tools-only MCP Setup Guide for Vibe Marketing
MCP (Model Context Protocol) servers enable Claude to interact with external services.
Recommended MCPs for Marketing
| MCP | Purpose | Use Case |
|---|---|---|
| Firecrawl | Website Crawling | Site audits, competitor analysis, content extraction |
| Perplexity | Search/Research | Market research, competitive intelligence, trend analysis |
| Apify | Web Scraping | Social media scraping, Google Maps data, lead generation |
| Supabase | Database | Store research data, build content libraries |
| Google Sheets | Spreadsheets | Data collection, content calendars |
1. Firecrawl MCP Setup
Prerequisites
- Firecrawl account at firecrawl.dev
- API key from dashboard
Installation
- Open Cursor Settings → Tools & Integrations → MCPs
- Search for "Firecrawl" and add
- Configure
mcp.json:
{
"mcpServers": {
"firecrawl": {
"command": "npx",
"args": ["-y", "firecrawl-mcp"],
"env": {
"FIRECRAWL_API_KEY": "your_api_key_here"
}
}
}
}
Verification
Run a test scrape in terminal to confirm functionality.
Initial Audit Prompt
Using Firecrawl, analyze [URL] for:
- Industry positioning
- Target audience
- Value propositions
- Messaging tone
- Call-to-action elements
Save findings to Site-Exec-Summary.md
2. Perplexity MCP Setup
Prerequisites
- Perplexity API key
- Cursor IDE installed
Installation
- Access Cursor Settings → MCPs
- Add Perplexity MCP integration
- Configure credentials in
mcp.json:
{
"mcpServers": {
"perplexity": {
"command": "npx",
"args": ["-y", "@anthropic/perplexity-mcp"],
"env": {
"PERPLEXITY_API_KEY": "your_api_key_here"
}
}
}
}
Verification
Run a search query:
Search: "community-driven marketing competitors"
Market Gap Prompt
Using Perplexity, find 5-7 gaps in the market for [your niche].
For each gap, identify:
- Current players
- Underserved needs
- Opportunity size
Output to Market-Gap-Analysis.md
3. Apify MCP Setup
Purpose
- Scrape social media (Reddit, Twitter, LinkedIn)
- Extract Google Maps business data
- Build lead lists
Use Cases for Marketing
| Task | Apify Actor |
|---|---|
| Reddit Monitoring | Reddit Scraper |
| Google Maps Leads | Google Maps Scraper |
| LinkedIn Profiles | LinkedIn Scraper |
| TikTok Trends | TikTok Scraper |
Setup in n8n
See: n8n Apify Integration Guide
4. Combined Workflow
The Power Stack
Firecrawl (Site Analysis)
↓
Perplexity (Market Research)
↓
Claude (Synthesis & Strategy)
↓
n8n (Automation)
↓
Apify (Data Collection)
↓
Supabase (Storage)
Example: Full Research Pipeline
Step 1: Site Audit
Use Firecrawl to analyze competitor.com
Extract: positioning, ICP, UVPs, brand voice
Save to: site-audit-competitor.md
Step 2: Market Intelligence
Use Perplexity to research:
- Top 10 competitors in [niche]
- Fastest growing keywords
- Emerging content formats
Save to: market-intelligence.md
Step 3: Synthesis
Analyze all research files:
- site-audit-competitor.md
- market-intelligence.md
Identify 3 high-impact opportunities for:
- Content gaps to fill
- Positioning angles to own
- Campaigns to launch
Save to: opportunity-brief.md
MCP Best Practices
Do's
- Start with Firecrawl for any new market/competitor
- Use Perplexity for trend validation and question discovery
- Combine multiple MCPs for comprehensive research
- Store all outputs in structured markdown
Don'ts
- Don't rely on single MCP for full research
- Don't skip verification step after setup
- Don't hardcode API keys in committed files
- Don't ignore rate limits
Troubleshooting
Firecrawl Issues
- 401 Error: Check API key is correct
- Timeout: Reduce page depth, use simpler selectors
- Empty Results: Verify URL is accessible
Perplexity Issues
- No Results: Try more specific queries
- Rate Limited: Wait and retry, or upgrade plan
- Outdated Info: Specify date ranges in queries
General MCP Issues
- Restart Cursor after config changes
- Check
mcp.jsonsyntax (valid JSON) - Verify environment variables are set