Claude SEO prompts that work, and where prompts stop working

Here are five Claude SEO prompts we actually use, free to copy. And then the honest part nobody selling a prompt pack will tell you: the point where prompts stop working, and what fixes it.

A good SEO prompt does three things: names the exact task, hands over real data, and forces an output format. All five below follow that shape. They work in Claude on any plan, and each one has an installable skill version that runs the same process without re-pasting.

Prompt 1: title tag rewrites that hold the keyword

Rewrite these title tags. Rules: under 60 characters, primary keyword
first, no clickbait, keep the brand suffix if one exists. Return a
table: current title, new title, character count, what changed and why.

[paste your titles with target keywords]

The format demand is the trick. Without the table, you get prose. Skill version: Title Tag Optimizer.

Prompt 2: Search Console triage

Here is my GSC performance export. Find: (1) pages ranking positions
8 to 20 with real impressions, ranked by opportunity, (2) queries where
two of my pages both get impressions, (3) the three pages I should work
on first and the single fix for each. Columns: query, page, clicks,
impressions, position.

[paste export]

This one prompt replaces an afternoon. The deeper versions are Striking Distance Finder and Cannibalization Detector, which add the verdict logic a prompt this short cannot carry.

Prompt 3: intent classification for a keyword list

Classify each keyword by search intent (informational, commercial,
transactional, navigational) and name the content type that intent
needs (guide, comparison, product page, category page). Group keywords
that one page could satisfy together. Flag any group where I would need
two pages. Return a table.

[paste keywords]

Prompt 4: meta descriptions in batch

Write meta descriptions for these pages. Rules: 120 to 160 characters,
lead with the page's value, include the primary keyword naturally, end
with a reason to click, Australian English, no em dashes. Table: URL,
description, character count.

[paste URLs with one line on what each page is]

Prompt 5: the pre-writing gap check

Here is my draft and its target query. Tell me line by line where I am
repeating what the top results already say, and what I could add that
they cannot: my data, my experience, my contrarian view. Be specific
about what to cut and what to expand.

Query: [query]
[paste draft]

This is the manual version of Information Gain, and it is the prompt that most changes what you publish.

The tenth-run problem

Run prompt 2 today and you get a tidy table. Run it next Tuesday and the columns change, the thresholds move, and the verdict logic softens. Nothing broke. Prompts are interpreted fresh every run, and fresh means variable.

That is fine for personal use. It falls apart the moment output goes to a client, a boss or a teammate who expects the same report shape as last time. A prompt is a request. A skill is a standard.

Every prompt on this page exists in the library as an installed skill with trigger conditions, fixed steps and a locked output format. The install takes one command and the prompts above are still yours either way. Start with whichever gets you moving, and the full setup guide covers the rest.

FAQ

What is the best Claude prompt for an SEO audit?

A prompt that forces structure: scope, checks, output format and a priority order. The audit prompt in this guide works. The honest answer is that audit prompts drift between runs, which is why the audit skills exist: same input, same process, same report format, every time.

Are Claude prompts and Claude skills the same thing?

No. A prompt is a one-off instruction interpreted fresh each run. A skill is an installed markdown file with trigger conditions, steps, checks and a fixed output format. Every prompt in this guide has a skill version in the library that runs the process without you re-pasting anything.

Can I just keep a prompt library in a doc?

You can, and most SEOs do exactly that. The doc rots: nobody versions it, everyone edits their own copy, and the format drifts team-wide within a month. A skills folder installed from a git repo is a prompt library with version control and automatic triggering.

Do these prompts work in Claude's Free plan?

Yes. Prompts are just messages, so they run on any plan. Skills also run on every Claude plan including Free with code execution enabled, so the upgrade from prompt to skill costs nothing either.