SEO that earns its keep.

The five SEO disciplines we run.

1. Technical SEO

The plumbing. If Google can't crawl, index, and render your site reliably, none of the content work matters. Technical SEO is where most "stuck" sites are stuck.

• Full crawl audit (RustySEO + custom checks): broken links, redirect chains, indexability, canonical conflicts
• Core Web Vitals: LCP, INP, CLS targets per Google's published thresholds (under 2.5s / 200ms / 0.1)
• Schema markup: Organization, LocalBusiness, Service, FAQPage, HowTo, Article, BreadcrumbList, Person
• XML sitemap hygiene + IndexNow submission for fresh URLs (Bing/Yandex/Seznam/Naver)
• Internal linking automation that doesn't over-optimize anchor text
• robots.txt + llms.txt that allow the right crawlers (GPTBot, ClaudeBot, PerplexityBot, etc.)
• Hreflang and canonicalization for multi-region or multi-language sites

2. On-page SEO

Per-page optimization. Titles, meta descriptions, H1 structure, content depth, semantic keyword targeting, inline schema, image alt text. The signals Google reads from the page itself.

• Title tags optimized for CTR + keyword (short enough not to truncate, brand suffix only when room)
• Meta descriptions written like ad copy, never auto-generated
• H1/H2/H3 hierarchy that maps to topical structure, not visual hierarchy
• Content depth targets per SERP analysis (we run our own SEO grader to benchmark)
• Internal link inventory per page, with contextual body links on every page
• Image alt text in plain descriptive language, never keyword-stuffed

3. Local SEO

The work that makes you show up in the Google map pack (the results shown with the map) when someone searches for your service plus a city. Different algorithm than organic. More important for SMBs than most non-local SEO.

• Google Business Profile audit and optimization: categories, services, attributes, photos, hours, posts
• Citation cleanup: NAP (name, address, phone) consistency across the local directories that matter for your trade
• Review velocity: tactics to ethically increase review count and response rate (response rate is a ranking signal)
• Review response automation (AI-drafted, human-approved for negative reviews)
• Service area pages with unique content per city (we hold to a uniqueness rule, no templated city pages)
• Local pack rank tracking via DataForSEO geo-grid
• A steady GBP posting cadence

4. Content SEO

The articles, guides, pillar pages, and supporting content that earn rankings on info-intent + commercial queries. The single biggest lever for SMBs in competitive metros.

• SERP-driven content briefs (mandatory: no "post and hope" briefs at Mastodon)
• AI-assisted first drafts with human SME edit, original data, named tools, real examples
• Content cadence set per business, from a steady base for a thin blog to higher volume in a competitive niche
• Topical clustering: pillar pages with supporting articles, internal-link map per cluster
• Quarterly performance audit: rewrite the weakest posts based on real impression data
• Schema injection per post (Article + Person + FAQPage where applicable)

5. GEO (Generative Engine Optimization)

The newest discipline. Getting your content cited in AI Overviews, ChatGPT browse-with-search, Perplexity, Claude, and Gemini. If you're not cited there, you're invisible to the buyers using AI to research.

• Passage-level citability: short headed paragraphs, definition sentences, citable stats with units
• FAQPage schema on every page that has Q&A content
• llms.txt at apex (a real file, not a redirect)
• AI crawler allowlist in robots.txt (GPTBot, ClaudeBot, PerplexityBot, Google-Extended, etc.)
• Brand entity strengthening: Organization schema with sameAs, Person schema for authors, knowsAbout arrays
• Content shape: TL;DR blocks, definition-style answers, comparison tables, named tool sections

Tools we use.

Named tools. We pick by use case, not by vendor relationship.

Crawling + auditing

• RustySEO, free desktop app, our default crawler for Mastodon clients
• Screaming Frog, when we need extra depth or scheduled crawls
• Google Search Console + URL Inspection API, free

Keyword + competitor research

• Ahrefs, broadest backlink + keyword data
• SEMrush, alternative with stronger SERP feature tracking
• DataForSEO, pay-as-you-go, the API we use to power our internal SEO grader

Content optimization

• Surfer SEO, SERP-driven content briefs and optimization
• Clearscope, alternative with cleaner editor UX
• ChatGPT / Claude, AI-drafted first passes

Local SEO + GBP

• Whitespark / BrightLocal, citation building + local rank tracking
• Google Business Profile, free
• Podium / Birdeye, review velocity platforms (overkill for most SMBs, GBP-direct + AI response is cheaper)

GEO + AI search

• llms.txt drafting: manual or scripted, no platform needed
• Schema validator (Google + Schema.org): free
• AI Overview tracking: DataForSEO ai_optimization API

Common mistakes we see (and fix).

1. Buying tools, not engagements. A SEMrush subscription doesn't rank pages. It diagnoses. Diagnostics without execution is overhead.
2. Publishing without SERP analysis. Every "AI blog post" that bombs skipped this step. The brief is where SEO is won.
3. Ignoring local SEO if you're a local business. The local pack drives phone calls and direction requests for local businesses. Skipping it leaves money on the table.
4. Treating GBP as set-and-forget. Posts cadence, photos, services, attributes, hours, Q&A, all need ongoing attention. The GBP is the highest-trust surface most prospects see first.
5. Buying backlinks. Cheap link packages on Fiverr or paid PBN networks. They can work briefly and then crater the domain. We do not touch them.
6. No GEO strategy. Sites not optimized for citation are invisible to AI-research buyers.
7. Reporting in vanity metrics. Impressions and positions matter less than qualified leads and revenue. We report on the metrics that pay the agency invoice.

Common questions.

How long does SEO take to work?

Technical fixes show up first. Content rankings follow, and real traffic lift comes later, compounding through the first year. RJT Construction's organic traffic rose 66 percent in a 90-day engagement, but that is one client, not a promise.

Does AI-generated SEO content work in 2026?

AI content with human editing, original data, and clear POV performs identically to fully human content. Generic AI content underperforms both.

Do I need separate local SEO if I rank in normal search?

Yes. Local pack and organic are different algorithms. Both matter for a Houston SMB.

How much does SEO cost in Houston?

Starter at $397/mo includes light SEO and AI-SEO, plus a website, Google Business Profile optimization and LeadExploder access. A larger SEO scope than Starter includes has custom pricing, quoted after we look at your market. Request a quote.

What is GEO and do I need it?

Generative Engine Optimization, getting cited in AI Overviews, ChatGPT, Perplexity, Claude, Gemini. If your buyers research before they call, yes.

Do you build backlinks?

We earn them via digital PR, podcasts, HARO citations, guest posts. We do not participate in paid link schemes.

Will you provide reporting?

Monthly dashboard plus 3-paragraph executive summary. Reports on qualified leads and revenue, not vanity metrics.

Do you work outside Houston?

Yes. Texas-wide. Dallas, Fort Worth, Austin, San Antonio get on-site discovery + training. Remote work the rest of the engagement.

What industries do you specialize in?

Home services, healthcare, professional services, real estate, B2B. See all industries.