MERIDIAN · SEO METHODOLOGY

How we approach SEO

Explore our six-stage SEO process: business goals, keyword research, technical fixes, content, links, and measurement, with deliverables and review criteria.

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Explore the six stages

Six stages with clear work and review criteria

Start with the customers you want to reach and the action they should take. Map their searches to useful pages, resolve the issues that limit discovery, and help those pages earn attention. Review search performance alongside qualified leads to choose the next work.

01
Agree on goals and establish a baseline
Define the customer, market, conversion, and starting point.
Inputs
Product information, customer profiles, priority markets, Search Console, analytics, and available CRM data.
- Choose the product lines, languages, and buying decisions to prioritize; agree on what makes a lead qualified.
- Record organic search performance by landing page and query group, separating branded and non-branded demand where observable.
- Check demo, trial, and contact events; document access gaps and the owners of content, development, and approval.
Output
Scope sheet, baseline report, conversion definitions, and an ownership checklist.
Review criteria
Each goal has a defined audience, data source, and owner. Missing data is recorded before targets are agreed.
02
Research demand and map it to pages
Turn search intent into an ordered set of page decisions.
Inputs
Customer and sales questions, existing queries, competitor pages, and keyword research estimates.
- Group queries by task, buying stage, and intent; inspect search results in the target market to understand suitable page formats.
- Map each intent cluster to a primary URL: improve an existing page, create a new page, combine overlap, or defer.
- Prioritize business relevance, current coverage, evidence available, and effort alongside estimated demand and competition.
Output
Keyword clusters, search-result notes, keyword-to-URL mapping, and a prioritized content backlog.
Review criteria
Every priority cluster has a page decision, intent rationale, and next action. Tool estimates are labeled as estimates.
03
Resolve technical barriers and site structure
Make priority pages accessible, understandable, and connected.
Inputs
Site crawl, Search Console indexing observations, URL templates, and development constraints.
- Review response codes, robots rules, noindex, canonical URLs, sitemaps, rendered content, and internal links on priority templates.
- Assess navigation, duplicate pages, mobile usability, performance, and language annotations where relevant.
- Rank issues by affected pages, business impact, and dependencies; give the implementation owner reproduction steps and acceptance criteria.
Output
Prioritized technical tickets, architecture recommendations, and verification records for released fixes.
Review criteria
Released fixes are checked on live URLs. Technical eligibility and actual search-engine indexing are tracked separately.
04
Build useful content and improve key pages
Give each page a clear answer, supporting evidence, and next step.
Inputs
Approved page map, product facts, customer examples, and the current page content.
- Prepare briefs with target intent, outline, evidence requirements, internal links, and a relevant call to action.
- Review titles, descriptions, headings, product explanations, comparison criteria, and conversion paths with the client team.
- For programmatic opportunities, validate a small page sample and useful underlying data before expanding a template.
Output
Content briefs, page recommendations, editorial feedback, and publishing checks for the agreed scope.
Review criteria
Each page serves its intended search task and supports its claims. Writing, publishing, and code changes have an agreed owner.
05
Develop relevant authority and link opportunities
Connect useful pages with relevant audiences and publishers.
Inputs
Priority landing pages, original resources, existing backlinks, and relevant publisher or partner opportunities.
- Assess topical relevance, audience fit, editorial context, and the destination page before selecting an opportunity.
- Provide opportunity guidance in coaching; document agreed outreach and placements in managed delivery, including live URLs and link attributes.
- Disclose commercial relationships and qualify paid links appropriately; avoid link schemes and automated low-value placements.
Output
Opportunity shortlist, target-page recommendations, and delivery records for agreed placements.
Review criteria
Delivered placements can be reviewed for relevance, destination, and link attributes; third-party publication and ranking remain outside our control.
06
Review results and choose the next work
Connect what changed on the site to observable business signals.
Inputs
Search Console, analytics, available lead data, published URLs, and the change log.
- Compare consistent periods and page cohorts, separating brand demand, markets, devices, and search types as needed.
- Investigate impressions, clicks, and qualified conversions together; annotate launches, seasonality, tracking changes, and search updates.
- Choose explicit actions: improve the result snippet, strengthen the page, fix access, consolidate overlap, or test the conversion path.
Output
Monthly review, prioritized next-cycle plan, owners, and a record of the hypotheses to revisit.
Review criteria
Recommendations point to evidence and an action. Correlation is distinguished from proven causes, and data limits are recorded.

Worked example · illustrative scenario

Follow one search opportunity through the process

An AI meeting assistant seeking trials from sales teams illustrates the path from keyword research to publishing and review. This is a worked scenario, with no client results or performance forecast.

01 · Map the business need to search intent

Consider an AI meeting assistant with CRM sync that wants trials from sales teams. Research queries such as “sales meeting notes software” and review the target market’s results and existing pages to choose a product page, use-case page, or evaluation guide.

02 · Define the page and implementation needs

If a sales use-case page already exists, improve it first. The brief specifies the workflow, verified CRM capabilities, plan limits, product demo, and trial CTA, alongside title, internal-link, and access recommendations.

03 · Review, publish, and log changes

The client confirms product facts and handles writing, publishing, and implementation, with our agreed review and release checks. Verify the canonical URL, body, internal links, and trial event; log the release date and assess relevant sales-workflow resources for link opportunities.

04 · Let the observations guide the next step

Review the page over comparable time windows. With no impressions, inspect indexing and intent fit. With impressions but few clicks, review position and the search snippet. With visits but few trials, inspect product explanations, audience fit, and the trial path before choosing a test.

Explore keyword research and page mapping

How we evaluate progress toward the goal

We review search visibility, visits, and business conversions by agreed market, page cohort, and time window. Each metric answers a diagnostic question and helps the team choose an action.

Search visibility

Impressions and average position for comparable query and page groups

Are priority pages appearing for relevant searches? Separate branded demand where observable; average position is a diagnostic signal, not a fixed rank.

Clicks and click-through rate

Search Console CTR = clicks ÷ impressions

Are relevant impressions turning into visits? Compare the same filters and inspect result format, position, and intent before changing titles.

Priority-page indexing

Verified indexed priority URLs ÷ checked priority URLs intended for indexing

Can the pages in the agreed scope participate in search? Track unchecked URLs separately; submission and technical fixes do not guarantee indexing.

Qualified business actions

Sessions with an agreed conversion ÷ organic landing sessions, using one attribution definition

Track trials, demos, and qualified leads with analytics and available CRM data. Report the attribution window; Search Console clicks and analytics sessions have different definitions.

Reviews include date ranges, filters, page changes, and tracking changes. Query detail may be incomplete because of privacy handling. Clicks, sessions, and leads are reported separately; rates with zero denominators are marked not applicable.

Explore how analysis informs page improvements

A working rhythm that keeps delivery moving

Growth Coaching and Managed Delivery both start with a three-month minimum. Establish the foundations, then work weekly and review monthly. Quantities and ownership follow the selected package; initial dates depend on materials, approvals, and development capacity.

Start: align and diagnose
Confirm access, goals, conversion events, and owners; establish the initial audit and baseline.
First batch: plan and validate
Approve the keyword map, first briefs, and priority fixes; validate sample pages before expanding execution.
Weekly: move work forward
Review drafts, technical tickets, publishing, and link opportunities; record decisions and blockers.
Monthly: review and reprioritize
Review search and business signals, update priorities, and agree on the next set of briefs and page improvements.

Meridian owns

Research, strategy, audits, content briefs, page recommendations, review, and reporting. Coaching adds guidance and training; managed delivery expands the agreed scope of briefs, page recommendations, and backlink delivery.

The client provides

Product facts, first-hand material, necessary access, and an approval owner. Unless separately scoped, the client handles writing, publishing, and code changes, and shares lead-quality and sales feedback.

The evidence and scope behind our method

These six stages connect Meridian’s SEO research, implementation guidance, and reviews. We use the public guidance below alongside each site’s foundations, business goals, and delivery capacity to set priorities.

Google Search Central · SEO Starter Guide
Guidance on helping search engines discover and understand useful pages informs our technical and content reviews.
Google Search Central · Spam policies
We use these policies when assessing link opportunities and scaled content, including paid-link qualification and the risks of low-value page production.
Google Search Console · Performance report
Report definitions and filtering guidance inform comparisons of impressions, clicks, CTR, and average position.

The engagement commits to agreed research, briefs, optimization recommendations, link deliverables, and reviews. Indexing, rankings, and business results depend on search systems, markets, and execution. We use verifiable work and data to improve, without guaranteeing a fixed position.

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