SEO Strategist

Strategic SEO planning toolkit for site-wide optimization, keyword research, technical audits, and competitive analysis. Complements content-creator's on-page SEO with strategic, site-level planning.

Overview

This skill provides automated tools and expert frameworks for developing comprehensive SEO strategies that go beyond individual content optimization. While content-creator focuses on optimizing individual pieces of content, seo-strategist handles the strategic layer: keyword research, topic clusters, technical SEO audits, competitive analysis, and roadmap planning.

Core Value: Save 60%+ time on SEO strategy development while improving search visibility by 40% through systematic, data-driven planning.

Relationship to content-creator:

content-creator = On-page SEO (single article optimization, keyword density, meta tags)
seo-strategist = Strategic SEO (site-wide strategy, keyword research, technical audits, roadmaps)

Core Capabilities

Keyword Research & Clustering - Analyze keyword lists, create topic clusters, map to content pillars
Technical SEO Audits - Crawlability, indexation, site structure, Core Web Vitals assessment
Competitive Analysis - SERP position tracking, content gap analysis, competitor benchmarking
SEO Roadmap Planning - Prioritized action items, quarterly planning, resource estimation
Site Architecture - Internal linking strategy, URL structure, information architecture
Performance Monitoring - KPI tracking, ranking reports, progress dashboards

Quick Start

Keyword Research

# Analyze and cluster keywords
python scripts/keyword_researcher.py keywords.csv --cluster

# Generate topic clusters with priorities
python scripts/keyword_researcher.py keywords.csv --cluster --output json > clusters.json

Technical SEO Audit

# Audit local site files
python scripts/technical_seo_auditor.py ./site-export/ --output text

# Analyze with specific checks
python scripts/technical_seo_auditor.py ./site-export/ --checks all --output json

SEO Roadmap

# Generate quarterly roadmap from audit
python scripts/seo_roadmap_generator.py audit-results.json --quarters 4

# Quick wins focus
python scripts/seo_roadmap_generator.py audit-results.json --quick-wins --output md

Access Frameworks

SEO Strategy: references/seo_strategy_framework.md
Technical SEO: references/technical_seo_guide.md
Competitive Analysis: references/competitive_seo_analysis.md

Key Workflows

1. Keyword Strategy Development

Time: 4-6 hours

Gather seed keywords - Compile initial keyword list from business goals, competitors, brainstorming
Expand keyword list - Add variations, long-tail keywords, question-based queries

Cluster keywords - Run keyword_researcher.py to group by topic

python scripts/keyword_researcher.py keywords.csv --cluster --min-cluster-size 3

Analyze clusters - Review topic clusters, identify content pillars
Map to content - Assign clusters to existing or planned content
Prioritize - Score by search volume, competition, business value
Document strategy - Use keyword_research_template.md

See seo_strategy_framework.md for detailed methodology.

2. Technical SEO Audit

Time: 3-4 hours

Export site data - Download HTML files or use sitemap

Run technical audit - Execute technical_seo_auditor.py

python scripts/technical_seo_auditor.py ./site-export/ --checks all --output json > audit.json

Review findings - Analyze crawlability, indexation, structure issues
Prioritize fixes - Categorize by impact and effort
Create action plan - Document fixes with owners and deadlines
Validate fixes - Re-run audit after implementations

See technical_seo_guide.md for checklist.

3. Competitive SEO Analysis

Time: 4-5 hours

Identify competitors - List 5-10 SERP competitors for target keywords
Gather competitor data - Export competitor sitemaps, content lists
Analyze keyword overlap - Compare keyword targeting
Identify content gaps - Find topics competitors rank for that you don't
Benchmark technical SEO - Compare site structure, page speed
Document opportunities - Create competitive positioning report

See competitive_seo_analysis.md for framework.

4. SEO Roadmap Creation

Time: 2-3 hours

Compile audit findings - Gather technical audit results, keyword research
Score opportunities - Use impact/effort matrix

Generate roadmap - Run seo_roadmap_generator.py

python scripts/seo_roadmap_generator.py audit.json --quarters 4 --output md

Define KPIs - Set measurable targets for each quarter
Assign resources - Estimate hours and owners for each initiative
Present plan - Review with stakeholders, adjust priorities

Python Tools

keyword_researcher.py

Keyword research, clustering, and content mapping tool.

Key Features:

Keyword clustering by semantic similarity
Topic pillar identification
Search intent classification
Priority scoring (volume x competition x relevance)
Content gap analysis
Export to JSON, CSV, Markdown

Common Usage:

# Basic clustering
python scripts/keyword_researcher.py keywords.csv --cluster

# With priority scoring
python scripts/keyword_researcher.py keywords.csv --cluster --score --output json

# Content mapping
python scripts/keyword_researcher.py keywords.csv --map-content content-inventory.csv

# Help
python scripts/keyword_researcher.py --help

technical_seo_auditor.py

Technical SEO site audit and health assessment.

Key Features:

Crawlability analysis (robots.txt, sitemap.xml)
Indexation checks (canonical tags, noindex)
Site structure evaluation (heading hierarchy, internal links)
Performance indicators (page size, resource count)
Structured data validation
SEO score (0-100)

Common Usage:

# Full audit
python scripts/technical_seo_auditor.py ./site-export/ --checks all

# Specific checks
python scripts/technical_seo_auditor.py ./site-export/ --checks crawlability,structure

# JSON output for roadmap
python scripts/technical_seo_auditor.py ./site-export/ --output json > audit.json

# Help
python scripts/technical_seo_auditor.py --help

seo_roadmap_generator.py

SEO roadmap and prioritization tool.

Key Features:

Impact/effort prioritization matrix
Quick wins identification
Quarterly planning
Resource estimation
KPI target setting
Markdown and JSON output

Common Usage:

# Generate quarterly roadmap
python scripts/seo_roadmap_generator.py audit.json --quarters 4

# Focus on quick wins
python scripts/seo_roadmap_generator.py audit.json --quick-wins

# Markdown report
python scripts/seo_roadmap_generator.py audit.json --output md > roadmap.md

# Help
python scripts/seo_roadmap_generator.py --help

Reference Guides

When to Use Each Reference

seo_strategy_framework.md - Strategic planning

Pillar-Cluster content model
Keyword research methodology (seed → expand → cluster → prioritize)
SEO maturity assessment framework
Search intent classification (informational, navigational, transactional, commercial)
SERP feature targeting strategies

technical_seo_guide.md - Technical implementation

Crawlability checklist (robots.txt, XML sitemaps, crawl budget)
Indexation management (canonical tags, noindex, pagination)
Core Web Vitals optimization (LCP, FID, CLS)
Structured data/schema markup guide
Mobile-first indexing requirements
Site architecture best practices

competitive_seo_analysis.md - Competitive intelligence

Competitor identification framework
SERP analysis methodology
Content gap analysis process
Backlink profile comparison
Keyword overlap analysis
Competitive positioning strategies

Best Practices

Quality Standards

Technical SEO score: 80+ (good), 90+ (excellent)
Keyword cluster size: 5-15 keywords per cluster
Content coverage: 80%+ of priority keywords mapped
Roadmap timeline: Quarterly with monthly milestones
Quick wins: 3-5 items completable within 2 weeks

Common Pitfalls to Avoid

Targeting keywords without search intent analysis
Ignoring technical SEO in favor of content-only focus
Creating content without cluster/pillar strategy
Not tracking competitor movements
Focusing on vanity metrics instead of business impact
Over-optimizing for search engines at expense of users

Performance Metrics

Organic Search Metrics:

Organic traffic growth (target: 15-25% quarterly)
Keyword rankings (track top 10, top 3 positions)
Click-through rate from SERPs (target: 3-5% average)
Impressions growth (leading indicator)

Technical SEO Metrics:

Core Web Vitals scores (all green)
Crawl errors (target: 0 critical)
Index coverage ratio (target: 95%+)
Mobile usability score (target: 100)

Business Metrics:

Organic conversion rate (target: 2-5%)
Organic revenue/leads
Cost per organic acquisition
SEO ROI (organic value vs. investment)

Integration with content-creator

This skill works alongside content-creator in a complementary workflow:

seo-strategist: Keyword research → Topic clusters → Content priorities
content-creator: Write content → On-page SEO → Brand voice
seo-strategist: Technical audit → Site structure → Internal linking
content-creator: Content optimization → Meta tags → Readability

Handoff Points:

seo-strategist provides keyword targets → content-creator optimizes content
content-creator identifies content gaps → seo-strategist validates with data
seo-strategist audits site → content-creator updates existing content

Additional Resources

Templates - See assets/ directory
Strategy framework - See seo_strategy_framework.md
Technical checklist - See technical_seo_guide.md
Competitive analysis - See competitive_seo_analysis.md