Audience and Topic Research

Apply ../00-blog-writing-guardrails/SKILL.md first; its gates apply to any post produced from this research.

1. Reader-intent and ICP gate

Identify who the post is for and what task or question brings them to it before choosing an angle; content built around the reader's task, not the writer's default framing, is what search and language systems reward. [GOOGLE-HSW-01]
Anticipate that different segments of the target reader describe the same need in different words (a novice searches "cheese board," an expert searches "charcuterie"); plan to cover the terms and framings each segment actually uses, not only the writer's preferred term. [GOOGLE-SEOSTART-01]
State the reader's starting knowledge level and desired outcome for the post before drafting; a post aimed at no one in particular satisfies no one's task. [GOOGLE-SEOSTART-01]

Treat a keyword list as a stand-in for real reader queries, not an exercise in stuffing exact phrases; Google's own systems match a page to a query through synonyms and inferred intent, so cover the concept fully rather than repeating one exact string. [GOOGLE-HSW-01]
Build the keyword set from multiple primary inputs — seed terms a real customer would type, terms competitors already rank for, and terms surfaced in forums or support/Q&A channels the audience actually uses — rather than guessing from a single brainstorm. [AHREFS-KWRESEARCH-01]
Classify each candidate keyword or topic by the intent behind it (informational, commercial/transactional, or navigational) before committing to an angle; a post written for one intent will not satisfy a query driven by a different one. [AHREFS-KWRESEARCH-01]
Do not select a topic on search-volume estimates alone; volume numbers from any third-party tool are estimates, not guarantees of traffic, and must be weighed against ranking difficulty and business relevance. [AHREFS-KWRESEARCH-01]

Before drafting, read the pages currently ranking or being cited for the target query to learn what question they already answer well and in what depth; a post has no reason to exist if it schematically repeats what a top-ranking page already covers. [GOOGLE-EEAT-01]
Identify a concrete gap the existing top results or AI answers leave open — a missing sub-question, a stale data point, an angle only reachable through firsthand experience — and make that gap the post's original contribution. [GOOGLE-EEAT-01]
Where the target query is eligible for a direct-answer placement, plan a concise, self-contained answer near the top of the post under its own heading, matching how such placements are earned. [GOOGLE-SNIPPET-01]