Finds which query is worth a post, what already ranks for it, and what the site can realistically win against those results.
SEO content engine
Ahrefs finds the query worth writing for and shows what already ranks. Perplexity pulls the sources so every claim has a citation. Claude drafts against the brief. Surfer SEO scores the draft against what's already ranking before you publish. Surfer sells annual plans only, so budget a year, not a month, once you add it.
Synthesized answers with citations attached. That's the difference between something publishable and something you have to go check yourself.
Long context, so a brief, a call transcript, and a brand-voice doc all fit in one prompt instead of getting summarized down first.
Scores the draft against what's already ranking before publish: terms, structure, length. Note before you commit: Surfer is annual-billed only, there's no month-to-month plan, so the medium and heavy tiers here mean a year up front.
- ahrefs$29 Starter
- perplexity$0 free
- claude$20
- surfer-seo$0 (skip until volume)
- ahrefs$29 Starter
- perplexity$20 Pro
- claude$20
- surfer-seo$49 Discovery
- ahrefs$129 Lite
- perplexity$20 Pro
- claude$80 API
- surfer-seo$99 Standard
- 1Find the keywordAhrefs
Run Keyword Explorer and Content Gap against the domain. Shortlist queries with real volume and a Keyword Difficulty score you can actually win, then check the top 10 for word count, headings, and what they're missing.
- 2Build the briefClaude
Turn the Ahrefs SERP data into a brief before anyone writes a word: the target keyword, the gaps in the top-ranking pages, and the structure the draft needs to hit.
Prompt · Brief from Ahrefs SERP dataYou are building a content brief for {{keyword}}, monthly search volume {{search_volume}}, Keyword Difficulty {{kd_score}}. Here is what the top 10 ranking pages cover, pasted from Ahrefs (title, word count, headings): """ {{paste ahrefs serp overview or content gap export}} """ Produce a brief with: 1. **Target keyword and intent** - one sentence on what the searcher actually wants. 2. **Gaps** - 3 to 5 things the top 10 pages miss or handle poorly, specific enough to write toward. 3. **Outline** - H2s and H3s, each with a one-line note on what it needs to cover and roughly how many words. 4. **Angle** - the one thing this post says that the top 10 don't. Rules: - No em dashes. Use commas, periods, or parentheses. - Every outline item ties back to a gap or the intent, not a generic subtopic. Output the brief as Markdown, ready to hand to a writer or drop straight into a drafting prompt. - 3Research the claimsPerplexity
Turn each planned section into a question. Perplexity returns synthesized answers with sources attached, so every stat and claim in the draft has a citation behind it before it gets written.
- 4DraftClaude
Feed Claude the brief, the sourced research, and a brand-voice doc in one prompt. Long context means all three fit without summarizing any of them down first.
Prompt · Draft from brief and sourced researchWrite a post for {{publication_name}}, audience {{audience}}. Voice: {{e.g. direct, specific, mildly skeptical of hype}}. Brief: """ {{paste the outline and brief from the previous step}} """ Sourced research, use these claims and cite the source inline: """ {{paste perplexity answers with sources}} """ Rules: - Follow the outline's H2s and H3s in order. Do not add or drop sections. - Every claim pulled from the research block gets an inline citation, like "(Ahrefs blog, 2026)". - Open with a specific number or fact, not a definition of the topic. - Never use "delve", "in today's landscape", "it's important to note", "unlock the power of". - No em dashes. Use commas, periods, or parentheses. - Target length: {{word_count_target}} words, matching the brief. Output the full draft as Markdown. - 5Optimize and publishSurfer SEO
Run the draft through the Content Editor against the target keyword. Hit the term, structure, and length targets, then publish. This step assumes a year of Surfer, not a month you can cancel after one post.
A small marketing team at a project-management SaaS ran this loop weekly for a quarter. Ahrefs surfaced 14 queries with real volume the site could plausibly rank for; they picked 6. By month three, 2 of the 6 sat on page one, both on queries where the Content Gap report had flagged a specific angle the top 10 results missed.
A 5,000-search keyword with a Keyword Difficulty of 70 and a page one full of high-authority sites is not a target for a new site. Ahrefs' KD score exists to talk you out of the vanity pick.
There is no monthly Surfer plan. Budget the medium and heavy tiers as a year up front, not a month you can cancel after one bad post.
Perplexity's sources are usually right, not always. Open the actual source before a specific number or quote goes into a published post.
What changed in AI tools and the stacks that ship. One email a week.