Game plan for navigating Google’s helpful content updates

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• Part 1Optimizing financial content with SEO

  Financial SEO requires specialized knowledge in a highly competitive space. Zak Ali, US General Manager at Finder, shares how smaller publishers can compete against dominant players in the financial sector. He explains how AI search creates opportunities for content diversification beyond Google, why focusing on user-centric experiences drives higher quality leads, and how SEO professionals should evolve into growth managers who build brand entities across multiple channels.

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• Part 2Will financial literacy content outperform comparison pages in 2025?

  Will financial literacy content outperform comparison pages in 2025? Zak Ali from Finder weighs in on the future of content strategy for financial services websites. He predicts LLMs will handle most text-based financial education while comparison pages will maintain their value, and shares tactics for optimizing title tags and thumbnails to improve impression-to-click rates when competing with AI-generated answers.

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• Part 3How will AI search impact the personal finance vertical over the next 18 months?

  AI search is transforming the personal finance vertical. Zak Ali from Finder explains how the landscape will shift in the next 18 months, with major finance apps achieving product parity while smaller publishers specialize in niche areas. He predicts AI search will become the default experience within 12-18 months once Google solves ad monetization, creating significant challenges for unprepared publishers.

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• Part 4Long-form financial guides or interactive calculators?

  Long-form guides or interactive calculators? Zak Ali from Finder weighs in on resource allocation for personal finance sites. Interactive calculators emerge as the clear winner, offering users immediate value through manipulable interfaces rather than passive reading experiences. Ali emphasizes that calculators better match user intent, allow for personalization, and can still incorporate supporting content while avoiding the pitfalls of creating extensive guides that users typically scan rather than read thoroughly.

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• Current Podcast

  Part 5Game plan for navigating Google’s helpful content updates

  Google's helpful content updates require a strategic response. Zak Ali, from Finder, shares his approach to realigning organizations around search priorities. He advocates for starting fresh by understanding how real users interact with search, putting customer needs at the center of strategy, and balancing technical SEO fundamentals with human-centered content development that reflects authentic user behavior.