Rand Fishkin on Escaping VC Culture, Google Leaks & AI Truths 🤖 | Episode 100

The SEO Podcast: Page 2 Podcast Hosted by Jon Clark & Joe DeVita

https://page2pod.com - In this landmark 100th episode of the Page 2 Podcast, Rand Fishkin returns to reflect on life after Moz, the liberation of leaving venture capital behind, and his journey with SparkToro. He opens up about the recent Google API leaks, the real impact of AI and LLMs in marketing, and how the digital landscape is evolving toward a zero-click future. With transparency, humor, and loads of insight, Rand dives deep into audience research, entrepreneurship, and what still excites (and frustrates) him in search marketing.

Whether you're a digital marketer, entrepreneur, or SEO nerd, this episode is packed with actionable advice and real talk from one of the industry's most authentic voices.

🔍 In This Episode:
🎯 Rand explains the emotional toll and freedom of leaving Moz and VC pressures
🔍 Behind the scenes of SparkToro’s clickstream-powered insights
📁 The real story behind the Google search API leak and its validation
🔄 Why the SEO influencer space feels stale—and what might change
🧠 Rand's take on AI: useful tools vs. overhyped tech
📊 How SparkToro integrates LLMs to improve audience targeting
🧪 The importance of testing and data-driven marketing experiments
🧑‍🍳 A surprising story about ultrasonic knives and finding product-market fit
🛒 Smart Q4 e-commerce tips for brands both big and small
🌐 Why your website still matters—but so does zero-click marketing
🔮 Rand's predictions for SparkToro, AlertMouse, and the future of search

From philosophical shifts in business to the power of podcasts in training AI models, this episode is a masterclass in modern marketing.

📚 Resources Mentioned
• Rand Fishkin on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/randfishkin/
• SparkToro: https://sparktoro.com
• SnackBar Studio: Rand's game dev studio - https://snackbarstudio.com
• AlertMouse: Rand's media monitoring tool - https://alertmouse.com/
• Seattle Ultrasonics: Knife startup mentioned - https://seattleultrasonics.com/
• Google Leak: https://sparktoro.com/blog/an-anonymous-source-shared-thousands-of-leaked-google-search-api-documents-with-me-everyone-in-seo-should-see-them/
• IMEC Lab: https://sparktoro.com/blog/imec-lab/

Sponsored by Moving Traffic Media

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