Pillar pages.

02 · THE BRIEFING

1. I
   When to consider it
   You've been publishing for 18 months and your SEO traffic does not take off. You rank on secondary queries, never on the main craft query. Your site looks like 80 articles laid in disorder rather than a coherent whole. Often the moment.
2. II
   Why it matters
   Without a pillar page, Google does not know which page to surface on your topic. You compete with yourself between 5 articles on the same theme. The shortfall is invisible: you pay writers to produce sub-pages with no central anchor point.
3. III
   What you get back
   A pillar page that ranks on the core query. 8 to 15 satellite pages (sub-pages linked to the pillar) that rank on more precise queries. Coherent internal linking that distributes authority from the pillar to satellites and back.
4. IV
   How we run it
   We start with a search intent audit, before writing a single line. Topic mapping via Semrush + Ahrefs (professional SEO tools), brief per satellite, piloted writing then human review by a subject-matter expert. We work with your editorial team, never replacing it. Documented handover.
5. V
   What it unlocks
   An authority recognised by Google and generative AIs on your topic. A set of pages that becomes the reference on your craft. A clean base to scale in AI writing and local SEO behind.

We get back to you within the week · scoping before any quote.

04 · WHAT WE WON'T WRITE IN AN RFP

The pillar page is a topical authority tool. Not a long SEO article.

A pillar page is only useful if it steers a real set of satellite pages meshed together. Otherwise, it's 4,000 words ranking on page 3 on two secondary queries. The right question before signing: how many satellites are you ready to publish in the 6 months following the pillar? If the answer is below 8, the right order is editorial plan first, then pillar. The broader agency vs freelance vs in-house debate sits here.

• 01

  Recognised reference on your topic

  Your pillar ranks on the core craft query. Your satellite pages rank on more precise queries. Google reads you as a reference, not as one more site.

• 02

  Pages that reinforce each other

  Pillar authority feeds the satellites. Satellite engagement flows back to the pillar. The whole self-feeds, month after month.

• 03

  Cited by generative AIs

  ChatGPT, Claude, Perplexity cite your pillar as a source when a prospect asks a deep question. This is tomorrow's SEO channel, already measurable today.

• 04

  You keep ownership

  Your pillar and satellite briefs stay yours. If you change provider tomorrow, the whole keeps producing. No dependency on an opaque writer walking away with their method.

05 · THE PLAY-BY-PLAY

Four steps. Eight weeks on average. One pillar delivered, the cluster open.

1. 01

   We audit search intent.

   Full mapping of core and more precise queries via Semrush (opens in a new window) and Ahrefs (opens in a new window) (professional SEO tools). We measure monthly volume, difficulty, pages already ranking at the top of Google. Prioritised plan: 1 pillar + list of 8 to 15 satellites before writing a single line.

2. 02

   We freeze the pillar brief and satellite list.

   Detailed pillar brief: 3,000-5,000 words, headings and subheadings outline, Schema.org (opens in a new window) Article + FAQ tags, intents covered. Satellite list with angle, target query, length, deadline. Client sign-off before writing. No silent scope drift.

3. 03

   We write and we mesh.

   Pillar written by Camille with human review by a subject-matter expert, in 3 iterations max. First 3 satellites published in the wake. Internal linking wired pillar ↔ satellites, link labels optimised on target queries. No production freeze, progressive deploy.

4. 04

   We compare 90 days before vs after.

   Positions and impressions tracking on target queries in Google Search Console. Manual monitoring of citations in ChatGPT and Perplexity. Dashboard wired directly to Search Console + site audit. Notion handover to your editorial team. The whole stays open to extend over time.

07 · NOT YET FOR YOU IF

Three cases where the pillar page is not the top priority.

• Your Google performance is in the red.

  A 4,000-word pillar on a site that loads in 5 seconds will not rank. The right order is [technical SEO](/en/seo-contenu/seo-technique) first, then pillar. Otherwise we fill a house that does not hold.

• Your current Google traffic is under 5,000 monthly visits.

  The editorial effort of a pillar + 8 satellites does not pay back below this threshold. At these volumes, the editorial cost vs traffic gain ratio stays debatable. Better to start with 3 articles targeted on more precise queries.

• No one on your side can run subject-matter review.

  A pillar without human review by a subject-matter expert sounds hollow and loses authority in six months. If no internal resource is planned for this review (45 minutes per satellite), the cost will not be paid back.

We look at your core topic. We tell you how to hold it as a pillar-satellite cluster.