Google Is Easier to Game Than Ever - And Black-Hat SEOs Are Winning

E924: I sit down with Lars Lofgren and Jacky Chou to talk about what’s really happening inside search right now - not the PR version, not the Google blog version, but what people running sites, ranking pages, and making money are actually seeing.

We dig into why white-hat, content-driven SEO feels like it’s collapsing for a lot of people, while black-hat operators, parasite SEO, and forum spam are quietly having one of their best years ever.

This isn’t a theoretical conversation. Lars and Jacky work directly inside these systems. They see what ranks, what breaks, and what keeps working after updates.

If you run a website, a SaaS, a content business, or an affiliate site, this episode explains why things could feel harder than they used to - and why some people are still doing extremely well.

What we cover
Why MozCon felt depressing while black-hat conferences felt optimistic
How Google’s Helpful Content updates changed who wins and who loses
Why technical SEOs and parasite SEOs are outperforming content-first sites
How forums, Reddit, and Facebook groups are being used to manipulate rankings
Why casino, VPN, and adult niches still dominate traditional search results
How listicles, review sites, and media publishers control AI recommendations
Why Forbes keeps ranking for everything, even after being hit
How AI Overviews and LLMs pull from Google’s front page
How easy it is to make a fake brand show up inside ChatGPT and other LLMs
Why Trustpilot, Reddit, and listicles matter more than backlinks right now
How some publishers recover while others stay permanently buried
The HouseFresh case study and why public pressure actually works
How parasite SEO works on newspapers and Google News sites
Why many white-hat SEOs feel stuck while black-hat operators scale
How founders should build brands in an LLM-driven world
Why social, video, and personal brands now beat pure SEO

This episode is for anyone who:
Runs a content site
Does affiliate SEO
Builds SaaS or online tools
Depends on Google traffic
Wants to understand how AI is changing search
Feels like rankings and traffic don’t make sense anymore

⭐️ Lars Lofgren’s website and newsletter: https://larslofgren.com/
⭐️ Lars Lofgren on LinkedIn (tell him you came from this podcast and he’ll accept your connection):   / larslofgren  
⭐️ Lars Lofgren on 𝕏: https://x.com/larslofgren

⭐️ Jacky Chou on 𝕏 - https://x.com/indexsy
⭐️ Jack Chou’s website - https://jackychou.com/
⭐️ Jacky Chou on YouTube -    / @indexsy  

💎 Compact Keywords - My SEO Course - Get paying customers through SEO - Clear step-by-step video breakdowns - SEO templates to be copied and adapted for your products and services: https://compactkeywords.com/

00:00 White Hat vs. Black Hat SEO: A Tale of Two Conferences
01:15 The Impact of AI and Google's Algorithm on SEO
02:10 Black Hat SEO: Thriving in the Current Landscape
04:43 Forbes and the Content Quality Debate
07:57 The Rise of Technical SEOs in the LLM Era
09:23 Gaming LLMs: New Tactics and Strategies
22:21 The Golden Age of Forum Spam
23:04 The Power of Masterminds and Private Communities
35:29 Reddit Manipulation and the Coding Bootcamp Scandal
41:47 Starting Local: Leveraging Facebook and Reddit
42:55 AI Influencers and Monetization Strategies
44:09 AI Content and Detection Challenges
44:45 AI in SEO: Misconceptions and Strategies
47:36 Google Algorithm Shifts and SEO Tactics
49:12 Niche Sites and Content Strategies
01:00:46 Trustpilot Reviews and Black Hat Tactics
01:07:12 Social Media Strategies for SEO and Branding
01:19:53 Concluding Thoughts and Final Tips

The Edward Show. Your daily search engine optimization podcast: https://edwardsturm.com/the-edward-show/

#blackhatseo #searchengineoptimization #linkbuilding