Advertise on podcast: Visibility Brief

People don’t choose a financial advisor based on a single ad, search, or recommendation. Instead, they look at an advisor’s background, check their local reviews, and, increasingly, use search and AI to decide who they can truly trust.  For First Command — where 78% of digital leads have search as their last marketing touchpoint — showing up was only part of the equation.  But Scott Spidell and his team discovered something else: paid and organic marketing become much more powerful when they work together. By combining local pages, reviews, social engagement, and paid media, First Command was able to nearly double their conversion rates.  In this episode of The Visibility Brief, Rebecca Colwell (SVP of Marketing, Yext) sits down with Scott Spidell (SVP of Brand and Strategic Marketing, First Command) to discuss the strategy behind those results. During their conversation, Scott shares how First Command built a repeatable formula for improving local visibility, the trust signals that help individual advisors stand out, and why marketers should stop treating paid and organic as separate strategies. This episode breaks down:  How to identify the local signals that can turn visibility into stronger conversionWhy reviews, local pages, and social engagement became the foundation of its strategyWhat trust signals to include on local pages to help customers feel confident choosing your brandWhy paid media works harder when the right organic foundation is already in placeWhat marketers with distributed teams, locations, or representatives can do to improve visibility at the local levelIf you're a marketing leader managing locations, advisors, agents, or other local representatives, this episode offers a real-world look at what happens when paid media, local content, reputation, and social work together — and the measurable impact that can have on visibility and conversion.

The way people find physical businesses is changing. Traditional search, maps, and directories still matter, but AI is increasingly answering questions before someone ever clicks through to a website. And those questions are getting more specific: Where should I park? Is this location wheelchair accessible? What’s opening this weekend? What time does it close today?  Right now, making sure customers can find accurate answers to those questions (regardless of where they choose to look) requires brands to think differently about the information behind every location and experience. In this episode of The Visibility Brief, Rebecca Colwell (SVP of Marketing, Yext) sits down with Patrick Flanagan (SVP of Digital Development, Operations and Strategy, Simon Property Group) to explore how one of the world’s largest retail real estate companies thinks about the customer experience. During their discussion, Patrick shares how Simon manages local information across a massive portfolio, keeps critical details accurate as experiences change from location to location, and uses millions of reviews to understand what shoppers are actually looking for.  This episode breaks down:  Why traditional search and maps are still important in the AI eraHow reviews can reveal what customers are really experiencingWhy hyper-local details matterHow Simon keeps local information accurate at scaleWhy declining traffic doesn't necessarily mean declining visibility If you’re a marketing leader responsible for hundreds or thousands of physical locations, this episode offers a practical look at what it takes to stay visible when customers can discover you anywhere.

With over 1,500 independently-owned hearing clinics across the United States, Beltone knows that no two markets look exactly alike. A brand’s competitor in one city might not even exist another, and a tactic driving results for one location could be a waste of resources somewhere else. National performance metrics can show how the brand is performing overall, but they can hide which locations are winning and losing.  So, how do you help local owners make better marketing decisions without overwhelming them with yet another dashboard?  In this episode of The Visibility Brief, Rebecca Colwell (SVP of Marketing, Yext) sits down with Michael McCann (Senior Director of Marketing, Beltone) and Leonard Sullivan (Digital Marketing Manager, Beltone) to discuss what it takes to help a national brand compete — and win — market by market. Michael and Leonard share how Beltone used Yext Scout to understand local competitive performance, identify opportunities location by location, and turn that data into a plan owners can easily follow.  This episode breaks down:  Why your biggest competitor depends on where you areHow local data can reveal what averages missWhy the same marketing strategy won’t work in every marketWhat drives local visibility beyond reviewsWhy AI search makes your entire digital presence matter If you’re a marketing leader responsible for local performance, this episode will help you move beyond one-size-fits-all strategies and use data to make better decisions market by market.

Today’s customers are increasingly using AI to research complex, high-stakes purchase decisions before they ever reach a brand’s website. At the same time, marketers are using AI to create content, optimize digital experiences, and make work more efficient. So what happens when AI becomes part of both the discovery journey and the work marketers are doing behind the scenes? In this episode of The Visibility Brief, Rebecca Colwell (SVP of Marketing, Yext) sits down with Reed Smith (SVP and Chief Consumer Officer, Ardent Health) to discuss how AI is changing both sides of the customer experience: how people find the information they need, and how marketing teams deliver it. Drawing on his work shaping patient experiences at Ardent Health, Reed shares a practical perspective on what’s actually changing and why the fundamentals marketers have been working on for years (accurate data, accessible information and human judgment) are becoming even more important as AI continues to revolutionize marketing.  This episode breaks down:  How AI is optimizing the way customers get answers Why more data isn’t necessarily betterHow zero-click experiences (like AI answers and direct scheduling) are creating new entry points for brands Why your technology partners matter more in an AI-driven worldHow AI is changing day-to-day work for marketers  If you’re a marketing leader trying to figure out where AI can actually add value, this episode provides a helpful roadmap: use AI to improve the work, but don’t lose sight of the data, experiences, and human judgment that make the work valuable in the first place.

For years, technical SEO has powered search performance from behind the scenes. Most business leaders only noticed it when something broke. But now, as AI search becomes mainstream, those same technical foundations are becoming important in a new way. So, what does that mean for marketers? Is AI creating an entirely new set of technical requirements — or simply rewarding the brands that have been getting the fundamentals right all along? In this episode of The Visibility Brief, Rebecca Colwell (SVP of Marketing, Yext) sits down with Mark Stroud (Global SEO Lead, Specsavers) to explore why one of the most overlooked disciplines in marketing is suddenly getting some overdue attention. Drawing on more than 20 years of SEO experience and leading global search strategy across 2,000 Specsavers locations, Mark explains why technical SEO is having "a moment," how AI is changing the conversation around visibility and conversion, and why it’s time for marketers to double down on the basics.  This episode breaks down:  How AI is improving SEO workflows behind the scenesWhich technical signals matter most right now Why SEO fundamentals are still the foundation for search and AI engines  The biggest misconceptions about AI optimizationWhich SEO metrics marketers should (and shouldn't) measure If you're a marketer trying to make sense of AI's impact on search, this episode offers a practical perspective on what's actually changing, what's staying the same, and where marketers should focus their attention next.

For Wells Fargo, it wasn't a flashy new AI initiative that unlocked better visibility. It was actually a 12-year-old ATM and branch locator.  When the brand’s marketing team realized their location pages weren't surfacing consistently in AI search, they saw an opportunity to optimize those pages for both people and LLMs. But what started as a branch locator redesign quickly became a blueprint for how legacy brands can adapt their digital experiences for an AI-first customer journey. In this episode of The Visibility Brief, Rebecca Colwell (SVP of Marketing, Yext) is joined by Anna Vagnerini (Executive Director Digital Discovery, Wells Fargo) to explore how AI search is forcing brands to rethink some of their oldest digital experiences. Drawing on Wells Fargo's recent branch locator transformation, Anna shares how her team approached structured data, human-centered design, and AI visibility. This can’t-miss discussion reveals why sometimes the biggest opportunities are hiding in the experiences brands have overlooked for years. This episode breaks down:  How to turn a utility into a high-intent customer acquisition channelWhy tried-and-true digital experiences deserve a second lookWhat "human and machine UX" really meansHow to measure success beyond traditional marketing metricsWhy AI visibility starts with consistent, trustworthy data If you're a marketing leader wondering where to start with AI search, this episode is a reminder that the answer may not be a brand-new initiative. Sometimes the biggest opportunity is taking a fresh look at the digital experiences your customers already rely on.

Customers aren't just searching for brands by name anymore. Instead, they're asking highly specific questions about products, services, locations, and experiences. Whether they're looking for "restaurants near Yankee Stadium" or "catering for a 50-person office lunch," AI models cite and surface brands that have built content around real customer intent. So, how do marketers create local experiences that satisfy both customers and LLMs? And what separates a high-performing local page from one that's nothing more than a store locator? In this episode of The Visibility Brief, Yext SVP of Marketing Rebecca Colwell sits down with Steve Wiideman, President of Wiideman Consulting Group to explore why local pages have become one of the most important assets in an AI-first search strategy. Drawing on nearly 30 years of SEO experience and work with some of the world's largest restaurant brands, Steve shares why local and intent pages are now a competitive advantage – and how marketers can use them to increase visibility across both traditional and AI search. The episode breaks down:Why local pages still matter in an AI-first worldThe difference between location pages and intent pagesWhat the highest-performing local pages have in commonHow AI is changing local content strategyLessons from restaurant brands that adapted quickly to changing customer behaviorWhat marketers should stop, start, and rethink when building local content Whether you're managing hundreds of locations or just getting started with local SEO, you'll learn practical ways to build pages that help customers find exactly what they're looking for, wherever they're searching.

In this episode of The Visibility Brief, Yext SVP of Marketing Rebecca Colwell sits down with Paul McHardy, leader of Global Search Intelligence for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, to explore one of the most important questions facing marketers today: What happens when your brand is no longer the primary author of its own story? AI search now gives direct answers synthesized from review sites, third-party publishers, and creator communities — meaning that customers form an impression of a brand before ever visiting a website. This shift creates a new challenge: visibility is important, but accurate representation across every source that shapes that impression matters more. For Paul, that challenge plays out at a global scale. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints operates in more than 100 countries and dozens of languages, serving members while also helping curious audiences understand its beliefs, history, and identity. His team's job isn't simply to be found; it's to make sure people receive accurate and trustworthy information. The episode breaks down:Why AI is changing the role of search teamsWhat happens when AI controls your first impressionHow brands can bridge the gap between internal language and the words real people actually use when searching.Why data accuracy is foundational to visibilityWhy AI visibility isn't just about your website The future of visibility isn't just about being discovered. It's about being understood. If you're a marketing leader trying to understand how AI is changing discovery, reputation, and brand representation, this episode offers a unique perspective from an organization navigating those challenges at scale.

In this episode of The Visibility Brief, Yext SVP of Marketing Rebecca Colwell sits down with Scott Orstad, Vice President, Marketing at Catholic Health, to explore a surprising idea: the organizations best positioned to succeed in AI search just might be the ones that have spent years operating under the strictest constraints. That might sound counterintuitive, but regulated industries have long been forced to solve a unique set of problems: accuracy, trust, governance, data quality, and compliance. Now, those same disciplines become the foundation of AI visibility. Drawing on more than 25 years of healthcare marketing experience, Scott shares how Catholic Health is approaching content, provider data, reputation management, and digital experience in a world where AI is becoming part of the customer journey — and why those lessons apply far beyond healthcare. The episode breaks down:Why AI search is changing how consumers research important decisionsWhy accurate data matters more than everHow expert-led content helps organizations build trust while improving visibility in both traditional and AI search.Why organizations need subject matter experts and content teams working together to make complex topics understandable.The value of reviews and customer feedback as signals to AI systems What marketers should focus on instead of chasing every AI trend If you're a marketing leader trying to navigate the rapid changes happening in AI search, this episode offers a valuable reminder: the brands that win won't necessarily be the ones moving the fastest. They'll be the ones with the strongest foundations.

In this special edition of The Visibility Brief, Yext SVP of Marketing Rebecca Colwell is joined by Sam Rahimi, VP of Earned & Owned Media at AdCelerant, to discuss how AI is solving one of the hardest problems in marketing: turning data into concrete action. Marketers have never had a shortage of dashboards, reports, or performance metrics. The challenge has always been knowing what to do next. Which locations need attention? Which competitors are gaining ground? Where should teams really invest their time, budget, and resources? That’s where a new generation of AI-powered intelligence tools is changing the game. Drawing on his experience helping agencies and publishers support thousands of local businesses, Sam shares how AdCelerant is using Scout MCP to surface competitive insights, prioritize the right opportunities, and make faster, more informed decisions for clients at scale. The episode breaks down:How marketers can shift from collecting data to generating actionable recommendationsHow AI helps with prioritization and resourcingWhy combining performance data, competitive insights, and AI-powered analysis creates a new operating model for marketersHow Scout MCP changes the marketer's workflow The future of marketing isn't about having more data. It's about having the right intelligence at the right moment — and being able to act on it immediately. If you're a marketing leader, agency, publisher, or local business strategist looking to move beyond reporting and toward real-time decision-making, this episode offers a practical look at how AI and competitive intelligence are changing the way visibility is managed.

In this episode of The Visibility Brief, Yext SVP of Marketing Rebecca Colwell sits down with Will Reynolds, CEO and VP of Innovation of Seer Interactive, for a conversation about how AI is reshaping not just search — but the fundamentals of marketing itself. For years, marketers have measured success in rankings, impressions, and traffic. But AI is changing what those numbers are worth. When a chatbot can summarize everything ever written about a brand into a single answer, being visible stops being a competitive edge and starts being table stakes. A brand can show up everywhere and still lose if it isn't believable and trustworthy to customers. And when this trust becomes the deciding factor, the old marketing playbook starts to break. Will's argument: AI is pushing marketing away from content built for scale and toward something much harder to fake: credibility. The episode breaks down:Why visibility alone no longer drives resultsThe risks of overusing AI-generated contentHow unique perspectives, lived experience, and subject matter expertise are emerging as the most valuable signalsWhat marketers should stop, start, and rethink If you’re a marketing leader navigating the shift from visibility to credibility, this episode will help you rethink how your brand shows up — and whether it earns the trust required to win.

In this special episode of The Visibility Brief, recorded live at SEO Week, Rebecca Colwell is joined by Garrett Sussman (Director of Marketing at iPullRank) and Christian Ward (Chief Data Officer at Yext) for a candid reflection on where the industry actually stands today. A year ago, AI search felt like a novelty. New tools, new ideas, and a lot of speculation. Today, the tone has shifted. The excitement hasn’t disappeared – but it’s been replaced by something more grounded: uncertainty, urgency, and a growing realization that the rules are changing faster than most teams can keep up. So what’s actually changed in the last 12 months? And more importantly, what hasn’t? This conversation goes beyond tactics. It’s about how SEO is evolving as a function, why so many teams are still “admiring the problem,” and what it will take to move from understanding AI to actually acting on it. The episode breaks down:Why the industry feels more mature, but still a bit stuckThe gap between understanding AI’s impact and actually changing strategy or executionWhy technical understanding of AI pipelines mattersWhy SEO is positioned to lead…but often doesn’tWhy content strategy is shifting back toward uniqueness and contextWhy brands are struggling to define success in AI visibility The tools are evolving. The models are improving. The opportunity is real. But most brands haven’t made the shift yet, and that gap is where the next wave of advantage will be created.

In this episode of The Visibility Brief, Yext SVP of Marketing Rebecca Colwell is joined by Leah Hutcheon, Founder & CEO of Appointedd, to explore how AI is changing not just how people find brands, but how they move from discovery to action. As AI assistants take on more of the research process, customers are arriving at decisions faster, with more context and more confidence. That means less browsing, fewer clicks, and a much shorter path between “I’m interested” and “I’m ready.” And increasingly, that moment shows up as a booking. So what does it mean when customers commit their time before they ever step into a store or complete a purchase? And how should brands design for a world where intent is signaled earlier and more clearly than ever? Drawing on her experience building 'intent infrastructure' for global retailers, Leah reframes bookings as far more than a calendar slot. They're a signal of intent, a moment of trust, and one of the most valuable opportunities a brand has to create a meaningful experience. The episode breaks down:Why bookings are becoming a primary conversion signalWhy time is the most valuable signal customers give youWhy most brands underinvest in the booking experienceHow leading retailers turn appointments into high-value interactions that drive higher spendHow intent data transforms the customer journeyWhat shifts when AI agents — not customers — do the browsing If you’re a marketing leader thinking about how AI is reshaping customer behavior, this episode will help you rethink where real intent emerges, how to design for it, and why the moment someone books may matter more than anything that came before.

In this episode of The Visibility Brief, Yext SVP of Marketing Rebecca Colwell is joined by Leigh McKenzie, Director of Online Visibility at Semrush, to explore how one of marketing’s most established roles is being fundamentally reshaped by AI. For more than two decades, SEO meant understanding Google—how it crawled, how it ranked, and how to win clicks. But that playbook is no longer enough. AI is changing how people search, how answers are delivered, and how brands get discovered. So what does the job of an SEO actually look like now? And how should teams evolve when visibility depends on much more than a website? Drawing on his experience at Semrush, where he's had a front-row seat to the evolution of search, Leigh makes the case that SEO isn't disappearing — it's growing into something bigger, more strategic, and more cross-functional than ever. The episode breaks down: Why traditional SEO thinking is no longer enoughHow consumer behavior is changing the search landscapeWhy SEO is becoming a cross-functional disciplineWhy your website is only part of the equationHow mass content and quick-win tactics can quietly hurt long-term visibility and trustWhat SEO teams should stop, start, and rethink If you’re leading an SEO or marketing team and trying to understand how your role is changing, this episode will help you zoom out, rethink your priorities, and position yourself — and your brand – for what comes next.

In this episode of The Visibility Brief, Yext SVP of Marketing Rebecca Colwell sits down with Bill Simpson, Director of Value Consulting at Yext, to explore a question many marketers are still working through: how far is too far when it comes to personalization? As AI is changes how people interact with technology, customers  are sharing more personal information than ever before — often without realizing it. But why does AI feel so different from traditional search, and what’s making people more willing to open up? At the same time, brands are under pressure to move faster, adopt new tools, and deliver more personalized experiences. But speed introduces risk. From data exposure to inaccurate AI responses, the line between helpful and harmful is thin — and easy to cross. Drawing on his years of experience working with brands, Bill shares insights on how marketers can move forward thoughtfully — balancing innovation with responsibility. The episode breaks down:How conversational interfaces create a sense of trustWhere personalization starts to feel invasiveWhy transparency is the new competitive advantageThe hidden risks in everyday AI workflowsHow to safely pilot AI inside your organizationWhy human oversight still matters If you’re a marketing leader trying to move quickly with AI while protecting your customers and your brand, this episode will help you understand the real tradeoffs — and how to navigate them with confidence.