SEO Research

SEO Research

Data-driven SEO research and analysis. Every recommendation must be backed by real data from the HyperSEO tools exposed by the Hyper MCP. Never guess metrics, never assume rankings, never recommend without evidence.

Out of scope — defer to other skills

Request	Send them to
Google Ads campaign creation	google-ads
Meta (Facebook / Instagram) ads	meta-ads
Competitor ad research from the Meta Ads Library	meta-ads-library
Pinterest Ads campaign	pinterest-ads
Write the blog post itself	blog-generation
Competitor monitoring, battle cards, non-SEO surfaces	competitor-intel
Organic Instagram / TikTok / LinkedIn publishing	instagram, tiktok, linkedin

Requirements

• Hyper MCP installed and connected. https://app.hyperfx.ai/mcp
• HyperSEO toolkit enabled at https://app.hyperfx.ai/apps — provides the hyperseo_* tool surface that wraps DataForSEO and AI search query data.

If hyperseo_search_volume_get is not found, the toolkit to enable is HyperSEO (hyperseo).

How to run the tools in this skill

Every tool in this skill is named by its canonical tool name. Run it with the call your surface gives you:

Surface	Find a tool	Run it
Hyper chat	Call the tool by its name; search_tools(queries=["<provider> <action>"]) shows its parameters	<name>(...)
MCP client (Claude, Cursor, Codex, ChatGPT)	search("<what you want to do>"), then describe("<name>")	call_read("<name>", {...}), call_write or call_destructive: the one that describe names in call_with
Hyper CLI	hyperai search "<what you want to do>", then hyperai describe <name>	hyperai call <name> --json '{...}'

If a tool is not found: in Hyper chat, find its toolkit id with discover_toolkits and pass it to enable_toolkit. On an MCP client or the CLI, tell the user which integration to connect in Hyper.

Tool surface

Tool group	Tools
Keyword research	hyperseo_search_volume_get, hyperseo_keyword_difficulty_get, hyperseo_keyword_ideas_generate, hyperseo_site_keywords_search, hyperseo_intents_search
SERP & Google AI Mode	hyperseo_serp_results_get, hyperseo_ai_overviews_get
Competitor analysis	hyperseo_competitors_search, hyperseo_competitor_domains_search, hyperseo_domain_intersections_search, hyperseo_traffic_get_bulk
Domain & rankings	hyperseo_domain_overview_get, hyperseo_domain_keywords_get, hyperseo_rank_history_get
Backlinks	hyperseo_backlinks_history_get
AI search visibility	hyperseo_ai_search_volume_get, hyperseo_mentions_track
Technical health	hyperseo_pagespeed_get

Initial Assessment

Before running any tools, understand what the user actually needs:

1. What is the goal? Are they researching keywords, auditing a site, planning content, analyzing competitors, or checking AI visibility?
2. What is the domain / business? Get the actual domain. Don't infer it.
3. What is the target market? Default to US (location code 2840) unless told otherwise.
4. What is the current state? Are they starting from scratch or optimizing existing content?

Based on the answers, read the appropriate reference file:

User need	Reference
"Find keywords for…" / "What should I target?"	references/keyword-research.md
"Who are my competitors?" / "Analyze [domain]"	references/competitor-analysis.md
"What should I write about?" / "Content plan"	references/content-seo-planning.md
"Am I visible in AI search?" / "Track my brand in ChatGPT"	references/ai-search-optimization.md
"Audit my site" / "How is my domain doing?"	references/site-audit.md

When the task spans multiple areas (e.g., "help me with SEO for my new site"), each area is its own step: run the site audit with references/site-audit.md first and give its findings. Read the file of the next area, keyword research and then content planning, only when the user goes on to it.

Core SEO Principles

Apply these throughout all analysis.

Search intent comes first. Every keyword has an intent. Use hyperseo_intents_search to classify at scale, then match content format to intent:

• Informational ("what is X") → guides, explainers.
• Commercial ("best X", "X vs Y") → comparison pages, reviews.
• Transactional ("buy X", "X pricing") → product / landing pages.
• Navigational ("X login") → not targetable by others.

E-E-A-T matters. Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness. Google evaluates content quality. Recommend content strategies that demonstrate genuine expertise, not keyword-stuffed filler.

Topic authority over individual keywords. Ranking for one keyword in isolation is hard. Recommend topic clusters: a pillar page supported by related content that builds topical authority.

AI search is a separate channel. Traditional Google search volume and AI-chatbot query volume are different metrics measuring different behavior. Always check both when relevant. A keyword with low Google volume may have high AI query volume, and vice versa.

Prioritize by ROI. Low difficulty + decent volume = do first. High difficulty + high volume = long-term investment. Low volume + high difficulty = skip unless strategically important.

Tool Quick Reference

Task	Tool	Key output
Check search volume and CPC	hyperseo_search_volume_get	Monthly volume, CPC, competition.
Assess ranking difficulty	hyperseo_keyword_difficulty_get	Difficulty score 0–100.
Generate keyword ideas	hyperseo_keyword_ideas_generate	Related keywords with metrics.
Find keywords for a site	hyperseo_site_keywords_search	Keywords a domain could target.
See who ranks on Google	hyperseo_serp_results_get	Top positions, URLs, domains.
See Google's AI Mode answer	hyperseo_ai_overviews_get	The AI Mode answer and the sources it cites. It does not show whether the normal results page has an AI Overview.
See what a domain ranks for	hyperseo_domain_keywords_get	Current rankings and traffic.
Find competing domains (by keywords)	hyperseo_competitors_search	Domains ranking for similar keywords.
Find competing domains (by domain)	hyperseo_competitor_domains_search	Competitors based on shared organic keywords.
Get domain traffic metrics	hyperseo_domain_overview_get	Organic keywords, estimated organic traffic (ETV), traffic cost. For backlinks and rank, use hyperseo_backlinks_history_get.
Track backlink trends	hyperseo_backlinks_history_get	New / lost backlinks over time.
Check AI chatbot query volume	hyperseo_ai_search_volume_get	Monthly queries to ChatGPT, Claude, etc.
Track brand mentions in LLMs	hyperseo_mentions_track	Brand citations across AI models.
Compare traffic across domains	hyperseo_traffic_get_bulk	Organic / paid ETV and keyword counts per domain.
Track ranking history over time	hyperseo_rank_history_get	Monthly organic traffic and keyword trends.
Classify keyword search intent	hyperseo_intents_search	Intent type with confidence scores.
Find keyword overlaps between domains	hyperseo_domain_intersections_search	Shared SERP keywords with positions.
Check page speed / Core Web Vitals	hyperseo_pagespeed_get	Performance score, FCP, LCP, TBT, CLS.

Location codes

Default is US (2840). Common alternatives: UK 2826, Canada 2124, Australia 2036, Germany 2276.

Output Standards

Always present keyword data as tables:

| Keyword | Volume | Difficulty | CPC | Priority |
|---------|--------|-----------|-----|----------|

Always include the raw numbers alongside interpretation. Don't say "high volume" without showing the number.

Sort recommendations by priority. Quick wins first, long-term bets last.

When comparing domains, use side-by-side tables showing organic keywords and traffic (hyperseo_domain_overview_get), and backlinks, referring domains and domain rank (the latest row of hyperseo_backlinks_history_get).

For content plans, include: target keyword, search volume, difficulty, recommended content format, and priority tier.

Critical Rules

1. Never guess metrics. If you don't have data, run the tool first.
2. Research before recommending. Don't suggest keywords without checking volume and difficulty.
3. Ask for the domain. Don't infer URLs from business names.
4. Check both channels. When relevant, compare Google search volume with AI search volume.
5. Be honest about difficulty. If a keyword is realistically unwinnable for the user's domain authority, say so and suggest alternatives.
6. Think in clusters, not isolated keywords. Group related keywords into topic clusters.
7. Validate against SERPs. Before recommending a content format, check what actually ranks with hyperseo_serp_results_get.