#1: Why listicle-led “AI SEO” won’t hold

Hey, its Amit here.

Welcome to the first weekly instalment of “The Links Letter” which is a newsletter arm of my brand, The Links Guy.

I came across an interesting post from Alex, and its something that’s been getting discussed on and off, since late 2025.

“Here’s something I would not bet on for AI search optimization in 2026.”

That’s how Alex Lindley, Managing Editor at Semrush, opened a recent LinkedIn post.

He was talking about listicle optimization  -  the rush to get brands mentioned in as many “Best X” lists as possible, then declaring your AI Search Optimization “done.”

I want to build on that point, because I think it reveals a much bigger misunderstanding about how AI search, Google, and off-page signals actually work.

I get why this tactic is everywhere.

And to be clear: I’m not saying listicles don’t work at all.
They can absolutely play a role.

The problem is what happens when teams treat them as the strategy -  especially when they’re sold as a way to “force” brand mention signals into AI systems.

That’s where things start to break.

The core mistake isn’t “using listicles.”

It’s thinking tactically about a system that behaves systemically.

AI Overviews, LLM answers, and modern consumer behavior point toward something closer to search-everywhere optimization:

A single placement  -  even a visible one  -  doesn’t carry the same weight once you zoom out.

A few months ago, I saw an AEO agency share screenshots showing their client appearing prominently in an AI Overview  - attributed to a series of listicle placements.

Here’s what they shared (I’m blurring out the brand btw to save embarassment)

👉 They measured the “Share of Voice” for that prompt group.

So fast forward several months, I’ll check the same brand again.

❌ Their AI Overview presence has now degraded (I can’t find them at all within the AI overview now)

❌ Their share of voice has dropped from 12.5% to 7.82%. (In fact the main one that matters outside of AI Overviews is ChatGPT, and they had a score of 0 there!)

❌ So, they were no longer as prominent as in the original screenshot

That initial effect they got initially - didn’t compound.

And when I looked closer at where those listicle placements came from, another issue became obvious:

That matters.

Because as Kevin Indig has shown across multiple 2025 studies, AI visibility correlates sharply with authority and link quality, not just the presence of a mention.

Weak signals don’t stack.
They decay.

Here’s the uncomfortable part.

If listicle placements were a reliable, long-term way to game AI visibility:

That’s never how search systems evolve.

What’s far more likely is:

And if your entire off-page strategy is built on one lever, you’re exposed.

Listicles aren’t the enemy.

Over-reliance is.

Listicles work best when they sit inside a broader off-page system:

That’s the off-page signals flywheel.

And once you understand that flywheel, you become tactic-agnostic:

This is exactly why The Links Guy Academy exists.

Not to teach a single tactic.
Not to chase whatever AI workaround is trending this quarter.

But to teach:

->how to evaluate link quality properly

->how to think beyond short-term tactics

->how digital PR, assets, and links work together

->how to think about off-page SEO when you’re building or managing a team

Whether you execute links in-house or work with agencies, this understanding is what makes the difference between temporary wins and durable authority.

Your own backlink profile  - but reviewed qualitatively, not just by metrics.
Ask: Would this site still matter if AI systems got stricter tomorrow?

What off-page tactic are you seeing pushed hardest right now  -  and what worries you about it?

And is there anything you’d like me to talk about, or that you’d find valuable to have?

Hit reply. I read every response.

—
Amit Raj
The Links Guy

P.S.
Listicles can be part of the mix.
Just don’t build your entire house on them.