How I Structured SEO for a 20+ Page Indie Site Without Hiring an Agency

Short summary

A solo developer shares the actual SEO architecture used for an indie games-and-blog site, covering content cluster design (pillar + spokes pattern), internal linking strategy, and schema markup choices. The approach emphasizes structural consistency across clusters, pairing listicle content with interactive tools as a competitive differentiator, and verifying competition live rather than relying on topic reputation. Includes honest notes about assumptions that proved wrong.

• •Pillar-spoke content cluster model: one anchor page with consistent spoke pages sharing structure and cross-links
• •Interactive game + listicle pairing as a structural advantage over text-only competitors
• •Honest caveat: verify competition live — topic reputation can be outdated

Generated with AI, which can make mistakes.