seo-fundamentals – Marketing & SEO skill for AI agents

SEO Fundamentals

> Foundational principles for sustainable search visibility.

> This skill explains _how search engines evaluate quality_, not tactical shortcuts.

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1. E-E-A-T (Quality Evaluation Framework)

E-E-A-T is not a direct ranking factor.

It is a framework used by search engines to evaluate content quality, especially for sensitive or high-impact topics.

| Dimension | What It Represents | Common Signals |

| --------------------- | ---------------------------------- | --------------------------------------------------- |

| Experience | First-hand, real-world involvement | Original examples, lived experience, demonstrations |

| Expertise | Subject-matter competence | Credentials, depth, accuracy |

| Authoritativeness | Recognition by others | Mentions, citations, links |

| Trustworthiness | Reliability and safety | HTTPS, transparency, accuracy |

> Pages competing in the same space are often differentiated by trust and experience, not keywords.

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2. Core Web Vitals (Page Experience Signals)

Core Web Vitals measure how users experience a page, not whether it deserves to rank.

| Metric | Target | What It Reflects |

| ------- | ------- | ------------------- |

| LCP | < 2.5s | Loading performance |

| INP | < 200ms | Interactivity |

| CLS | < 0.1 | Visual stability |

Important context:

• CWV rarely override poor content
• They matter most when content quality is comparable
• Failing CWV can _hold back_ otherwise good pages

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3. Technical SEO Principles

Technical SEO ensures pages are accessible, understandable, and stable.

Crawl & Index Control

| Element | Purpose |

| ----------------- | ---------------------- |

| XML sitemaps | Help discovery |

| robots.txt | Control crawl access |

| Canonical tags | Consolidate duplicates |

| HTTP status codes | Communicate page state |

| HTTPS | Security and trust |

Performance & Accessibility

| Factor | Why It Matters |

| ---------------------- | ----------------------------- |

| Page speed | User satisfaction |

| Mobile-friendly design | Mobile-first indexing |

| Clean URLs | Crawl clarity |

| Semantic HTML | Accessibility & understanding |

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4. Content SEO Principles

Page-Level Elements

| Element | Principle |

| ---------------- | ---------------------------- |

| Title tag | Clear topic + intent |

| Meta description | Click relevance, not ranking |

| H1 | Page’s primary subject |

| Headings | Logical structure |

| Alt text | Accessibility and context |

Content Quality Signals

| Dimension | What Search Engines Look For |

| ----------- | ---------------------------- |

| Depth | Fully answers the query |

| Originality | Adds unique value |

| Accuracy | Factually correct |

| Clarity | Easy to understand |

| Usefulness | Satisfies intent |

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5. Structured Data (Schema)

Structured data helps search engines understand meaning, not boost rankings directly.

| Type | Purpose |

| -------------- | ---------------------- |

| Article | Content classification |

| Organization | Entity identity |

| Person | Author information |

| FAQPage | Q&A clarity |

| Product | Commerce details |

| Review | Ratings context |

| BreadcrumbList | Site structure |

> Only currently supported Google structured-data features create rich-result eligibility; FAQ rich results were retired in May 2026. Generic schema vocabulary alone does not create eligibility.

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6. AI-Assisted Content Principles

Search engines evaluate output quality, not authorship method.

Effective Use

• AI as a drafting or research assistant
• Human review for accuracy and clarity
• Original insights and synthesis
• Clear accountability

Risky Use

• Publishing unedited AI output
• Factual errors or hallucinations
• Thin or duplicated content
• Keyword-driven text with no value

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7. Relative Importance of SEO Factors

There is no fixed ranking factor order.

However, when competing pages are similar, importance tends to follow this pattern:

| Relative Weight | Factor |

| --------------- | --------------------------- |

| Highest | Content relevance & quality |

| High | Authority & trust signals |

| Medium | Page experience (CWV, UX) |

| Medium | Mobile optimization |

| Baseline | Technical accessibility |

> Technical SEO enables ranking; content quality earns it.

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8. Measurement & Evaluation

SEO fundamentals should be validated using multiple signals, not single metrics.

| Area | What to Observe |

| ----------- | -------------------------- |

| Visibility | Indexed pages, impressions |

| Engagement | Click-through, dwell time |

| Performance | CWV field data |

| Coverage | Indexing status |

| Authority | Mentions and links |

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> Key Principle:

> Sustainable SEO is built on _useful content_, _technical clarity_, and _trust over time_.

> There are no permanent shortcuts.

When to Use

This skill is applicable to execute the workflow or actions described in the overview.

Example

User request:

> Review this campaign asset with @seo-fundamentals, identify the main conversion problem, and produce an improved version grounded in the available evidence.

The bundled seo_checker.py is an advisory source-text heuristic, limited to 50 candidate files. It cannot resolve rendered/framework metadata or certify indexability, ranking or accessibility. Empty alt text can correctly mark decorative images. A no-file result is not a passed audit. Validate findings against rendered pages and current primary search documentation.

Limitations

• Use this skill only when the task clearly matches the scope described above.
• 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.