The Content Lab: SEO Strategies Tested on Real Sites
The Content Lab tests SEO strategies on real sites and publishes what works. Browse by pillar, scroll the full archive below, or look up any term in the glossary.
Topical Authority
11 articles
Entity-mapped clusters and the structures that earn authority.
AI Content
4 articles
Producing AI-assisted content that ranks and reads human.
AI Search
17 articles
Winning visibility in AI Overviews, ChatGPT, and answer engines.
All articles
Free Content Audit Template (CSV) and How to Use It
A free content audit template as a CSV, what each column is for, where the data comes from, and how to decide keep, improve, merge, or remove for every page.
What Google AI Mode Means for Local Businesses in 2026
Google's AI Mode can now find availability for local services and, in some categories, call businesses for customers. What changed, and what to do this quarter.
How to Add IndexNow to WordPress, Wix, Cloudflare, or Any Site
How to turn on IndexNow in WordPress (Bing's plugin, Rank Math, Yoast Premium), Wix, and Cloudflare, or add it by hand, with what it does and does not do.
How to Write an Answer Capsule an AI Engine Can Quote
How to write the short, self-contained answer under a heading that AI engines quote: what a study found, seven rules, examples, and a free check.
What the Pew AI Overviews Study Actually Says (and What It Doesn't)
A close read of Pew's study of 68,879 real Google searches: how much AI summaries cut clicks, which searches trigger them, and which sources they cite.
robots.txt for AI Crawlers: Which Bots to Allow, and What Blocking Costs
Which AI crawlers to allow in robots.txt, what each one does according to its own company, and what blocking it costs: search visibility or only training use.
Semantic Triples for SEO: How to Write Facts Machines Can Read
A semantic triple states one fact as subject, predicate, object. How to write sentences search engines and AI can extract, and how markup states them.
How Much Does SEO Content Cost? Pricing Models Explained
How SEO content is priced (per word, per page, per project, or monthly), what actually drives the cost, real starting prices, and how to compare quotes fairly.
A Topical Map Example, Annotated: Planning Content for a Local Business
A worked topical map for a fictional local plumber: the clusters, every planned page and the question it answers, how the pages link, and what to publish first.
How to See AI Referral Traffic in Google Analytics and Search Console
See visits from ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini, Copilot, and Claude in GA4 with a custom channel, and learn where AI Overviews and AI Mode clicks hide.
Entity-Based Search, SEO, AEO, and GEO Explained in Plain English
A plain-English guide to entity-based search, SEO, AEO, and GEO, organized by the problems business owners actually have, with what to do about each one.
The E-E-A-T Checklist: Signals You Can Actually Add This Month
An E-E-A-T checklist of concrete signals: bylines, author schema, first-hand proof, citations, and disclosures, each with the time it takes to add.
AI Search Statistics You Can Actually Cite (Primary Sources Only)
AI search statistics with a rule most stat pages break: every number links to its named primary source. Untraceable stats get flagged, not repeated.
Entity-Based SEO: How to Actually Do It (Not Just Define It)
Most guides define entity-based SEO and stop. This one is the practice: a five-step process with free checks, plus a worked example from a real site.
Does Keyword Density Matter Anymore? What Google Actually Says
Does keyword density still matter? Not as a ranking number. No ideal percentage exists in Google docs. What the rule is for, and what to do instead.
Schema Markup for AI Search: What It Does and What It Cannot
What schema markup for AI search actually does, per Google docs and citation data: it declares your entities. What it cannot do: buy citations.
How to Get Cited by ChatGPT: What a 15-Domain Study Found
How to get cited by ChatGPT, based on a 15-domain study: lead with a short answer, add original data, and keep links out of the answer itself.
The AI SEO Checklist: What Google Confirms and What Is Just a Bet
An AI SEO checklist built on primary sources: what Google confirms, what is standard SEO, and what is still an unproven bet. Verify every item for free.
GEO vs AEO vs SEO: What Is Actually Different (and What Is Just Renaming)
GEO, AEO, and SEO overlap far more than the acronyms suggest. Here is what each term means, what actually changes in practice, and what is marketing rebranding.
How to Add llms.txt to WordPress, Shopify, or Any Site
How to add llms.txt to your site: step-by-step methods for WordPress, Shopify, static sites, and custom builds, plus how to check it actually works.
llms.txt Examples: Real Files From Real Sites (and What to Copy)
Real llms.txt examples from Anthropic, Stripe, Zapier, Supabase, and Cloudflare. See how the files differ, which patterns to copy, and how small yours can be.
llms.txt vs robots.txt vs agents.md: Which File Does What?
llms.txt describes your site, robots.txt controls access, and agents.md briefs coding agents. A plain comparison of every AI file, and which ones you need.
Why Is My Page Not Ranking on Google? A DIY Diagnostic Guide
Your page is not ranking because of one of six fixable causes. Walk through this DIY checklist to find which one, using only free tools.
What Is llms.txt? A Practical Guide to the AI Crawler File
llms.txt is a plain-text file that tells AI crawlers what your site is about. Learn what goes inside, see a real example, and decide if you need one.
What Is Semantic SEO? A Guide to Entities, Topic Clusters, and Schema
Semantic SEO helps Google understand meaning, entities, and intent instead of raw keywords. Learn the entity and topic-cluster tactics that earn rankings.
What Is SERP Position Zero? How to Win Featured Snippets
Featured snippets sit at SERP position zero, above the first organic result. What Google says about choosing them, how to format for them, and how to opt out.
Do Keywords Matter Anymore? What Changed in SEO and AI Search
Do keywords still matter for SEO? Yes, but the rules changed. Here is how keywords, search intent, and entities work together for Google and AI search.
Does Google Penalize AI Content? What Actually Gets You Ranked
Does Google penalize AI content? No. Google rewards helpful content however it is produced and penalizes unhelpful, low-effort pages instead.
What Happened in Google's December 2025 Core Update?
Google's December 2025 core update ran from December 11, 2025 for 18 days. What Google says core updates do, and how to review a drop.
Keyword Research for AI Search: Finding the Questions AI Engines Answer
How keyword research changes for AI search: map intent and entities, cover the follow-up questions AI engines explore, and write answers they can cite.
How Do You Scale Content Production Without Hiring More Writers?
Scaling content production works best as a hybrid model: AI handles research and drafting while humans own strategy, voice, and editing.
Topic Clusters vs Content Silos: Which Wins in SEO?
Topic clusters beat rigid content silos because they build topical authority through smart internal linking. Here is how I structure them to rank.
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