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Hey Reader,

September is right around the corner, which means cozy season is almost here — think warm sweaters, back to school season, and all the fall foliage. 🍂 Can you tell it's one of our favorite times of the year?!

Speaking of back to school, we'll be running a back to school sale for the Food Blogger Pro membership next week! Mark your calendars for September 2nd and be sure to check your email first thing that morning for all of the sale details! It is also a great time to sign up for the Food Blogger Pro Affiliate Program to promote the sale to your community (and earn some extra income in Q4)!

Before we get ahead of ourselves, though, let's review some of the latest news and strategies emerging from the content creation space!

1. Ask An SEO: Should Small Brands Go All In On TikTok For Audience Growth? 📈

In a recent Ask an SEO feature, Mordy Oberstein cautions small brands against putting all their energy into TikTok, or any single platform. While TikTok offers quick and authentic engagement (so tempting, we know!), solely relying on it can leave your brand vulnerable to algorithm shifts and platform instability.

Instead, focus on what actually brings traction. Small brands thrive by being nimble and creating content that resonates, not just content that fits a trend. The key takeaway? Build a lasting presence by staying adaptable and diversifying as much as possible!

​Read the full article from Search Engine Journal here.​

2. ChatGPT is sending less traffic to websites – down 52% in a month 🚦

A recent analysis by Profound reveals that ChatGPT referral traffic to websites has plummeted by 52% (yep, you read that right) since July 21, 2025, based on data spanning over one billion citations and more than one million referral visits.

This dramatic decline coincided with a huge shift in citation patterns: Reddit citations surged 87%, Wikipedia jumped 62%, and together with TechRadar, these three platforms now account for 22% of all ChatGPT citations.

As a result, creators and brands will have to switch up their approach: instead of pushing for direct conversions, they should focus on creating structured, informative, and authoritative content that answers real user questions to position their sites as the go-to “answer” source for AI systems.

​Read the full article from Search Engine Land here.​

3. Instagram SEO: How to Rank on Instagram and Get Your Posts on Google 🔍

Let's face it: Gen Z is ditching Google and heading straight to platforms like Instagram for answers around where to hang out, what to eat, what to buy, etc. That means you're missing out if you’re not optimizing for Instagram Search, as their algorithm looks at your bio, captions, hashtags, and even how your posts perform to decide who shows up in search results.

If you want to stand out from the competition, you'll want to start by dropping the right keywords into your content. Think captions, alt text, and even your username. Use Instagram’s search bar, trending hashtags, or AI tools like ChatGPT to uncover what your audience is actually searching for.

If your mind is reeling (see what we did there?) from all of this new intel, don't fret! Buffer has outlined all of the ins and outs of Instagram SEO in their latest article so you can

​Read the full article from Buffer here.​

4. Organic vs. Paid Social Media: Which Strategy Is More Effective? 🤔

If you’ve been treating organic and paid social media like a competition, it’s time to rethink your strategy. According to Later, organic content is excellent for building long-term relationships and trust with your audience (think engagement, authenticity, and evergreen value). Paid social, on the other hand, offers quick wins with targeted reach and fast results, but only while the budget’s flowing. 💸

The real magic? Using them together. 🤝 Later suggests a “flywheel” approach (peep the steps outlined by Later below): test content organically, promote what performs with paid, then use those insights to refine your strategy. Whether you're launching a product (have you given our podcast episode around digital products a listen?) or nurturing your community, the most innovative brands mix and match both to grow quickly and sustainably!

​Read the full article from Later here. ​

5. How to Identify the Best Candidates for Republishing in Clariti ✍️

Reviving older blog posts doesn’t mean starting from zero and reinventing the wheel. The first step (often the trickiest) is identifying which posts to refresh. By filtering for outdated or low-engagement content (e.g., older than two years with under 500 sessions this past year), through Clariti, you can easily decide whether to delete, improve, or republish those posts. That way, you don't have to sift through your entire archive and take note of the underperforming ones — and potentially go a little crazy in the process. 😅

In their latest post, the Clariti team gives you a roadmap to republishing to help you hone in on the “almost-there” posts and give them new life — and a boost in search rankings!

​Read the full post on Clariti.​

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