We are nearly in 2026. It has been a year of a lot of noise: AI Overviews expanded, new search engines grew, vibe coding became a buzzword, and the industry debated whether SEO was "over" for the tenth time.
Here is what we have actually observed working for SMBs.
What works
Local and specialised visibility is more stable than ever
AI Overviews rarely appear for local searches with clear buying intent. A carpenter in a regional city, an accounting firm, a marketing agency: these searches send people to Google Maps and organic results, not AI answers. Local SEO and an updated Google Business Profile are among the most robust investments right now.
Content with genuine professional depth holds up
Pages that thoroughly and honestly answer questions clients actually ask (not generic SEO articles, but professionally grounded content) rank well and are cited in AI answers. Many of the businesses we see performing well do not write much. They write correctly.
Email is underrated and reliable
A regular newsletter to clients and prospects is the best consistent marketing return we have seen without algorithm dependency. Businesses that sent regularly in 2024 and 2025 have warmer sales pipelines and lower churn than comparable businesses that did not.
Personal brand for founders and professionals works
LinkedIn activity from named professionals drives more to the website than company profiles in most sectors. Decision-makers buy from people they recognise and trust, not from logos.
What no longer works
Generic blogging for search
The volume strategy (publish a lot, capture long tail) has been damaged by Google's updates and AI-generated answers. Thin pages that exist only to capture keywords sink or lose value over time.
Waiting for the perfect strategy
The most common mistake we see: businesses spend too much time analysing and too little time publishing, sending and testing. The free learning available from data generated by real publishing is invaluable.
Depending on a single channel
Social media fragments. Search changes. Paid ads are more expensive. Businesses with diversified digital presence (some search, some email, some social media, regular content) handle changes better than those dependent on one channel.
What we recommend going into 2026
Three things:
- A regular newsletter to existing and potential clients: once a month is enough.
- A well-maintained Google Business Profile with fresh photos and active review cultivation.
- Two to four in-depth expert articles per year about what you actually know, written for people dealing with that problem.
It is not fancy. It is not expensive. And it works.
Want to plan your digital presence for 2026? We offer a no-obligation review. Get in touch.