content-strategy

What this skill does

# Content Strategy

Strategic content planning that drives traffic, builds authority, and generates leads by being either searchable, shareable, or both.

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## Table of Contents

- [Keywords](#keywords)
- [Quick Start](#quick-start)
- [Core Workflows](#core-workflows)
- [Content Pillar Framework](#content-pillar-framework)
- [Audience Research Methodology](#audience-research-methodology)
- [Topic Clustering](#topic-clustering)
- [Funnel Mapping](#funnel-mapping)
- [Content Audit Framework](#content-audit-framework)
- [Searchable vs. Shareable Matrix](#searchable-vs-shareable-matrix)
- [Competitive Content Analysis](#competitive-content-analysis)
- [Best Practices](#best-practices)
- [Integration Points](#integration-points)

---

## Keywords

content strategy, content planning, content pillars, topic clusters, content calendar, audience research, content audit, funnel mapping, content gaps, editorial planning, blog strategy, content ideas, topic ideation, SEO content strategy, content roadmap, content marketing strategy, content performance, keyword research, buyer journey content, search intent mapping

---

## Quick Start

### Build a Content Strategy from Scratch

1. Define 3-5 content pillars aligned with business goals and audience needs
2. Conduct audience research to identify questions, pain points, and language
3. Build topic clusters around each pillar with keyword targets
4. Map topics to funnel stages (awareness, consideration, decision)
5. Prioritize by searchability, business value, and competitive gap
6. Build an editorial calendar with publishing cadence

### Audit and Improve Existing Strategy

1. Inventory all existing content with performance metrics
2. Classify each piece by pillar, funnel stage, and format
3. Identify gaps (missing topics, underserved funnel stages, outdated content)
4. Score each piece on traffic, engagement, conversion, and relevance
5. Build remediation plan: update, consolidate, remove, or create new

---

## Core Workflows

### Workflow 1: Strategy Development

**Step 1: Business Context Gathering**

Before planning content, understand the business foundation:

```markdown
## Strategy Context
- Business goal for content: [Traffic / Leads / Brand awareness / Thought leadership]
- Product/service: [What you sell and to whom]
- Ideal customer profile: [Industry, company size, role, seniority]
- Sales cycle: [Self-serve / Sales-assisted / Enterprise]
- Current content state: [Starting fresh / Some content / Mature library]
- Resources: [Writers, budget, publishing capacity per week/month]
- Competitors producing content: [Top 3-5 competitor blogs]
```

**Step 2: Customer Research for Content**

Mine these sources for content topics:

| Source | What to Extract | How to Use |
|--------|----------------|-----------|
| Sales call recordings | Questions prospects ask before buying | Create content answering each question |
| Support tickets | Recurring problems and confusion | Tutorial and troubleshooting content |
| Customer interviews | Language they use to describe problems | Use their exact words in headlines and copy |
| Product reviews (yours + competitors) | Praise and complaints | Content addressing concerns, amplifying strengths |
| Community forums (Reddit, Slack, Discord) | Questions, debates, misconceptions | Topic ideas with proven demand |
| Search console queries | What people search to find you | Optimize for highest-potential queries |

**Step 3: Define Content Pillars**

Pillars are the 3-5 broad topic areas your content focuses on. Each pillar should:
- Connect directly to your product or expertise
- Address a topic your audience actively seeks information about
- Support your business goals (traffic, leads, authority)
- Be broad enough to generate 20+ subtopics
- Be specific enough to establish expertise

**Step 4: Build Topic Clusters**

For each pillar, develop a cluster of 10-25 topics:

```markdown
## Pillar: [Topic Area]
Pillar page: [Comprehensive guide serving as the hub]

### Supporting Topics
1. [Topic] — KW: [keyword], Vol: [X], Diff: [X], Intent: [Info/Commercial]
2. [Topic] — KW: [keyword], Vol: [X], Diff: [X], Intent: [Info/Commercial]
3. [Topic] — KW: [keyword], Vol: [X], Diff: [X], Intent: [Info/Commercial]
...

### Internal Linking Plan
- All supporting topics link to pillar page
- Pillar page links to all supporting topics
- Related supporting topics cross-link to each other
```

**Step 5: Prioritize Topics**

Score each topic on a priority matrix:

| Factor | Weight | Scoring |
|--------|--------|---------|
| Search volume | 25% | High (3), Medium (2), Low (1) |
| Keyword difficulty | 20% | Easy (3), Medium (2), Hard (1) |
| Business relevance | 30% | Direct product connection (3), Adjacent (2), Tangential (1) |
| Competitive gap | 15% | No good content exists (3), Beatable content (2), Strong competitors (1) |
| Content asset value | 10% | Evergreen + repurposable (3), Seasonal (2), One-time (1) |

Priority score = weighted sum. Execute highest scores first.

### Workflow 2: Content Audit

**Step 1: Inventory All Content**

Build a content inventory spreadsheet:

| URL | Title | Pillar | Format | Publish Date | Last Updated | Monthly Traffic | Avg Time on Page | Conversions | Target Keyword | Ranking Position |
|-----|-------|--------|--------|-------------|-------------|----------------|-----------------|-------------|---------------|-----------------|

**Step 2: Classify Each Piece**

For each piece, determine:
- **Pillar alignment**: Which pillar does it belong to? (Or does it belong to none?)
- **Funnel stage**: Awareness, consideration, or decision?
- **Content type**: Tutorial, comparison, thought leadership, news, case study?
- **Status**: Current, outdated, thin, duplicate, orphaned?

**Step 3: Score Performance**

| Score | Traffic | Engagement | Conversion | Action |
|-------|---------|-----------|------------|--------|
| A (top 20%) | High traffic | Above avg time on page | Drives conversions | Protect, repurpose, update regularly |
| B (middle 40%) | Moderate | Average engagement | Some conversions | Optimize, improve, interlink |
| C (next 30%) | Low | Below average | Minimal | Update or consolidate |
| D (bottom 10%) | Near zero | High bounce | None | Redirect, remove, or completely rewrite |

**Step 4: Build Remediation Plan**

| Action | When | How |
|--------|------|-----|
| Update | Content is B or C tier with good topic but outdated info | Refresh data, add new sections, update publish date |
| Consolidate | Multiple thin pieces on same topic | Merge into one comprehensive piece, redirect old URLs |
| Remove | Content is irrelevant, duplicate, or unfixable | 301 redirect to most relevant remaining page |
| Create new | Gap exists in pillar coverage | Add to editorial calendar with priority score |
| Optimize | Content ranks #4-20 for target keyword | On-page SEO improvements, better intro, internal links |

---

## Content Pillar Framework

### Pillar Design Principles

**Example Pillar Structure for a SaaS Product:**

| Pillar | Business Connection | Audience Need | Content Types |
|--------|-------------------|--------------|---------------|
| [Core problem you solve] | Direct product relevance | Actively searching for solutions | How-to guides, tutorials, comparisons |
| [Industry your audience works in] | Thought leadership | Staying current on trends | Analysis, predictions, benchmarks |
| [Adjacent skill your audience needs] | Trust building | Professional development | Frameworks, templates, playbooks |
| [Use case deep dives] | Product education | Understanding applications | Case studies, walkthroughs, examples |

### Pillar Page Structure

Each pillar should have a comprehensive hub page (2,000-4,000 words) that:
- Defines the topic comprehensively
- Links to all supporting cluster content
- Targets the broadest keyword in the cluster
- Gets updated as new cluster content publishes
- Serves as the authority page for the topic area

---

## Audie