seo-growth

Keyword research methodology, on-page SEO checklist, content cluster strategy, meta description templates, internal linking, SERP analysis, and E-E-A-T signals

SEO Growth Skill

Trigger Conditions

Use this skill when the user asks to:

Brand Voice Integration

MANDATORY: Before generating ANY SEO content, load the brand voice configuration.

from brand_voice.config import load_brand_voice
brand = load_brand_voice()

SEO content must:

  1. Pass anti_slop validation — search engines increasingly penalize generic AI content
  2. Match brand.tone — consistency across all content builds brand authority
  3. Provide genuine value — Google's Helpful Content Update rewards content made for humans

Keyword Research Methodology

The 5-Layer Keyword Research Process

Layer 1: Seed Keywords from Business Context

Start with the business, not the tool. Extract seed keywords from:

Template for seed extraction:

seed_keywords:
  from_product:
    - "[feature] + [use case]"  # e.g., "content calendar automation"
  from_customer_language:
    - "[how customers describe the problem]"  # e.g., "spending too much time on social media"
  from_competitors:
    - "[terms competitors rank for]"
  from_communities:
    - "[questions people ask]"  # e.g., "how to plan content for LinkedIn"

Layer 2: Keyword Expansion

For each seed keyword, expand using these methods:

| Method | What It Finds | Example | |--------|--------------|---------| | Google Autocomplete | Real user queries | Type seed → note suggestions | | People Also Ask (PAA) | Question-form queries | Search seed → extract PAA boxes | | Related Searches | Semantic variations | Bottom of SERP → related queries | | Forum Mining | Long-tail, problem-aware queries | Reddit/Quora → actual questions | | Competitor Gap | Keywords competitors rank for that you don't | Tools: Ahrefs, SEMrush content gap |

Layer 3: Intent Classification

Every keyword has a search intent. Mismatching intent = wasted content.

| Intent | Searcher Wants | Content Format | Funnel Stage | |--------|---------------|----------------|-------------| | Informational | Learn or understand | Blog post, guide, video, infographic | TOFU | | Navigational | Find a specific site/page | Brand page, login page | N/A | | Commercial Investigation | Compare options | Comparison post, review, "best X" list | MOFU | | Transactional | Buy or take action | Landing page, pricing page, product page | BOFU |

How to determine intent:

  1. Google the keyword and analyze the top 5 results
  2. Are they blog posts (informational), product pages (transactional), or comparison articles (commercial)?
  3. Match your content format to what Google is already ranking

Layer 4: Prioritization Scoring

Score each keyword opportunity:

keyword_score:
  keyword: "[term]"
  monthly_volume: "[number]"
  keyword_difficulty: "[0-100]"
  search_intent: "[informational | commercial | transactional]"
  business_relevance: "[1-5, how close to your product's value]"
  current_ranking: "[position or 'not ranking']"
  content_exists: "[yes/no — do you already have content for this?]"
  priority_score: "[calculated: relevance × (volume / difficulty)]"

Prioritization rules:

Layer 5: Keyword Mapping

Map keywords to content and URLs:

keyword_map:
  - primary_keyword: "[main target]"
    secondary_keywords:
      - "[variation 1]"
      - "[variation 2]"
    target_url: "[/path/to/content]"
    content_type: "[blog | landing | guide | comparison]"
    status: "[planned | draft | published | needs-update]"
    cluster: "[which content cluster this belongs to]"

On-Page SEO Checklist

Use this checklist for every piece of content before publishing.

Title Tag (most important on-page element)

Title tag formulas:

[Number] + [Adjective] + [Keyword] + [Promise]
→ "7 Proven Content Calendar Templates That Save 10 Hours/Week"

How to + [Keyword] + [Without Objection]
→ "How to Build a Content Strategy Without a Full Marketing Team"

[Keyword]: [Specific Benefit or Framework]
→ "Content Clusters: The Hub-and-Spoke Model for Topical Authority"

Meta Description

Meta description templates:

[Benefit statement]. [Specific detail]. [CTA].
→ "Build your content calendar in 10 minutes. Includes templates for
LinkedIn, Twitter, and email. Get the free guide."

[Question that matches search intent]? [Answer preview]. [CTA].
→ "Struggling with consistent content? Here's the 3-pillar framework
used by 500+ marketing teams. Start planning today."

[Problem] → [Solution]. [Proof]. [CTA].
→ "Spending 15 hours/week on social content? Automate your workflow
with . ."

Headings (H1-H6)

Content Body

URL Structure

✅ /content-calendar-templates
❌ /blog/2025/03/15/content-calendar-templates-for-marketing-teams-2025

Images

Internal Links

Technical

Content Cluster Strategy

The Hub-and-Spoke Model

Content clusters (also called topic clusters) are the foundation of modern SEO architecture. They build topical authority and help Google understand your expertise.

Structure:

                    ┌── Spoke: "How to Write LinkedIn Posts"
                    │
Pillar (Hub): ──────┼── Spoke: "Content Calendar Templates"
"Content Marketing   │
Strategy Guide"     ├── Spoke: "B2B vs B2C Content Strategy"
                    │
                    ├── Spoke: "Content Distribution Channels"
                    │
                    └── Spoke: "Measuring Content ROI"

Building a Content Cluster

Step 1: Choose the pillar topic

Step 2: Map spoke topics

content_cluster:
  pillar:
    topic: "[Broad topic]"
    target_keyword: "[High-volume head term]"
    url: "/[topic-slug]"
    format: "comprehensive guide (3,000-5,000 words)"
    intent: "informational"
  spokes:
    - topic: "[Sub-topic 1]"
      target_keyword: "[Long-tail keyword]"
      url: "/[topic-slug]/[sub-topic-slug]"
      format: "[blog post | how-to | comparison | template]"
      intent: "[informational | commercial]"
      links_to_pillar: true
      internal_links:
        - "[other spoke URL that's related]"

Step 3: Internal linking rules

Step 4: Content creation order

  1. Publish the pillar page first (even in draft form)
  2. Publish spoke articles, linking to pillar as they go live
  3. Update pillar to link to new spokes
  4. Revisit and update cluster quarterly

Cluster Quality Metrics

| Metric | Target | Why | |--------|--------|-----| | Spokes per cluster | 8-15 | Enough for authority, not so many you're thin | | Internal links per spoke | 3-5 | Distributes authority without over-linking | | Cluster traffic growth | 20%+ QoQ | Proves topical authority is building | | Pillar page ranking | Top 10 for head term | The goal of the whole cluster | | Spoke conversion rate | > site average | Spokes should drive qualified traffic |

SERP Analysis

How to Analyze a SERP Before Writing

Before creating content for any keyword, study what's already ranking:

Step 1: Search the primary keyword Note:

Step 2: Analyze top 3 results

serp_analysis:
  keyword: "[target keyword]"
  serp_features:
    featured_snippet: "[yes/no — type if yes]"
    people_also_ask: "[list top 4 PAA questions]"
    video_carousel: "[yes/no]"
    local_pack: "[yes/no]"
    knowledge_panel: "[yes/no]"
  top_results:
    - position: 1
      url: "[URL]"
      title: "[Title tag]"
      content_type: "[blog | guide | tool | landing]"
      word_count: "[approximate]"
      strengths: "[what they do well]"
      gaps: "[what they miss that we can cover]"
    - position: 2
      # ...same structure
    - position: 3
      # ...same structure
  content_strategy:
    format: "[what format to use based on SERP]"
    angle: "[unique angle that fills gaps]"
    target_length: "[word count based on competitors]"
    featured_snippet_opportunity: "[yes/no — and how to target it]"

Step 3: Identify the content gap The gap is what makes your content worth ranking over what already exists:

Featured Snippet Optimization

If a featured snippet exists for your keyword, optimize for it:

| Snippet Type | How to Target | |-------------|--------------| | Paragraph | Answer the question in 40-50 words directly under an H2 that matches the query | | List | Use an ordered or unordered list with H2 matching the query | | Table | Use an HTML table with clear headers | | Video | Create a video with the keyword in title, timestamped chapters |

E-E-A-T Signals

What E-E-A-T Means

E-E-A-T (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness) is Google's framework for evaluating content quality. It's not a direct ranking factor but influences how quality raters evaluate your site.

| Signal | Definition | How to Demonstrate | |--------|-----------|-------------------| | Experience | First-hand experience with the topic | Share personal/company results, case studies, screenshots, original data | | Expertise | Deep knowledge in the subject area | Author bios, credentials, detailed technical content, cite primary sources | | Authoritativeness | Recognized authority in the field | Backlinks from authoritative sites, mentions, industry recognition, original research | | Trustworthiness | Accurate, honest, and transparent | HTTPS, clear author identity, sources cited, corrections policy, no misleading claims |

E-E-A-T Implementation Checklist

Content Level

Site Level

Technical E-E-A-T

E-E-A-T for AI-Generated Content

Google's stance: AI-generated content is fine IF it demonstrates E-E-A-T. The key is:

  1. Human review — AI generates, human reviews and adds expertise
  2. Experience layer — Add real examples, data, and case studies that AI can't fabricate
  3. Transparency — Don't pretend AI content is human-written if it's not
  4. Value test — Would this content exist if there were no search engines? If yes, it's probably valuable.

Link Building Strategy (Internal)

Internal Linking Rules

Internal links are the most underrated SEO lever — they're free, you control them, and they directly influence crawl behavior and authority distribution.

Core rules:

  1. Every new page gets 3-5 internal links pointing to it within 48 hours
  1. Anchor text distribution:

`` 50% — Exact or partial keyword match 30% — Descriptive / contextual phrase 20% — Branded or generic ("this guide", "our analysis") ``

  1. Link equity flow:
  1. Orphan page audit:

Internal Link Template

internal_linking_plan:
  target_page:
    url: "[new page URL]"
    primary_keyword: "[target keyword]"
  inbound_links:
    - source_url: "[page linking TO the new page]"
      anchor_text: "[text used for the link]"
      context: "[paragraph where link is placed]"
      type: "[contextual | navigational | footer]"
  outbound_links:
    - target_url: "[page the new page links TO]"
      anchor_text: "[text used]"
      relevance: "[why this link makes sense for the reader]"

Technical SEO Essentials

Core Web Vitals

| Metric | Target | What It Measures | |--------|--------|-----------------| | LCP (Largest Contentful Paint) | < 2.5s | Loading performance | | INP (Interaction to Next Paint) | < 200ms | Interactivity | | CLS (Cumulative Layout Shift) | < 0.1 | Visual stability |

Schema Markup Priority

| Schema Type | When to Use | Impact | |------------|-------------|--------| | Article | Blog posts, guides | Rich results, author display | | FAQ | Pages with Q&A sections | FAQ rich results, more SERP real estate | | HowTo | Tutorial/process content | Step-by-step rich results | | Product | Product pages | Price, availability, reviews in SERPs | | Organization | Homepage | Knowledge panel data | | BreadcrumbList | All pages | Better SERP display, navigation context |

Crawl Budget Optimization

SEO Content Calendar Template

seo_content_calendar:
  month: "YYYY-MM"
  cluster: "[content cluster name]"
  items:
    - week: 1
      keyword: "[target keyword]"
      title: "[working title]"
      format: "[blog | guide | comparison | template]"
      intent: "[informational | commercial | transactional]"
      word_count_target: "[based on SERP analysis]"
      author: "[who writes]"
      status: "[planned | writing | review | published]"
      target_url: "[planned URL]"
      internal_links_from: ["[list of pages that will link to this]"]
      notes: "[any special considerations]"

Output Contract

SEO Content Schema

output_contract:
  format: markdown
  required_sections:
    - frontmatter:
        type: string  # "seo-content"
        subtype: string  # "keyword-research" | "content-brief" | "on-page-audit" | "cluster-plan" | "serp-analysis"
        status: string  # "draft" | "review" | "approved"
        date: string  # ISO 8601
        author: string  # "seo-growth"
        target_keyword: string  # primary keyword
        search_intent: string  # "informational" | "commercial" | "transactional"
    - seo_metadata:
        title_tag: string  # 50-60 chars
        meta_description: string  # 150-160 chars
        url_slug: string  # short, keyword-rich
        primary_keyword: string
        secondary_keywords: list
        target_word_count: integer
    - content:
        format: string  # matches SERP intent
        sections: list  # H2 outline with keywords mapped
        internal_links: list  # planned internal links
        schema_markup: string  # recommended schema type
    - competitive_context:
        serp_analysis: object  # top 3 competitors analyzed
        content_gap: string  # what unique angle we take
        featured_snippet_target: boolean
    - quality_gates:
        on_page_checklist_passed: boolean
        eeat_signals_present: boolean
        anti_slop_passed: boolean
        brand_voice_aligned: boolean
  validation:
    anti_slop: true
    brand_voice: true
    title_length: "50-60 chars"
    meta_description_length: "150-160 chars"
    min_internal_links: 3
    schema_markup_required: true