Content map

Content map: the pillars you can credibly own

Most SEO advice says: pick a head term, target it, build out from there. That worked in 2018. In 2026 it gets you crushed by an AI summary or out-cited by a brand with more authority.

Content map is the opposite. I look at your brand strategy and propose 3 to 10 strategic territories you can credibly own. Each pillar has a definition, an audience, a defensibility level, and a priority.

What I do, behind the scenes

1. Read your brand strategy. Your audience, your expertise, your opinions, your moats. If you haven't set up brand strategy yet, I refuse to run.

2. Pick the pillars. I propose 3 to 10. Each one gets a name, a definition, the audience it speaks to, a defensibility score, and a priority rank. I cap at 10. If you can only credibly defend 4, that is the right answer.

3. Re-runs are an ideation pass. When you re-run, I show you the current pillars and ask three questions: what to keep, what new directions to explore, what to drop. The new map keeps your winners and surfaces fresh ones.

4. Draw the map. You see the pillars laid out at a glance.

What I do not do here

No article titles, no keyword guesses, no "write 30 posts on X" plans. Picking articles needs real keyword data. That comes next in keyword research, one pillar at a time.

What you get back

A two-tab document: the strategy narrative with the pillar map, and the pillar table. Re-runnable any time you pivot. About 3 minutes.