SEO Tools

SEO Tools Skill

SEO data retrieval, keyword research, competitor analysis, URL indexing, and analytics via API.

References (loaded on demand per platform):

• {platform}/SETUP.md - Authentication and configuration
• {platform}/ENDPOINTS.md - API endpoint reference (where applicable)
• dataforseo/query.ps1 - PowerShell: query DataForSEO API
• dataforseo/query.py - Python: query DataForSEO API
• indexnow/submit.ps1 - PowerShell: submit URLs to IndexNow

MUST-NOT-FORGET

1. DataForSEO costs money per query - estimate cost before batch operations
2. Never hardcode credentials - load from E:\Dev\.tools\.api-keys.txt (keys: DATAFORSEO_LOGIN, DATAFORSEO_PASSWORD, DATAFORSEO_BASE64)
3. Check balance before large operations: python query.py balance
4. Account must be verified at https://app.dataforseo.com/ before data endpoints work (balance endpoint works without verification)
5. Location codes required for geo-targeted queries: 2276=Germany, 2840=US, 2826=UK, 2250=France
6. Rate limits in response headers (X-RateLimit-Limit, X-RateLimit-Remaining) - respect them
7. Standard method stores results 30 days; Live method does not store results
8. IndexNow key file must be HTTPS-accessible at domain root - verify after deploy

Intent Lookup

User wants to...

• Research keywords for a topic -> python query.py keywords "SEED" or .\query.ps1 -Action keywords -Keyword "SEED"
• Check who ranks for a keyword -> python query.py serp "KEYWORD" or .\query.ps1 -Action serp -Keyword "KEYWORD"
• Find competitor domains -> python query.py competitors DOMAIN or .\query.ps1 -Action competitors -Domain DOMAIN
• Analyze backlink profile -> python query.py backlinks DOMAIN or .\query.ps1 -Action backlinks -Domain DOMAIN
• Track brand in LLM responses -> dataforseo/ENDPOINTS.md (AI Optimization API: llm_mentions)
• Monitor search rankings -> google-search-console/ (MCP: quick_wins, traffic_drops)
• Find content decay -> google-search-console/ (MCP: content_decay)
• Submit URL to Google -> google-search-console/ (MCP: submit_url)
• Submit URL to Bing/Yandex -> .\submit.ps1 -Urls "URL" (indexnow/)
• Check site traffic/conversions -> plausible/ (Stats API v2)
• Check DataForSEO balance -> python query.py balance or .\query.ps1 -Action balance

Platform Registry

• dataforseo/ - Keyword research, SERP data, competitor analysis, backlinks, AI/GEO optimization. Pay-per-query ($0.0006-$0.002). Basic Auth.
• google-search-console/ - Ranking monitoring, quick wins, content decay detection, URL submission. Free. OAuth via MCP.
• indexnow/ - Instant URL notification to Bing, Yandex, Seznam, Naver. Free. Key file auth.
• plausible/ - Privacy-first web analytics. Stats API v2. Bearer token. $0-9/month.

Core Procedures

1. Quick Keyword Research

# Python
python query.py keywords "AI compliance" --location 2276 --lang en --limit 30

# PowerShell
.\query.ps1 -Action keywords -Keyword "AI compliance" -Location 2276 -Lang en -Limit 30

Output: table with Keyword, Volume, Difficulty, CPC, Intent. Cost: $0.0006/task.

2. Check SERP for Keyword

# Python
python query.py serp "regulatory reporting automation" --device desktop

# PowerShell
.\query.ps1 -Action serp -Keyword "regulatory reporting automation" -Device desktop

Output: top 10 organic results (position, domain, title) + AI Overview indicator. Cost: $0.002/task.

3. Find Competitors

# Python
python query.py competitors yourdomain.com --limit 20

# PowerShell
.\query.ps1 -Action competitors -Domain yourdomain.com -Limit 20

Output: competing domains with keyword overlap, traffic estimate, avg position. Cost: $0.0006/task.

4. Backlink Analysis

# Python
python query.py backlinks competitor.com

# PowerShell
.\query.ps1 -Action backlinks -Domain competitor.com

Output: total backlinks, referring domains, IPs, subnets, rank, broken links. Cost: $0.002/task.

5. Submit URL After Publishing

# IndexNow (Bing/Yandex) - replace key and domain
.\submit.ps1 -Urls "https://yourdomain.com/blog/new-post" -Key YOUR_KEY -SiteHost yourdomain.com

# Google (via GSC MCP): Use submit_url tool with the published URL

Cost: Free (both).

6. Check Balance

python query.py balance
.\query.ps1 -Action balance

Output: current balance, total spent.

Gotchas

• DataForSEO sandbox also requires verification - Both sandbox and production return 403 until account is verified. Use --sandbox flag in query.py for dummy data testing after verification.
• Location codes are NOT country codes - Germany is 2276, not "DE". Use /v3/appendix/locations to look up.
• Keywords Data vs Labs - Keywords Data API uses Google Ads data (official volumes). Labs API uses clickstream + SERP data (broader, includes keyword suggestions). Different data sources, different costs.
• SERP task_post vs live - task_post is 3x cheaper but async (poll for results). live returns immediately. For single queries use live; for batch use task_post.
• IndexNow key file casing - Key and filename must match exactly (case-sensitive on Linux hosts).
• GSC MCP server variety - Multiple community servers exist with different tool sets. Check SETUP.md for recommended one.

Quick Config

Verify setup:

# Python (from dataforseo/ folder)
python query.py balance

# PowerShell (from dataforseo/ folder)
.\query.ps1 -Action balance

# Use sandbox for dummy data (still requires account verification)
python query.py --sandbox keywords "test"

Script locations: E:\Dev\KarstensWorkspace\.devin\skills\seo-tools\dataforseo\