define-seo-strategy

What this skill does

# SEO Strategy Skill

Create the SEO_STRATEGY.md document that defines your complete search optimization strategy—both traditional SEO and Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) for AI platforms.

> **Prerequisite**: CUSTOMER.md must exist. SEO strategy without customer definition is just generic tactics. Your strategy must align with HOW your ICP searches and WHAT platforms they use.

## Overview

This skill supports both **creating a new SEO strategy** and **updating an existing one** as platforms evolve.

**Loop**: Prerequisites → Input → Research → Draft → Validate → Repeat until approved

This skill guides you through:
0. **Prerequisite Check** - Verify CUSTOMER.md exists; stop if not
1. **Existing Strategy Detection** - Check for SEO_STRATEGY.md; ask update vs fresh
2. **Input Collection** - Gather website URL and product description
3. **Parallel Research** - Launch 3 seo-researcher agents for comprehensive analysis
4. **Document Generation** - Create SEO_STRATEGY.md with prioritized recommendations
5. **Validation Loop** - Review sections with user, incorporate feedback
6. **Finalization** - Add version history once approved

**Research log**: `/tmp/seo-research-{YYYYMMDD-HHMMSS}.md` - external memory updated after each step.

## Core Concepts

### Traditional SEO vs GEO

**Traditional SEO**: Optimizing for clicks from search engine results pages (SERPs). Focus on rankings, click-through rates, and organic traffic.

**GEO (Generative Engine Optimization)**: Optimizing for citations in AI-generated responses. Focus on being the source that ChatGPT, Perplexity, Google AI Overviews, Claude, and Gemini cite when answering questions.

**Key difference**: SEO optimizes for clicks. GEO optimizes for citations. Both matter, but they require different tactics.

### Platform Landscape (2025)

| Platform | Citation Style | Key Preferences |
|----------|---------------|-----------------|
| **Google AI Overviews** | Integrated with organic results | Structured content, schema markup, top 10 ranking |
| **ChatGPT** | Reference-heavy | Wikipedia, authoritative sources, E-E-A-T |
| **Perplexity** | Transparent citations | UGC (Reddit), clear structure, comparisons |
| **Claude** | Authoritative sources | Well-structured, information-dense content |
| **Gemini** | Knowledge graph integration | Similar to Google AI Overviews |

## Workflow

### Initial Setup (create todos immediately)

**Create todo list** - areas to research/validate, not fixed steps.

**Starter todos**:
```
- [ ] Prerequisite check (CUSTOMER.md); done when CUSTOMER.md read or created
- [ ] Existing strategy detection→log; done when existing strategy assessed
- [ ] Input collection→log; done when user inputs captured
- [ ] Research→log; done when keyword/competitor research complete
- [ ] Generate initial draft; done when draft created
- [ ] Validation→log; done when user approves direction
- [ ] Refresh: read full research log
- [ ] Finalize document; done when SEO_STRATEGY.md written
```

**Create research log** at `/tmp/seo-research-{YYYYMMDD-HHMMSS}.md`:

```markdown
# SEO Research Log
Started: {timestamp}

## Customer Context
(from CUSTOMER.md)

## Research Findings
(populated by agents)

## Validation Feedback
(populated during review)

## Decisions Made
(populated incrementally)
```

### Phase 0: Prerequisite Check

**Mark "Prerequisite check" todo `in_progress`.**

**CRITICAL**: Before anything else, check for CUSTOMER.md:

1. Use Glob to search for `**/CUSTOMER.md` in the current directory
2. **If NOT found**: Stop immediately and inform the user:

```
I can't create an SEO strategy without knowing WHO you're targeting.

Please create your CUSTOMER.md first using /define-customer.

SEO strategy without customer definition is just generic tactics—it won't resonate with anyone specific or help you prioritize.
```

Do NOT proceed. End the workflow here.

3. **If found**: Read the CUSTOMER.md and extract key context:
   - ICP definition (who they are)
   - Pain points (what problems they have)
   - Current state (what they do today)
   - Triggers (what makes them search)
   - What they value in a solution

Also check for BRAND_GUIDELINES.md:
- Use Glob to search for `**/BRAND_GUIDELINES.md`
- If found, read it for voice/tone context to align content recommendations

**Append to research log**:
```markdown
## Customer Context
**ICP**: {summary from CUSTOMER.md}
**Pain points**: {key pain points}
**Triggers**: {what makes them search}
**Brand voice**: {from BRAND_GUIDELINES.md if found}
```

**Mark "Prerequisite check" todo `completed`.**

### Phase 1: Existing Strategy Detection

**Mark "Existing strategy detection" todo `in_progress`.**

Check for existing SEO_STRATEGY.md:

1. Use Glob to search for `**/SEO_STRATEGY.md`
2. **If found**: Ask user what to do:

```
header: "Existing SEO Strategy Found"
question: "I found an existing SEO_STRATEGY.md. What would you like to do?"
options:
  - "Update it - refresh with latest platform data and recommendations (Recommended)"
  - "Start fresh - create a new strategy from scratch"
  - "Review it - just read through what's there"
```

**If "Update it"**: Read existing strategy, note what's implemented vs pending, focus research on platform changes and gaps.

**If "Start fresh"**: Proceed to Phase 2 (will overwrite existing).

**If "Review it"**: Display the strategy, then ask what to do next.

3. **If NOT found**: Proceed directly to Phase 2.

**Mark "Existing strategy detection" todo `completed`.**

### Phase 2: Input Collection

**Mark "Input collection" todo `in_progress`.**

Collect required inputs via AskUserQuestion.

**Question 1: Website URL** (Required)

```
header: "Website URL"
question: "What's the URL of the website/product you want to optimize?"
freeText: true
placeholder: "e.g., https://myproduct.com"
```

**Question 2: Product Description** (If not clear from CUSTOMER.md)

```
header: "Product Description"
question: "Briefly describe what your product/service does (if not already clear from CUSTOMER.md)"
freeText: true
placeholder: "e.g., 'AI-powered code review tool for Python developers'"
```

**Question 3: Top Competitors** (Optional, helps focus research)

```
header: "Competitors"
question: "Who are your top 2-3 competitors? (Optional - helps focus research)"
freeText: true
placeholder: "e.g., 'Competitor A (competitor-a.com), Competitor B (competitor-b.com)'"
```

**Question 4: Current SEO Status**

```
header: "Current SEO Status"
question: "What's your current SEO situation?"
options:
  - "Starting from scratch - no SEO work done yet (Recommended for new products)"
  - "Some basics - have content but not optimized"
  - "Intermediate - doing traditional SEO, want to add GEO"
  - "Advanced - strong SEO, need cutting-edge GEO tactics"
```

**After input collection, append to research log**:
```markdown
## Inputs Collected
**Website**: {URL}
**Product**: {description}
**Competitors**: {list}
**Current status**: {level}
```

**Mark "Input collection" todo `completed`.**

### Phase 3: Parallel Research

**Mark "Research" todo `in_progress`.**

Launch 3 seo-researcher agents in parallel. Send all three agent invocations in a single message.

**IMPORTANT**: Use the `seo-researcher` agent for each research task.

**Agent 1: Industry Analysis**

```
Launch Task agent (subagent_type: seo-researcher) with prompt:

"Research SEO and GEO best practices for [industry from CUSTOMER.md].

Context:
- Product: [product description]
- ICP: [from CUSTOMER.md]
- Competitors: [if provided]

Focus on:
1. Industry-specific SEO patterns that work
2. Content formats that perform well in this vertical
3. Authority signals and trust factors for this industry
4. Common search queries and keywords
5. Industry-specific schema markup recommendations

Return structured findings with confidence levels."
```

**Agent 2: Competitor Structure Analysis**

```
Launch Task agent (subagent_type: seo-researcher) with prompt:

"Analyze competitor content structure an