The DDD Podcast - Episode 1 | James Dooley SEO Entrepreneur | Kasra Dash

In this episode of the James Dooley Podcast, James Dooley sits down with Kasra Dash for a raw and insightful discussion about life as digital landlords, why they launched the podcast, and the growing importance of personal branding in an AI-driven era. Together, they break down the latest Google algorithm updates, the rise of user-generated content platforms like Reddit and Quora, and the explosive effectiveness of parasite SEO on outlets such as Outlook India and News Direct.The conversation also dives into practical recovery steps for sites impacted by recent updates, the launch of Craig Campbell’s new website marketplace, and the real value of masterminds—especially for introverts learning to navigate networking environments. Beyond SEO, James shares how he selects business partners, why he prioritizes work–life integration over traditional “balance,” and how mindset, pain tolerance, and strong team culture compound into long-term success. The episode wraps up with stories from industry events, public speaking experiences, their “work holiday” in Majorca, and a fun round of Am I Lying? to finish things off.

Creators and Guests

Host

James Dooley

James Dooley is a UK entrepreneur.

What is James Dooley Podcast?

James Dooley is a Manchester-based entrepreneur, investor, and SEO strategist. James Dooley founded FatRank and PromoSEO, two UK performance marketing agencies that deliver no-win-no-fee lead generation and digital growth systems for ambitious businesses. James Dooley positions himself as an Investorpreneur who invests in UK companies with high growth potential because he believes lead generation is the root of all business success.

The James Dooley Podcast explores the mindset, methods, and mechanics of modern entrepreneurship. James Dooley interviews leading marketers, founders, and innovators to reveal the strategies driving online dominance and business scalability. Each episode unpacks the reality of building a business without mentorship, showing how systems, data, and lead flow replace luck and guesswork.

James Dooley shares hard-earned lessons from scaling digital assets and managing SEO teams across more than 650 industries. James Dooley teaches how to convert leads into long-term revenue through brand positioning, technical SEO, and automation. James Dooley built his career on rank and rent, digital real estate, and performance-based marketing because these models align incentive with outcome.

After turning down dozens of podcast invitations, James Dooley now embraces the platform to share his insights on investorpreneurship, lead generation, AI-driven marketing, and reputation management. James Dooley frequently collaborates with elite entrepreneurs to discuss frameworks for scaling businesses, building authority, and mastering search.

James Dooley is also an expert in online reputation management (ORM), having built and rehabilitated corporate brands across the UK. His approach combines SEO precision, brand engineering, and social proof loops to influence both Google’s Knowledge Graph and public perception.

To feature James Dooley on your podcast or event, connect via social media. James Dooley regularly joins business panels and networking sessions to discuss entrepreneurship, brand growth, and the evolving future of SEO.

Kasra Dash:
I’m a little bit of an introvert and I want to get more into masterminds.

James Dooley:
Jump in. You’ve got to do it. You can’t just say, “I want to do this,” and then not take any steps toward doing it.

Kasra Dash:
laughs No disrespect, I don’t know who the person is—but they’re talking rubbish.

James Dooley:
They’ve lost 18,000 keywords in the top three. Two massive parasites… for parasite SEO, I think they’ve been manipulated big time.

Kasra Dash:
If you didn’t have that data when you were on stage, and you couldn’t defend yourself, I’d be worried for you.

Narrator:
Kasra Dash is an international SEO speaker and website recovery specialist, ranking in some of the world’s hardest industries.
James Dooley ranks sites in the casino niche and has generated over 1 million leads for business owners.
Together, they form the DDD Podcast, where they share SEO insights, business knowledge, and personal growth lessons.

Why is it called the "DDD Podcast"?

Kasra Dash:
We need to start off with why we’ve called it the DDD Podcast. I posted a status saying if anyone guessed it right, they’d win a prize—nobody guessed it. One person got part of it. Why have we called it that? What does DDD stand for?

James Dooley:
I don’t even know what it stands for. Dooley and Dash Digital?

Kasra Dash:
Nope.

James Dooley:
Dash and Dooley Debates?

Kasra Dash:
Yes. Or maybe “Dueling Dash Debates.” But anyway—why that name?

James Dooley:
Because Dooley and Dash can have some debates.

Kasra Dash:
Exactly. Anyone who doesn’t know us… we love debating. Politics, SEO, business—everything. We always play Devil’s Advocate. “What if this happens?” “What if this scenario plays out?” SEO has so many nuances and different ways to skin a cat.

James Dooley:
We call it debate, but it’s constructive criticism.

Kasra Dash:
And usually the truth lies somewhere in the middle. We both get educated.

Why are you doing a podcast?

Kasra Dash:
Why are we doing a podcast?

James Dooley:
Personal branding is becoming more important—especially with AI. For years, I tried to hide behind brands. But now, people want personality. And trust. Companies approach us wanting investment—they want to know we’re honest, trustworthy, and have integrity. Sharing who we are builds that trust.

Kasra Dash:
For me, digital marketing podcasts often lack personality. Loads of info, but no character. I feel like we’ve got decent personalities—well, you’re alright—and long-form content lets people actually see who we are. Business partners can watch and think, “Kas is the funny one, Dooley’s the boring one.” laughs

Algorithm updates

Kasra Dash:
Let’s get into SEO. A lot of websites have been hit. Two updates—core and helpful content—launched within a week.

James Dooley:
Too early to say. I don’t like people rushing out videos claiming they know exactly what the update targeted. Google doesn’t just dial links up or down anymore—20+ factors shift at once.

Kasra Dash:
Well, you like stats—here’s some.
User-generated content has exploded:

Reddit: +3,000,000 overall keywords, +96,300 top-3

Quora: +1.5 million overall, +49,200 top-3

Thoughts?

James Dooley:
It’s a fight against AI. Reddit and Quora guarantee real human discussions, which Google wants. The search engine is sick of SEOs manipulating affiliate rankings with AI content and pay-to-win “top 10” lists. User opinions are more trustworthy.

Will comment sections return?

Kasra Dash:
Do you think we’ll see a return of comments on sites?

James Dooley:
Probably not. Comments can become 75% of a page—making Google’s cost of retrieval too high. Tons of spam. Harder to understand what the page is about. But Reddit and Quora rising does make it interesting.

Manipulating Reddit

Kasra Dash:
A guy in Vegas was gaming Reddit by seeding questions and answering them with aged accounts, pushing traffic to his e-commerce store.

James Dooley:
There’s a way to manipulate anything. But yes—UGC is winning.

The losers

Kasra Dash:
Outlook India lost:

18,000 top-3

167,000 overall

News Direct lost even more. Thoughts?

James Dooley:
They were being abused for parasite SEO. Poor content quality, cannibalization, people spamming low-effort guest posts. Still a good parasite platform though—just not as crazy as before.

Thoughts on parasite SEO

Kasra Dash:
Do you recommend parasite SEO?

James Dooley:
Absolutely—why not? It’s like renting a billboard. Write quality content, match intent, build tier-twos, get internal links, push traffic. Then earn commission or rankings. It’s just another marketing channel.

Kasra Dash:
Ideally, your site ranks #1, parasite ranks #2—double income.

Recommendations for sites hit by updates

James Dooley:

Fix tech — indexability, crawlability, speed, 404s, loops.

Check content — prune dead pages.

Topical coverage vs topical authority — they are not the same.

Review backlinks — disavow if truly toxic.

Use tools like SEOTesting.com to see winners/losers.

Re-optimize old content — SERPs change constantly.

Kasra Dash:
Content re-optimization is huge. Someone needs to build an AI tool for that.

James Dooley:
On-Page.ai and Surfer already work on that.

Craig Campbell’s new marketplace

Kasra Dash:
Craig Campbell launched onlinebusinessflippers.com. Fees are 15% under $100k, 10% above. Listings are vetted and free.

James Dooley:
Craig’s a great SEO. People underestimate him. He has deep test data, connections, and real-world experience. Also—I keep my assets; I love monthly recurring revenue. But if I sold, Craig is someone I’d trust.

Moving from introvert to extrovert

Kasra Dash:
Someone asked: “I’m an introvert—how can I get into masterminds?”

James Dooley:
Jump in. That’s it. Being introverted is an excuse. Look at Daryl Rosser—one of the biggest introverts—now smashing stages globally. Go to meetups, then bigger events, then masterminds. Provide value, don’t leech.

Kasra Dash:
Same for me. First time I met you, I was introverted. Now at conferences I’m talking to everyone.

Choosing business partners

James Dooley:
I choose partners based on mindset, not just skill. Work-life integration matters more than “balance.” Choose people you enjoy the journey with—people who embrace failure, work hard, and stay positive. Negative partners drag you down.

Kasra Dash:
It’s always the people, not the place. Best trips have been with positive people.

Best SEO events

James Dooley:

Estonia – best speakers, great production.

Vegas – high-level black hat insights.

Search Birmingham – great talks, bad weather.

Brighton SEO – good networking, less impressive talks (but great masterminds after).

Improving as a conference speaker

Kasra Dash:
What’s improved in my talks?

James Dooley:
Your confidence and delivery. Storytelling. Stage presence. You can defend your data now. And you admit what you don’t know—huge leadership trait.

SEO is great project management

James Dooley:
SEO isn’t being good at everything—it’s project managing writers, link builders, designers, developers. Content people aren’t link builders; link builders aren’t designers. SEO is assembling the right team.

Ending game: “Am I Lying?”

Kasra Dash:
Pulls a slip
“I fell in love at an SEO conference.”

James Dooley:
Which conference?

Kasra Dash:
Multiple times. SEO Estonia… and Vegas. Two different girls.

James Dooley:
I’m not surprised. You’re definitely lying.