Strategies: SEO
Guides SEO strategy: workflow order, prioritization, Product-Led SEO, and when to use which skills. Use this skill when planning SEO from scratch, auditing an existing site, or deciding what to do next.
When invoking: On first use, if helpful, open with 1–2 sentences on what this skill covers and why it matters, then provide the main output. On subsequent use or when the user asks to skip, go directly to the main output.
Strategic Context: Why SEO
| Value | Rationale |
|---|---|
| Traffic control | ~68% of initial web traffic from search; search aggregates most user intent |
| Growth channel | ~87% of consumers prefer Google when discovering new categories; 43% of conversions from organic (vs ~11% social) |
| Cost efficiency | SEO user LTV 3–5× paid ads; rank #1 CTR ~27.6% vs #10 ~2.4% |
| Long-term asset | Quality SEO assets yield 3–5 years of traffic; Core Web Vitals correlate with conversion (e.g., +8% per 0.1s faster) |
SEO = Google optimization: Google holds ~91% global search share; B2B buyers use search as research starting point. Optimize for Google first; see localization-strategy for non-Google markets.
Reference: Alignify – SEO Core Value and Challenges in AI Search Era
When to Invest in SEO
| Stage | Recommendation |
|---|---|
| Cold start | Use email, ads, or influencers for first users; SEO takes time (sandbox, 6+ months) |
| Post-PMF | SEO scales; combine with paid for faster feedback; see pmf-strategy, paid-ads-strategy |
| Team | Many SMBs use contractors; SEO spans content, links, tech, UX—full-time team when scaling |
Principle: Don't do SEO for SEO's sake; don't fight Google rules; prioritize real user experience.
AI Search Era & Channel Integration
| Challenge | Response |
|---|---|
| Zero-click, AI Overviews | ~30% clicks go to Google-owned properties; AI Overviews ~12–15% SERP share; TOFU (what/why/how) CTR declining |
| Algorithm volatility | 5000+ updates/year; traffic swings common; focus on helpful content, E-E-A-T |
| Response | Elevate SEO to search experience optimization—user-centric, not rank-centric; see generative-engine-optimization for AI visibility |
Channel integration: SEO + ads (validate keywords, retarget); SEO + influencers (backlinks, mentions); SEO + social (UGC, embeddable content). Plugins/apps: functional links back to site.
Workflow Order
Fix foundation before optimizing pages. Execute in this order:
| Phase | Focus | Skills |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Technical | Crawlability, indexing, sitemap | robots-txt, xml-sitemap, canonical-tag, indexing, indexnow, site-crawlability |
| 2. On-Page | Metadata, structure, schema | title-tag, meta-description, page-metadata, schema-markup, internal-links, url-structure, heading-structure |
| 3. Content | Keywords, clusters, optimization | keyword-research, content-strategy, content-optimization |
| 4. Off-Page | Backlinks, authority | link-building, backlink-analysis |
Technical issues block indexing and crawl; on-page issues limit how well content ranks; content and off-page build authority over time.
Product-Led SEO
SEO leverages content you already have—brand, features, scenarios, input, output, prompt, processes, knowledge—published in a structured way. Even without SEO, you'd showcase product features; SEO makes that content benefit you in traffic.
Principle: Do SEO around product/users, not around industry/search engines.
Products Suited for SEO
| Type | Suited because |
|---|---|
| Tool | Users have clear use cases and needs |
| Content | Users have clear information needs |
| E-commerce | Users have clear purchase needs |
| Service | Users have clear service needs |
Agent/Copilot products: Pure native Agent hard to grow via SEO; users rarely search "agent." Release related features first (e.g., CRM, sales bot for sales agent) to build traffic, then funnel to Agent product. See keyword-research for product positioning test.
SEO Audit Approach
| Scenario | Order | Focus |
|---|---|---|
| New site | domain-selection → website-structure → Technical → On-Page → Content | Choose domain first (if needed); plan pages; build foundation; add content |
| Existing site | Technical audit → On-Page audit → Content gap → Off-Page | Fix crawl/index first; then metadata, schema; then content gaps; then links |
| Low traffic | keyword-research → content-strategy → content-optimization | Often content or intent mismatch |
| Not indexing | indexing, robots-txt, site-crawlability | Technical blockers |
SEO Roadmap Priorities
| Priority | Meaning | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| P0 | Blocker—fix first | Crawlability, indexing, robots blocking |
| P1 | Core—do soon | Title, meta, schema, sitemap, internal links |
| P2 | Important—not urgent | Open Graph, Twitter Cards, IndexNow |
| P3 | Nice to have | Rich results, sitelinks optimization |
Paid–Organic Alignment
SEO and PPC share the same SERP—ads, AI overviews, videos, organic links. Without alignment, you risk duplication, cannibalization, and wasted spend. Shared keyword data: Use keyword-research for both; google-ads for Search targeting. PPC conversion data can prioritize SEO keywords; organic rank 4+ may reduce need for PPC on those terms.
Reference: Backlinko – SEO and PPC: 8 Smart Ways to Align
Alternative SEO Strategies
| Strategy | When | Skill |
|---|---|---|
| Programmatic SEO | Scale pages with template + data | programmatic-seo |
| Parasite SEO | Leverage high-authority platforms | parasite-seo |
| GEO | AI search visibility, citations | generative-engine-optimization |
| Localization | Multi-language, international | localization-strategy |
| Multi-domain brand SEO | Multiple domains; brand query control | multi-domain-brand-seo |
Output Format
- Workflow phase (where you are; what's next)
- Priority list (P0–P3 tasks)
- Skill mapping (which skill for each task)
- Recommendation (start with X; then Y)
Task tracking: Use templates/project-task-tracker.md to track task status; references this workflow.
Related Skills
- domain-selection: Initial domain choice (Brand/PMD/EMD, TLD); do before website-structure for new sites
- website-structure: Plan which pages to build; do before or alongside Technical phase
- keyword-research: Discovery; informs content-strategy, content-optimization, and google-ads
- google-ads, paid-ads-strategy: Paid–organic synergy; cold start; PPC data for SEO priority
- pmf-strategy: Validate PMF before scaling SEO; cold start uses other channels
- content-strategy: Topic clusters, pillar pages; content planning
- programmatic-seo: Template-based scale; alternative to manual content
- parasite-seo: High-authority platforms; alternative to owned-site SEO
- generative-engine-optimization: AI search visibility; complements traditional SEO
- localization-strategy: Multi-language SEO
- domain-architecture: Domain structure (subfolder/subdomain/independent); do before or with website-structure when multiple products
- rebranding-strategy: Domain change, 301 redirects; use when rebranding
- multi-domain-brand-seo: Brand search control when Hub and Spoke domains coexist
