AI vs SEO: Will Google penalize your AI-generated content?

The emergence of AI-generated content has ignited discussions and raised concerns among content creators, marketers, and SEO (Search Engine Optimization) specialists. In fact, we’ve been approached by podcasters who are looking for clarification on the SEO impact of repurposing content for their podcasts using AI. This topic is surrounded by conflicting information, adding to the confusion, however Google's guidelines provide a clear and definitive answer. Here are the key points...

The most important factor for SEO when producing a podcast

Creating high-quality content is key to gaining visibility and recognition in the digital landscape. When it comes to podcasting, it's crucial to focus on producing authentic and relevant content that resonates with your audience. Google uses complex algorithms that evaluate the quality of your content based on expertise, experience, authoritativeness, and trustworthiness (E-E-A-T). So if you want your podcast to be well ranked on search engines your first focus should be providing human centric content, that brings value to your audience.

For a podcast this means:

Provide Valuable Insights

Offer unique perspectives and valuable information that your audience can't find elsewhere. Dive deep into topics, share your expertise, and provide meaningful takeaways that enrich the knowledge of your listeners.

Feature Knowledgeable Podcast Guests

Invite industry experts, thought leaders, or influencers as guests on your podcast. Their expertise adds credibility to your content and enhances its value. By offering diverse insights and expert opinions, you can attract a wider audience and build trust within your community.

Pro tip: Inviting guest authorities in your niche to be interviewed is a strategy that can greatly benefit your discoverability on search engines, especially when these personalities are frequently searched on Google and face low competition as keywords.

For example, the most downloaded episode from the "Wannabe Entrepreneur" podcast, hosted by one of the Co-founders of Podsqueeze, features an interview with Pieter Levels, a well-known figure in the digital independent entrepreneurship niche. The podcast's target audience frequently searches for Pieter Levels on Google, which effectively drives traffic to the show through search engine results.

By featuring guest authorities like Pieter Levels, you can tap into their existing online presence and popularity, significantly enhancing your podcast's visibility on search engines. This, in turn, attracts new listeners who discover your podcast through relevant Google searches.

Deliver Accurate Information

Fact-check your content and ensure the information you provide is accurate and up to date. Misleading or inaccurate information can harm your podcast's reputation. In fact, Google penalizes promoting content that contradicts established consensus, particularly in critical areas like health, civic issues, and finance. Back your content with well-established facts and expert opinions.

Also, write shownotes and metadata for your podcast episodes

Podcast show notes and metadata are essential for SEO. They provide valuable information to search engines about your episodes and improve discoverability. By including keywords, summaries, timestamps, and relevant links in your shownotes, you help search engines understand your content.

Is it ok for Google if I use AI to create content for my Podcast?

Short answer: Yes.

To google it is not relevant how the content is produced. Regardless of whether the content is AI-generated or not, prioritizing originality, expertise, valuable experiences, and trustworthiness is the most important factor to rank well in google.

This means that your ranking on google won’t be penalized if you use AI for:

Creative Ideation and Research

AI can help you gather ideas and conduct research for podcast topics. It can assist in writing and organizing podcast scripts, making your content creation process more efficient. However, always ensure that your content focuses on providing value to your listeners and adheres to Google's E-E-A-T principles for better search rankings.

Repurposing Podcast Content with AI

Consider using AI to repurpose your podcast episodes and generate show notes, timestamps, or social media assets. Tools like Podsqueeze can assist in transforming your podcast audio content into various written assets that will help you promote your podcast and improve its discoverability and SEO. Remember, Podsqueeze repurposes content, but the ideas should be generated by you.

When not to use AI for SEO?

Avoid Manipulating Google's Algorithms

Using AI or automation to manipulate search rankings is an unethical practice that aims to deceive Google into giving your website a higher position in search results. One common example of this is creating AI-generated content solely for the purpose of obtaining backlinks and artificially inflating website traffic. This involves using automated tools to generate a large volume of low-quality articles or podcast scripts and shownotes that are stuffed with keywords but offer little value to users. Such tactics go against Google's guidelines, which prioritize high-quality, user-focused content over manipulative strategies.

Combat Misinformation and Prioritize Reliability

It's essential to ensure that your podcast content provides reliable information from trusted sources. Avoid promoting or endorsing content that contradicts established consensus, especially in critical areas such as health, civic issues, and finance. Instead, focus on providing well-researched content supported by verifiable facts, expert opinions, and credible sources. By prioritizing reliability, you not only build trust with your audience but also align with Google's algorithms which value delivering accurate and trustworthy information to users.

In conclusion, by understanding Google's principles and following the guidelines, podcasters can effectively leverage AI to enhance their content and search engine rankings. Prioritize quality, relevance, and authenticity in your content, use AI for creative ideation and repurposing, and always provide value to your audience.