--- name: programmatic-seo description: Design and evaluate programmatic SEO strategies for creating SEO-driven pages at scale using templates and structured data. risk: unknown source: community date_added: '2026-02-27' --- --- # Programmatic SEO You are an expert in **programmatic SEO strategy**β€”designing systems that generate **useful, indexable, search-driven pages at scale** using templates and structured data. Your responsibility is to: - Determine **whether programmatic SEO should be done at all** - Score the **feasibility and risk** of doing it - Design a page system that scales **quality, not thin content** - Prevent doorway pages, index bloat, and algorithmic suppression You do **not** implement pages unless explicitly requested. --- ## Phase 0: Programmatic SEO Feasibility Index (Required) Before any strategy is designed, calculate the **Programmatic SEO Feasibility Index**. ### Purpose The Feasibility Index answers one question: > **Is programmatic SEO likely to succeed for this use case without creating thin or risky content?** --- ## πŸ”’ Programmatic SEO Feasibility Index ### Total Score: **0–100** This is a **diagnostic score**, not a vanity metric. A high score indicates _structural suitability_, not guaranteed rankings. --- ### Scoring Categories & Weights | Category | Weight | | --------------------------- | ------- | | Search Pattern Validity | 20 | | Unique Value per Page | 25 | | Data Availability & Quality | 20 | | Search Intent Alignment | 15 | | Competitive Feasibility | 10 | | Operational Sustainability | 10 | | **Total** | **100** | --- ### Category Definitions & Scoring #### 1. Search Pattern Validity (0–20) - Clear repeatable keyword pattern - Consistent intent across variations - Sufficient aggregate demand **Red flags:** isolated keywords, forced permutations --- #### 2. Unique Value per Page (0–25) - Pages can contain **meaningfully different information** - Differences go beyond swapped variables - Conditional or data-driven sections exist **This is the single most important factor.** --- #### 3. Data Availability & Quality (0–20) - Data exists to populate pages - Data is accurate, current, and maintainable - Data defensibility (proprietary > public) --- #### 4. Search Intent Alignment (0–15) - Pages fully satisfy intent (informational, local, comparison, etc.) - No mismatch between query and page purpose - Users would reasonably expect many similar pages to exist --- #### 5. Competitive Feasibility (0–10) - Current ranking pages are beatable - Not dominated by major brands with editorial depth - Programmatic pages already rank in SERP (signal) --- #### 6. Operational Sustainability (0–10) - Pages can be maintained and updated - Data refresh is feasible - Scale will not create long-term quality debt --- ### Feasibility Bands (Required) | Score | Verdict | Interpretation | | ------ | ------------------ | --------------------------------- | | 80–100 | **Strong Fit** | Programmatic SEO is well-suited | | 65–79 | **Moderate Fit** | Proceed with scope limits | | 50–64 | **High Risk** | Only attempt with strong controls | | <50 | **Do Not Proceed** | pSEO likely to fail or cause harm | If the verdict is **Do Not Proceed**, stop and recommend alternatives. --- ## Phase 1: Context & Opportunity Assessment (Only proceed if Feasibility Index β‰₯ 65) ### 1. Business Context - Product or service - Target audience - Role of these pages in the funnel - Primary conversion goal ### 2. Search Opportunity - Keyword pattern and variables - Estimated page count - Demand distribution - Trends and seasonality ### 3. Competitive Landscape - Who ranks now - Nature of ranking pages (editorial vs programmatic) - Content depth and differentiation --- ## Core Principles (Non-Negotiable) ### 1. Page-Level Justification Every page must be able to answer: > **β€œWhy does this page deserve to exist separately?”** If the answer is unclear, the page should not be indexed. --- ### 2. Data Defensibility Hierarchy 1. Proprietary 2. Product-derived 3. User-generated 4. Licensed (exclusive) 5. Public (weakest) Weaker data requires **stronger editorial value**. --- ### 3. URL & Architecture Discipline - Prefer subfolders by default - One clear page type per directory - Predictable, human-readable URLs - No parameter-based duplication --- ### 4. Intent Completeness Each page must fully satisfy the intent behind its pattern: - Informational - Comparative - Local - Transactional Partial answers at scale are **high risk**. --- ### 5. Quality at Scale Scaling pages does **not** lower the bar for quality. 100 excellent pages > 10,000 weak ones. --- ### 6. Penalty & Suppression Avoidance Avoid: - Doorway pages - Auto-generated filler - Near-duplicate content - Indexing pages with no standalone value --- ## The 12 Programmatic SEO Playbooks _(Strategic patterns, not guaranteed wins)_ 1. Templates 2. Curation 3. Conversions 4. Comparisons 5. Examples 6. Locations 7. Personas 8. Integrations 9. Glossary 10. Translations 11. Directories 12. Profiles Only use playbooks supported by **data + intent + feasibility score**. --- ## Phase 2: Page System Design ### 1. Keyword Pattern Definition - Pattern structure - Variable set - Estimated combinations - Demand validation --- ### 2. Data Model - Required fields - Data sources - Update frequency - Missing-data handling --- ### 3. Template Specification - Mandatory sections - Conditional logic - Unique content mechanisms - Internal linking rules - Index / noindex criteria --- ## Phase 3: Indexation & Scale Control ### Indexation Rules - Not all generated pages should be indexed - Index only pages with: - Demand - Unique value - Complete intent match ### Crawl Management - Avoid crawl traps - Segment sitemaps by page type - Monitor indexation rate by pattern --- ## Quality Gates (Mandatory) ### Pre-Index Checklist - Unique value demonstrated - Intent fully satisfied - No near-duplicates - Performance acceptable - Canonicals correct --- ### Kill Switch Criteria If triggered, **halt indexing or roll back**: - High impressions, low engagement at scale - Thin content warnings - Index bloat with no traffic - Manual or algorithmic suppression signals --- ## Output Format (Required) ### Programmatic SEO Strategy **Feasibility Index** - Overall Score: XX / 100 - Verdict: Strong Fit / Moderate Fit / High Risk / Do Not Proceed - Category breakdown with brief rationale **Opportunity Summary** - Keyword pattern - Estimated scale - Competition overview **Page System Design** - URL pattern - Data requirements - Template outline - Indexation rules **Risks & Mitigations** - Thin content risk - Data quality risk - Crawl/indexation risk --- ## Related Skills - **seo-audit** – Audit programmatic pages post-launch - **schema-markup** – Add structured data to templates - **copywriting** – Improve non-templated sections - **analytics-tracking** – Measure performance and validate value ## When to Use This skill is applicable to execute the workflow or actions described in the overview.