’t disappearing, but their role is about to change. Agents will become the new interface, and that changes the value of domains, SEO, and visibility.
I break down what this means here: duaneforresterdecodes.substack.com/p/when-agent...
I break down what this means here: duaneforresterdecodes.substack.com/p/when-agent...
Is this a new risk for brands in the AI era: bad actors teaching LLMs to misrepresent you? One poisoned input, repeated enough, becomes the “truth” users see? Not saying it’s real. I am asking if it’s worth thinking about.
duaneforresterdecodes.substack.com/p/a-hidden-r...
duaneforresterdecodes.substack.com/p/a-hidden-r...
A Hidden Risk in AI Discovery: Directed Bias Attacks on Brands?
LLMs don’t really verify the truth, and that opens the door for subtle reputational attacks marketers can’t afford to ignore.
duaneforresterdecodes.substack.com
September 15, 2025 at 8:46 PM
Is this a new risk for brands in the AI era: bad actors teaching LLMs to misrepresent you? One poisoned input, repeated enough, becomes the “truth” users see? Not saying it’s real. I am asking if it’s worth thinking about.
duaneforresterdecodes.substack.com/p/a-hidden-r...
duaneforresterdecodes.substack.com/p/a-hidden-r...
SEO is still the foundation, but retrieval adds new rules. On the @VoicesOfSearch podcast, I cover chunking for LLMs, building machine trust, & why goal-driven content is the additive layer SEOs should consider. voicesofsearch.com/episode/mach...
Machine Trust And Retrieval-based Search Transformation | Voices Of Search
voicesofsearch.com
September 9, 2025 at 11:16 PM
SEO is still the foundation, but retrieval adds new rules. On the @VoicesOfSearch podcast, I cover chunking for LLMs, building machine trust, & why goal-driven content is the additive layer SEOs should consider. voicesofsearch.com/episode/mach...
Bias in search isn’t always harmful, but it always matters. From algorithms to AI, bias shapes visibility, perception, and control. Here’s how marketers and communicators can manage it with intent: duaneforresterdecodes.substack.com/p/bias-in-se...
Bias in Search: Visibility, Perception, and Control
You can’t eliminate bias in search, but you can manage its impact on your brand and reputation.
duaneforresterdecodes.substack.com
September 8, 2025 at 10:29 PM
Bias in search isn’t always harmful, but it always matters. From algorithms to AI, bias shapes visibility, perception, and control. Here’s how marketers and communicators can manage it with intent: duaneforresterdecodes.substack.com/p/bias-in-se...
Traditional search converged. AI answer engines don’t. ChatGPT, Gemini, and Perplexity often disagree, because each favors different signals. Here’s how answer engines likely choose winners, and what it means for your content: duaneforresterdecodes.substack.com/p/lets-look-...
Let's Look Inside An Answer Engine and See How GenAI Picks Winners
Modelling weights across lexical retrieval, semantic retrieval, re-ranking and clarity to help visualize how an AI-powered answer is chosen.
duaneforresterdecodes.substack.com
September 1, 2025 at 8:38 PM
Traditional search converged. AI answer engines don’t. ChatGPT, Gemini, and Perplexity often disagree, because each favors different signals. Here’s how answer engines likely choose winners, and what it means for your content: duaneforresterdecodes.substack.com/p/lets-look-...
SEO has been tactical for 20+ years. GenAI shifts the work upward, but let’s be clear, this doesn’t suddenly make SEO “strategy.” It forces SEOs to rethink their role as AI takes on some of the execution. duaneforresterdecodes.substack.com/p/seo-has-be...
SEO Has Been Tactical for 20 Years. GenAI Forces the Strategy Question.
Calling SEO “strategic” was comfortable. AI strips that away and forces a truer alignment.
duaneforresterdecodes.substack.com
August 26, 2025 at 10:14 PM
SEO has been tactical for 20+ years. GenAI shifts the work upward, but let’s be clear, this doesn’t suddenly make SEO “strategy.” It forces SEOs to rethink their role as AI takes on some of the execution. duaneforresterdecodes.substack.com/p/seo-has-be...
Just hit #10 on Substack’s Top Rising Tech list! 🎉 Huge thanks to everyone reading, commenting & subscribing to DuaneForresterDecodes—couldn’t do it without you. If you haven’t joined yet, check it out here: substack.com/@duaneforres...
August 22, 2025 at 6:04 PM
Just hit #10 on Substack’s Top Rising Tech list! 🎉 Huge thanks to everyone reading, commenting & subscribing to DuaneForresterDecodes—couldn’t do it without you. If you haven’t joined yet, check it out here: substack.com/@duaneforres...
You’ve been told to “write tight.” GenAI doesn’t care. It retrieves overlap, not elegance. The difference decides if you’re invisible or in the answer set. Full breakdown here: duaneforresterdecodes.substack.com/p/semantic-o...
Semantic Overlap vs. Density: Finding the Balance That Wins Retrieval
Retrieval isn’t about short or long. It’s about balance. Overlap gets you seen, density keeps you credible.
duaneforresterdecodes.substack.com
August 19, 2025 at 4:53 PM
You’ve been told to “write tight.” GenAI doesn’t care. It retrieves overlap, not elegance. The difference decides if you’re invisible or in the answer set. Full breakdown here: duaneforresterdecodes.substack.com/p/semantic-o...
Reposted by Duane Forrester
AI can speed SEO work, but trust is still human-powered. Universal verifiers will change that, filtering AI outputs for accuracy before they’re seen or ranked. Here’s a new reason you’ll need to design for trust as a ranking factor: duaneforresterdecodes.substack.com/p/the-verifi...
The Verifier Layer: Why SEO Automation Still Needs Human Judgment
Is AI Content Automation Creating Legal Liability at Scale?
duaneforresterdecodes.substack.com
August 12, 2025 at 6:14 PM
AI can speed SEO work, but trust is still human-powered. Universal verifiers will change that, filtering AI outputs for accuracy before they’re seen or ranked. Here’s a new reason you’ll need to design for trust as a ranking factor: duaneforresterdecodes.substack.com/p/the-verifi...