I'm back again after a brief hibernation 👋! It was exciting to see the rollout of AI mode — which basically feels like a faster version of Gemini Deep Research — and it's clear that Google has come to terms with the fact that search behavior will never be the same again (goodbye 10 blue links).

What worries me isn't so much the rise of zero-click search, what worries me is that humans will take answers from AIO, LLMs, etc. as fact. Although technology is bound to improve, I'm concerned that there'll be a lot more misinformed SEOs than ever before.

There has always been a mix of good and bad SEO advice out there, but when both humans and LLMs have trouble deciphering between the two, SEOs (especially newcomers) are susceptible to getting misguided.

We often talk about what are SEO best practices, but what are the best practices to being a good SEO practitioner? What makes a good SEO?

Let me first introduce you to the antithesis: the **vibe SEOs**.

Vibe SEOs are chasers. They chase the latest hacks like writing listicles about the "top SEOs in \[location\]" and putting themselves as #1. They chase quantity over quality, like using AI to spin up a bunch of low-quality content instead of creating quality content for actual users. They chase vanity metrics like traffic growth without looking at the impact on the bottom line. They chase erratic spikes instead of sustained, long-term growth.

On the other hand, we have **thrive SEOs**.

Thrive SEOs set new standards. And once they've reached the bar they set, they set an even higher one. (Not to say that they're overachievers, but they have the tendency to be able to outdo themselves or their peers.)

They thrive at critical thinking and problem solving. They enjoy testing over making assumptions. They don't get tied down by old ways of thinking. They aren't fazed by algo updates and shifts in search behavior. Instead, they're resilient. They'll figure out how to make their SEO program thrive — even if it means taking apart their strategy and rebuilding it from scratch.

When making important decisions, they know the tradeoffs. They understand how to weigh pros and cons. When working with non-SEOs, they don't just blindly do what they're asked to. Thrive SEOs know when and how to push back.

**Thought prompt**: Think of all the SEOs you look up to. What do they have in common? What skills set them apart? Why do they command your attention? And how can you take one specific skill from their toolkit, and add it to yours?

All the SEOs you look up to — they're likely all thrive SEOs.

Yours truly, Debbie Chew

*P.S. To each of my subscribers, thank you for sticking around despite the radio silence! I will publish when I have something to share as opposed to publishing on a regular cadence (mainly due to personal capacity because I work full-time and need to rest). If rest sounds foreign to you, hit me up because it used to be foreign to me too. 😂*

*Originally published on [Substack](https://seophilosophy.substack.com/p/seo-philosophy-4-what-makes-a-good).*