Level up your marketing game with the vibe research stack

1. Scrape the SERP

Pull the full page for your target keyword: organic top 10, People Also Ask (PAA), and the AI Overview if one shows

You need the whole page, not just the blue links. PAA and AI Overview carry separate signal

2. Read what's ranking

For each of the top 10, note the angle, format, and how deep it actually goes

Some results rank on domain authority alone, not content quality. Those are your openings

3. Check AI Overview citations vs. organic rank

Compare who's cited in the AI Overview against who ranks organically

A page can rank #3 organically and still not be the AI Overview's source. That citation increasingly matters more than position

4. Find the PAA gap

Cross-reference People Also Ask questions against what the top 10 actually answers

Questions in PAA with no clear answer in the top 10 are your most direct opportunity

5. Write the citable passage

A short, direct, front-loaded answer to the exact unanswered question, not a full restructured article

This is the format AI Overviews and featured snippets actually pull from

1. Identify real search competitors

Pull 3-5 sites that actually rank for your target topics, not brand competitors, search competitors

The site you compete with for customers isn't always the site you compete with for rankings

2. Pull their top-performing URLs

Get their highest-ranking pages and the keywords driving that traffic

You want to study what's already proven to work, not guess at their strategy

3. Score for depth, UX, and intent-match

Rate each competing page against your own (or a planned page) on how thoroughly it covers the topic, how usable it is, and whether it actually matches what the searcher wants

Ranking isn't the same as being good. A lot of ranking content is thin, outdated, or answers a slightly different question than the one being asked

4. Build the brief around the specific gap

Don't write "a better version" of their page, write the version that closes the exact gap you scored

A vague "make it better" brief produces vague content; a gap-specific brief produces content with a reason to exist

1. Monitor volume-over-time for an emerging term

Track a specific term via a trend tool, watching the shape of the curve, not just the current volume

A term with steadily rising volume is a different opportunity than one that's already flat or declining

2. Find the inflection point

Identify where the curve visibly starts accelerating, not just where it started existing

Early flat volume isn't the signal. The acceleration is

3. Validate against a second signal

Cross-check the volume trend against social or news volume for the same term

A single-source spike can be noise; the same term rising in two independent signals is a much stronger case

4. Greenlight content/campaign before saturation

Move on the term while it's still climbing, not once it's already common

Being early is the entire value of this research type. The same content published after saturation gets buried in an already-crowded SERP or feed

1. Pull industry reports and market-sizing data

Gather existing research on the size and trajectory of the space

You don't need to originate market sizing. You need to know what's already been measured

2. Pull demand signals

Search volume trends, funding activity in the space, regulatory shifts

These are leading indicators that move faster than formal industry reports, which often lag by a year or more

3. Validate size and timing together

Cross-check the market-sizing data against the demand signals: are they moving in the same direction?

A large but shrinking market and a small but rapidly growing one require completely different strategies, even if the current size looks similar

4. Decide if/when to enter or invest

Use the combined read to make an actual go/no-go or timing call

This is the step that makes the research worth doing. A market analysis that doesn't inform a real decision is just trivia

1. Product/feature research

What they actually ship, and how it's positioned on their own site

Their website, changelog, product pages

2. Pricing research

Current pricing tiers, packaging, and how it's changed over time

Their pricing page, tracked over time (Wayback Machine for historical)

3. Messaging/positioning research

How they describe themselves, their headlines, their core claims

Their homepage, ads, sales pages

4. Customer review mining

What their own customers say publicly, good and bad

G2, Capterra, Trustpilot, app store reviews

5. Employee sentiment research

How their own team describes working there

Glassdoor, LinkedIn posts from current/former employees

6. Ad research

What they're actively running as paid ads right now

Meta Ad Library, Google Ads Transparency Center

7. Content/SEO research

What content they publish and what's actually ranking for them

Their blog, cross-referenced with SERP/rank data

8. Social presence research

How they show up and engage on each platform

Direct platform review of their own accounts