I mainly went through this process to learn more about the company and get interview practice, because the role itself was junior for my experience level and would have meant about a $20K pay cut. The process included an online video screening, an HR interview, and then a conversation with the hiring manager. The hiring manager was personable and conversational, which was a plus. We talked about my technical SEO background, including replatforming work, and she mentioned that was highly relevant to issues they had recently faced. Based on that, I expected to move forward. The main hesitation seemed to be around AI/GEO. I was honest that I think most success in LLMs today still comes from strong traditional SEO, not from magical “GEO tactics,” especially since there is not yet a trustworthy measurement framework for LLM visibility. My impression was that they may be looking for someone who speaks confidently about AI trends, rather than someone grounded in what is actually measurable and proven.