The Wealthy Entrepreneur
How Smart Businesses Build Authority Online: SEO Insights from Yoast’s Carolyn Shelby
August 5, 2025
Today, Bob Gauvreau sits down with Carolyn Shelby, Director of Search at Yoast, to unpack what business owners often get wrong about SEO. Carolyn explains why SEO isn’t an afterthought — it’s a foundational piece of your online strategy that directly impacts visibility and conversions. The conversation dives into how AI is quietly reshaping Google Search, and why clear attribution in marketing is becoming a thing of the past. Carolyn challenges common design practices, like hiding content behind tabs, and shares how they may be hurting rankings more than helping. Listeners will learn how to build trust with search engines, create content that performs, and adapt to the new era of AI-driven search. It’s a must-hear for entrepreneurs who want to stop guessing and start growing with smarter SEO.       Episode Highlights: 00:00 Welcome to The Wealthy Entrepreneur Podcast 02:21 What Most Business Owners Get Wrong About SEO 06:10 “Pretty Doesn’t Mean Profitable” 08:45 The Cake Metaphor for SEO 13:57 How AI Is Already Running Google 17:17 The ‘Mad Men’ Era of Digital Marketing 20:12 The Problem with Hidden Content 26:49 Trust, E-A-T, and Building Real Authority 31:30 SEO Tools vs. SEO Strategy     About the Guest:Carolyn Shelby is the Principal SEO at Yoast, where she leads technical SEO strategy and supports the development of tools that help millions optimize their websites for search. With over 25 years of experience in web technology and search optimization, she brings a deep technical background rooted in the early days of the internet. Carolyn has led enterprise SEO efforts for major media organizations, managing complex site structures and driving visibility at scale. Her specialties include technical SEO, international SEO, and optimizing large-scale WordPress environments. An experienced speaker and consultant, she regularly shares insights on the evolving search landscape, AI-driven optimization, and content strategy. Carolyn’s expertise bridges foundational web engineering with modern, performance-driven SEO.     Connect with Carolyn: Website: https://www.cshel.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cshel/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/cshel/ X: https://x.com/cshel       Resources: Visit their website: https://yoast.com/ Visit the Wealthy Entrepreneur Website: https://www.wealthyentrepreneur.co/  Download The Wealthy Entrepreneur (digital book) for FREE: https://profitsimple.ca/wealthy-entrepreneur Like our Facebook Page at https://www.facebook.com/wealthyentrepreneurofficial Join The Wealthy Entrepreneur Community for FREE at https://www.facebook.com/groups/gauvreaucpa  For more podcast episodes, subscribe to our Youtube Channel at https://www.youtube.com/@wealthyentrepreneurofficial. Let’s continue to work on becoming a Wealthy Entrepreneur!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today, Bob Gauvreau sits down with Carolyn Shelby, Director of Search at Yoast, to unpack what business owners often get wrong about SEO. Carolyn explains why SEO isn’t an afterthought — it’s a foundational piece of your online strategy that directly impacts visibility and conversions.

The conversation dives into how AI is quietly reshaping Google Search, and why clear attribution in marketing is becoming a thing of the past. Carolyn challenges common design practices, like hiding content behind tabs, and shares how they may be hurting rankings more than helping.

Listeners will learn how to build trust with search engines, create content that performs, and adapt to the new era of AI-driven search. It’s a must-hear for entrepreneurs who want to stop guessing and start growing with smarter SEO.

 

 

 

Episode Highlights:

 

 


About the Guest:
Carolyn Shelby is the Principal SEO at Yoast, where she leads technical SEO strategy and supports the development of tools that help millions optimize their websites for search. With over 25 years of experience in web technology and search optimization, she brings a deep technical background rooted in the early days of the internet.

Carolyn has led enterprise SEO efforts for major media organizations, managing complex site structures and driving visibility at scale. Her specialties include technical SEO, international SEO, and optimizing large-scale WordPress environments.

An experienced speaker and consultant, she regularly shares insights on the evolving search landscape, AI-driven optimization, and content strategy. Carolyn’s expertise bridges foundational web engineering with modern, performance-driven SEO.

 

 

Connect with Carolyn:

 

 

 

Resources:

For more podcast episodes, subscribe to our Youtube Channel at https://www.youtube.com/@wealthyentrepreneurofficial.

Let’s continue to work on becoming a Wealthy Entrepreneur!

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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