# SEO AEO keyword research Human Guide

## What This Is For
Identifies high-value SEO keywords and AEO question-based queries for a topic. It gives the agent a clearer input/output frame for search and SEO workflows: what context to ask for, what decisions to make, and what usable artifact to return.

Use this as a human-readable version of the SEO AEO keyword research agent skill. It is meant for marketers, operators, founders, and other non-coders who want the workflow without reading agent-specific implementation instructions.

## When To Use This
- Use this when you need a repeatable process for SEO AEO keyword research.
- Use this when the task needs judgment, examples, constraints, or a clear output format rather than a one-off prompt.
- Use this when you want to hand an AI assistant enough context to produce a usable marketing artifact.

## When Not To Use This
- Do not use this when you only need a quick factual answer.
- Do not use this when the work depends on private data you cannot share with the assistant.
- Do not use this as a replacement for legal, compliance, financial, or medical review.

## What You Need Before Starting
- The goal or business outcome you want.
- The audience, customer segment, or market context.
- Any source material the assistant should respect, such as notes, briefs, examples, URLs, or brand guidance.
- Constraints such as tone, length, channel, deadline, region, or approval requirements.
- A clear definition of what a good final answer should look like.

## Step-By-Step Workflow
1. State the job clearly: "Use the SEO AEO keyword research guide to help me with..."
2. Add context: audience, goal, offer, channel, source material, and constraints.
3. Ask the assistant to identify missing inputs before producing the final output.
4. Have the assistant follow the skill-specific guidance below.
5. Review the result against the final checklist and ask for revisions where needed.

## Skill-Specific Guidance
- Use when you need to build a keyword strategy for a new topic or niche
- Use when you want to find AEO question queries for AI engine citation
- Use when you need to prioritise which keywords to target first
- Use when you want to check for keyword cannibalization before writing content
- **Tier 1** — Low-to-moderate difficulty. Target first.
- **Tier 2** — Medium difficulty. Build toward after Tier 1 content is live.
- **Tier 3** — High difficulty. Long-term goals only.
- ✅ **Do:** Target Tier 1 keywords first — build authority before going after competitive terms
- ✅ **Do:** Use AEO keywords in FAQ sections and definition blocks for AI engine citation
- ✅ **Do:** Validate estimated volume and difficulty with a live tool (Ahrefs, SEMrush) before committing
- ❌ **Don't:** Target two keywords on the same page if cannibalization is flagged
- ❌ **Don't:** Use volume as the only prioritisation signal — difficulty and intent matter more

## Decision Points And Nuance
The original skill emphasizes: Overview, When to Use This Skill, How It Works, Step 1: Extract Seed Keywords, Step 2: Expand Into Tiers, Step 3: Generate AEO Keywords, Step 4: Run Cannibalization Check, Step 5: Build Content Map, Examples, Example 1: SaaS Product.

Use these questions to steer the work:
- What is the intended audience or buyer?
- What source material must be preserved?
- What should the assistant optimize for: clarity, persuasion, accuracy, speed, creativity, or conversion?
- What examples represent the desired quality bar?
- What should the assistant avoid?

## Common Mistakes
- ❌ **Don't:** Target two keywords on the same page if cannibalization is flagged
- ❌ **Don't:** Use volume as the only prioritisation signal — difficulty and intent matter more
- Do not treat the output as a substitute for environment-specific validation, testing, or expert review.
- Stop and ask for clarification if required inputs, permissions, safety boundaries, or success criteria are missing.

## Copy-And-Paste Prompt
```text
Use the SEO AEO keyword research human guide.

My goal:
[Describe the business outcome]

Audience:
[Describe who this is for]

Context and source material:
[Paste notes, examples, links, or existing copy]

Constraints:
[Tone, length, channel, timeline, must-include items, must-avoid items]

Before producing the final output, ask me for any missing information that would materially improve the result.
```

## Final Checklist
- [ ] The output matches the original goal.
- [ ] The audience and context are reflected in the answer.
- [ ] Important constraints and source material were preserved.
- [ ] The assistant made the relevant decisions explicit.
- [ ] The final artifact is ready to use, review, or hand to the next person.

## Source
This guide was generated from the sickn33/antigravity-awesome-skills skill entry for `seo-aeo-keyword-research`.

## Source Skill Notes
These notes preserve the nuance from the original skill. Use them as supporting reference when the workflow above feels too generic.

# SEO-AEO Keyword Research

## Overview

Identifies high-value SEO keywords and AEO question-based queries for a topic. Produces keyword tiers (easy wins to long-term goals), search intent classification, cannibalization checks, and a content production map — all from a single topic input.

Part of the [SEO-AEO Engine](https://github.com/mrprewsh/seo-aeo-engine) — an open-source AI-powered content growth system.

## When to Use This Skill

- Use when you need to build a keyword strategy for a new topic or niche
- Use when you want to find AEO question queries for AI engine citation
- Use when you need to prioritise which keywords to target first
- Use when you want to check for keyword cannibalization before writing content

## How It Works

### Step 1: Extract Seed Keywords
Identify 3–5 core terms that anchor the topic's search territory. Go beyond the obvious head term to include adjacent terms the audience actually uses.

### Step 2: Expand Into Tiers
Sort all keywords into three tiers:
- **Tier 1** — Low-to-moderate difficulty. Target first.
- **Tier 2** — Medium difficulty. Build toward after Tier 1 content is live.
- **Tier 3** — High difficulty. Long-term goals only.

### Step 3: Generate AEO Keywords
Produce question-based keywords that AI engines surface in direct answers and People Also Ask boxes. For each AEO keyword, specify the answer format to use (definition sentence, numbered steps, comparison table, direct number).

### Step 4: Run Cannibalization Check
Flag any two keywords similar enough to split traffic if targeted on separate pages. Recommend which page should own which term.

### Step 5: Build Content Map
Recommend content type and production order for all Tier 1 and Tier 2 keywords.

## Examples

### Example 1: SaaS Product
Input: topic = "remote project management software"
audience = "engineering managers and startup founders"
goal = "convert"
Output:
Tier 1 Keywords:

"remote project management software" | Medium volume | Difficulty: 38
"project management tool remote teams" | Low volume | Difficulty: 29

AEO Keywords:

"What is the best project management software for remote teams?"
→ Answer format: Comparison table
"How does remote project management work?"
→ Answer format: Numbered steps

Content Map:

Landing page → "remote project management software"
Pillar blog → "complete guide to remote project management"
Cluster article → "how to manage remote engineering teams"


### Example 2: Fintech App
Input: topic = "automated budgeting app"
audience = "millennials managing personal finances"
goal = "all"
Output:
Tier 1 Keywords:

"automated budgeting app" | Medium volume | Difficulty: 33
"automatic savings app" | Low volume | Difficulty: 24

AEO Keywords:

"What is the best budgeting app for millennials?"
→ Answer format: Comparison table
"How does automated budgeting work?"
→ Answer format: Numbered steps


## Best Practices