SEO Content

Write one article that ranks and reads: search-optimized for the target keyword, genuinely useful to the human who typed it. Prime directive: match search intent exactly — Google rewards the format searchers want, and the wrong format doesn't rank no matter how good the writing is. The second directive: every article must contain something the current top results don't (an example, data point, angle, or depth), or there is no reason for it to outrank them.

When to use / when not to

• Use for writing or rewriting a single search-targeted article (blog post, guide, listicle, comparison).
• If the user has no keyword and no strategy — asks "what should I even write about?" — run skills/marketing/seo-strategy (or skills/marketing/keyword-research for just a keyword list) first.
• If the piece is a landing/sales page where conversion beats ranking, use skills/marketing/direct-response-copy.
• If the user wants social or email derivatives of an article, that's skills/marketing/content-atomizer.

Intake

Ask in one batch, only what's missing:

1. Target keyword (and secondary keywords if they have them).
2. Audience and product — who reads this, and what does the business want the reader to do next (the CTA)?
3. Unique material — first-hand experience, examples, data, or customer stories you can use. This is the E-E-A-T fuel; press for at least one concrete item.
4. Voice — an existing brand-voice guide or 2–3 sample posts to match. If skills/marketing/brand-voice output exists, use it.

If the request arrives from skills/marketing/seo-strategy with a keyword, intent, and SERP notes, skip straight to Step 2. If details are missing, state assumptions (audience, intent, CTA) and proceed — don't stall.

Workflow

1. Validate the SERP and lock the intent

Search the target keyword (use web search when available). Classify intent and let it dictate format:

Intent	Searcher wants	You write
Informational	to learn/do	How-to guide or ultimate guide
Commercial	to compare/choose	Listicle, comparison, review
Transactional	to buy	Product/pricing page → hand off to skills/marketing/direct-response-copy
Navigational	a specific brand	Usually skip — you can't outrank the brand

Note from the top 5 results: content length and depth, structure, subtopics covered, and — most importantly — the gap: what's thin, outdated, unanswered, or missing. If you cannot name a gap, tell the user the keyword is a bad bet and suggest returning to skills/marketing/seo-strategy for a better target. If web search is unavailable, say so, infer intent from the keyword's grammar, and label the SERP analysis as assumption.

2. Write the brief

Fill this in before drafting (it becomes part of the deliverable):

• Primary keyword, secondary keywords, intent, target length
• Content angle: the one-line reason this article beats the current results
• H2 outline (5–8 sections for a full article), including an FAQ section
• E-E-A-T elements: which first-hand example/data goes where
• Internal links (3–5 pages on the user's site), external links (2–3 authoritative sources)
• CTA: the single action the reader is asked to take

Length by competition (heuristic — comprehensiveness is the real target, padding actively hurts): low competition 1,500–2,000 words; medium 2,000–3,000; high 3,000+. Never exceed what the intent needs.

3. Draft

Read references/article-templates.md for the full skeleton of the chosen format (How-To, Listicle, or Ultimate Guide) and follow it. While drafting:

• Open by answering the query in the first 2–3 sentences, then earn continued reading. No throat-clearing intros.
• Keyword placement: title tag (early), H1, first 100 words, 2–3 natural body uses, URL slug. Secondary keywords in H2s where natural. Never stuff.
• Structure: one H1; H2 every major section; subhead every 200–300 words; paragraphs ≤3 sentences; bullets for any list of 3+; bold the takeaways.
• E-E-A-T on the page: at least one first-hand example or case; cite 2–3 authoritative external sources; concrete numbers over vague claims.
• FAQ section: 4–6 exact-phrasing questions with 40–60 word answers (featured-snippet bait).
• Close with 3–5 bullet takeaways and exactly one CTA.

The user supplies lived experience; you supply structure and polish. Never fabricate first-hand experience, testimonials, or statistics — if the user gave no unique material, use clearly-general examples and tell them where to insert their own.

4. Metadata and schema

Produce: title tag (50–60 chars, keyword early, compelling), meta description (150–160 chars, keyword + soft CTA), URL slug (short, keyword, hyphenated), image alt-text suggestions, and JSON-LD schema (FAQ schema if there's an FAQ; Article schema otherwise — copy-paste blocks in references/article-templates.md).

5. Self-review, then deliver

Run the quality bar below. Fix failures before presenting. Deliver in the required output format, and recommend tracking via Google Search Console (impressions, clicks, CTR, average position) with a check-in after the article has had time to index and settle.

Required output format

# [Article Title]

## Brief
- Primary keyword: … · Secondary: … · Intent: [type]
- Angle (why this beats the SERP): …
- Target length: … · CTA: …
- Gap exploited: [what top results miss]

## Metadata
- Title tag (50–60 chars): "…" [char count]
- Meta description (150–160 chars): "…" [char count]
- URL slug: /…
- Schema: [FAQ / Article] (JSON-LD below article)

## Article
[Full draft, H1 through conclusion, with [INTERNAL LINK: page] and
[EXTERNAL LINK: source] markers inline, image suggestions as
[IMAGE: description — alt text: "…"]]

## Schema markup
```json
[JSON-LD block]
```

## On-page checklist
[Each quality-bar item with pass/fail]

## Next steps
- Insert your own examples at: [marked spots, if any]
- Track in GSC: [what to watch, and the decision each signal triggers]

Quality bar

Check every item; fix before delivering:

• Format matches validated search intent
• Title tag 50–60 chars with keyword; meta description 150–160 chars — count the characters, don't eyeball
• Exactly one H1, containing the primary keyword; keyword in first 100 words
• Primary keyword used 2–3× in body — no more (stuffing check: read headings aloud; if they sound robotic, rewrite)
• Named gap vs. top results is actually filled in the draft
• ≥1 first-hand example or clearly-marked placeholder for one; every statistic cited or removed; no invented experience or testimonials
• 3–5 internal link markers, 2–3 authoritative external link markers
• FAQ answers 40–60 words each
• Exactly one CTA
• Scannable: no paragraph >3 sentences, subhead every 200–300 words

Integration

• skills/marketing/seo-strategy — feeds this skill the keyword, intent, cluster, and SERP notes; return the published-article slug so internal linking stays current.
• skills/marketing/keyword-research — alternative lighter-weight source of the target keyword.
• skills/marketing/brand-voice — supplies the voice guide applied in Step 3.
• skills/marketing/direct-response-copy — takes over for transactional-intent pages and CTA-heavy sections.
• skills/marketing/content-atomizer — consumes the finished article as seed content for social posts, threads, and newsletter items.
• skills/marketing/newsletter — the article is a natural feature item; pass the title, link, and one-sentence hook.

References

• references/article-templates.md — full H1→conclusion skeletons for the How-To Guide, Listicle/Roundup, and Ultimate Guide formats, plus copy-paste FAQ and Article JSON-LD schema. Read it at Step 3, before drafting.