skills/gsc-seo-content-planning/references/planning-method.md

# Evidence-based SEO planning method

Load this reference for detailed content briefs, keyword clusters, or editorial calendars.

## Prioritize opportunities

Score opportunities qualitatively using only returned evidence:

1. **High priority — near-term gains**
   - High-impression striking-distance queries.
   - High-impression pages whose CTR is materially below the returned heuristic.
   - Falling queries that previously contributed meaningful clicks or impressions.
2. **Medium priority — consolidation and relevance**
   - Cannibalization candidates with multiple pages competing for the same query.
   - Rising queries that fit an existing page but need stronger coverage or internal links.
3. **Exploratory — new content**
   - Queries with meaningful impressions but no clearly relevant existing page in `queryPageRelationships`.

Do not invent a numeric opportunity score unless the user supplies a scoring formula.

## Choose the action

- **Refresh an existing page** when a relevant page already earns impressions and ranks within reach.
- **Improve title/meta copy** when impressions and position are credible but CTR is low. Treat expected CTR as a heuristic, not a guarantee.
- **Consolidate or differentiate pages** when a cannibalization candidate shows multiple URLs serving the same intent.
- **Strengthen internal links** when related query-page relationships reveal a clear target page and supporting pages.
- **Create a new article** only when the query set expresses a distinct intent that existing returned pages do not adequately serve.

## Article brief format

For each proposed article or refresh, include:

- Primary query and supporting queries from GSC
- Search intent: informational, commercial investigation, navigational, or transactional; label this as an inference
- Recommended action: create, refresh, consolidate, or improve snippet
- Target existing page, if any
- Evidence: impressions, clicks, CTR, average position, and trend where available
- Suggested title angles without promising rankings
- Outline covering the query cluster without forced repetition
- Internal-link opportunities supported by returned page relationships
- Measurement plan for clicks, impressions, CTR, and average position

## Editorial calendar

Order work by dependency and speed to evidence:

1. Fix high-impression low-CTR snippets.
2. Refresh striking-distance pages.
3. Resolve cannibalization.
4. Expand rising topics and create genuinely missing content.

For each calendar item, state the page/query, action, evidence, owner placeholder, and review window. Do not prescribe an exact ranking deadline; Search Console data is delayed and search outcomes are not guaranteed.