Research SEO/GEO Keywords
An agent skill that researches and delivers a prioritized keyword list for SEO and GEO — using web search and AI analysis instead of paid tools like Ahrefs or Semrush.
No Ahrefs. No Semrush required.
Uses web search, website crawling, and LLM analysis to find, cluster, and prioritize keywords — including a GEO dimension that traditional tools don't offer. Optionally supercharge research with SERP API scripts for real autocomplete, PAA, and SERP feature data.
Install
Clone the repo, then symlink or copy research-keywords/ into either ~/.codex/skills/ or ~/.claude/skills/. See the root README for installation examples.
Usage
/research-keywords
Or:
"Research keywords for my product" "Find SEO and GEO keywords for [brand/URL]" "Run keyword research for my [product category]"
The skill is interactive — it asks you questions, researches, and delivers a structured keyword file.
The 4-Phase Process
Phase 1: Brand Intelligence
The skill asks about your product, audience, and competitors. It visits your website and competitor sites to extract language, positioning, and content gaps.
Phase 2: Keyword Discovery
Researches keywords across 6 methods — no paid tools needed:
| Method | What It Finds |
|---|---|
| Google Autocomplete Mining | Real search suggestions and long-tail variants |
| People Also Ask (PAA) | Question-format keywords AI engines love to answer |
| Reddit & Community Mining | Real user language, pain points, and slang |
| Competitor Content Analysis | Topics competitors cover that you don't |
| Question & Problem Keywords | Problem-aware searches that lead to your product |
| AI Citation Keywords (GEO) | Queries where AI generates answers and cites sources |
Phase 3: Keyword Analysis & Clustering
Groups keywords into topic clusters, scores each on 3 dimensions:
- Relevance to your product (1-5)
- GEO Opportunity — will AI answer this and cite sources? (1-5)
- Business Value — how close to conversion? (1-5)
Flags quick wins: existing pages to optimize, weak competitor content, AI citation gaps.
Phase 4: Deliverable
Outputs a structured Markdown file with:
- Prioritized topic clusters with pillar + supporting keywords
- GEO-specific keyword table (highest AI citation potential)
- Quick wins and competitor gaps
- Full raw keyword list for reference
- Content recommendations per cluster
What Makes This Different
| Traditional Keyword Research | This Skill |
|---|---|
| Requires Ahrefs/Semrush ($99-449/mo) | Free — uses web search |
| Focuses on search volume + difficulty | Adds GEO opportunity scoring |
| Outputs a spreadsheet of keywords | Outputs clustered, actionable content plan |
| Ignores AI citation potential | GEO is a first-class dimension |
| Marketer language | Real user language from Reddit/communities |
Works With Other Skills
The keyword deliverable feeds directly into:
- write-seo-geo-content — write pages for top keyword and prompt clusters
- geo-content-research — build full AI-ready content for high-GEO keywords
- create-geo-charts — create data visualizations for data-driven keywords
SERP Scripts (Optional Power Tools)
The scripts/ directory contains Node.js tools that pull real Google data to supercharge keyword research. These are optional — the skill works without them using Claude's web search, but they provide higher-volume, more precise data.
keyword-explorer.mjs — Keyword Discovery
Pulls real Google autocomplete suggestions, People Also Ask questions, related searches, and detects SERP features (AI Overviews, Featured Snippets).
# Free mode — no API key, autocomplete only
node scripts/keyword-explorer.mjs --seeds "physical AI, DePAI" --free
# Full mode with SerpAPI (free tier: 100 searches/month at serpapi.com)
SERPAPI_KEY=xxx node scripts/keyword-explorer.mjs \
--seeds "physical AI, DePAI, decentralized robotics" \
--depth deep \
--out keywords.json
# Quick scan for a single seed
node scripts/keyword-explorer.mjs -s "machine economy" --free -d quick
Options:
| Flag | Description | Default |
|---|---|---|
--seeds, -s | Comma-separated seed keywords (required) | — |
--free | Free mode: Google suggestions, no API key | auto if no key |
--depth, -d | quick / normal / deep | normal |
--out, -o | Output JSON file path | auto-generated |
--gl | Country code | us |
--hl | Language code | en |
What it outputs:
- All discovered keywords with source tags (autocomplete, PAA, related_search)
- People Also Ask questions with snippets and sources
- SERP feature detection per query (AI Overview, Featured Snippet, etc.)
- Queries where AI Overviews appear (= high GEO opportunity)
serp-analyzer.mjs — SERP Competition Analysis
Takes a keyword list and checks who currently ranks, what SERP features appear, and where content gaps exist.
# Analyze keywords from explorer output
SERPAPI_KEY=xxx node scripts/serp-analyzer.mjs \
--input keywords.json \
--top 20 \
--track "axisrobotics.ai,bittensor.com"
# Analyze specific keywords
SERPAPI_KEY=xxx node scripts/serp-analyzer.mjs \
--keywords "what is DePAI, physical AI companies, best AI robotics crypto" \
--track "axisrobotics.ai"
Options:
| Flag | Description | Default |
|---|---|---|
--input, -i | Path to keyword-explorer JSON output | — |
--keywords, -k | Comma-separated keywords to analyze | — |
--top, -t | How many keywords from input file | 10 |
--track | Comma-separated domains to track | — |
--out, -o | Output JSON file path | auto-generated |
What it outputs:
- Difficulty estimate per keyword (easy / medium / hard)
- SERP features present (AI Overview, Featured Snippet, PAA, Knowledge Graph, etc.)
- Which sources AI Overviews currently cite
- Tracked domain presence/absence (find your content gaps)
- Most frequent ranking domains (identify real competitors)
- All PAA questions (content ideas)
Recommended Workflow
1. Run keyword-explorer with your seed keywords
→ Get raw keyword list + PAA questions
2. Feed output into serp-analyzer for top priority keywords
→ Get competition data + SERP feature opportunities
3. Run the /research-keywords skill with both outputs
→ Get clustered, scored, actionable keyword plan
Setup
# No dependencies needed — pure Node.js (v18+), zero npm install
# Just need a SerpAPI key for full features (free at serpapi.com)
export SERPAPI_KEY=your_key_here
Example Output
## Priority Keyword Clusters
### Cluster 1: Best AI Writing Tools — Priority: 14/15
Pillar Keyword: best AI writing tools 2026
Intent: Commercial Investigation
GEO Opportunity: 5/5 — AI Overviews appear, comparison format
Business Value: 5/5 — direct purchase intent
Relevance: 4/5
| Keyword | Intent | GEO Opp | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| best AI writing tools 2026 | Commercial | High | Pillar |
| AI writing tool comparison | Commercial | High | Comparison table content |
| is jasper AI worth it | Trust | High | PAA — address in FAQ |
| AI content writer for blogs | Commercial | Medium | Use-case variant |