Live search data via the DataForSEO MCP server. Provides real-time SERP results
(organic + images), keyword metrics, backlink profiles, on-page analysis, content
analysis, business listings, AI visibility checking, and LLM mention tracking
across 10 API modules with 79+ MCP tools.
Prerequisites
This skill requires the DataForSEO extension to be installed:
./extensions/dataforseo/install.sh
Check availability: Before using any DataForSEO tool, verify the MCP server
is connected by checking if serp_organic_live_advanced or any DataForSEO tool
is available. If tools are not available, inform the user the extension is not
installed and provide install instructions.
API Credit Awareness
DataForSEO charges per API call. Be efficient:
Prefer bulk endpoints over multiple single calls
Use default parameters (US, English) unless user specifies otherwise
Cache results mentally within a session; don't re-fetch the same data
Warn user before running expensive operations (full backlink crawls, large keyword lists)
Cost Guardrails
Before every DataForSEO MCP call, run cost estimation:
Also supports: The serp_organic_live_advanced tool supports Google, Bing, and Yahoo via the se parameter. Specify "bing" or "yahoo" to switch search engines.
Output: Rank, URL, title, description, domain, featured snippets, AI overview references, People Also Ask.
/seo dataforseo serp-youtube <keyword>
Fetch YouTube search results. Valuable for GEO. YouTube mentions correlate most strongly with AI citations.
MCP tools:serp_youtube_organic_live_advanced
Output: Video title, channel, views, upload date, description, URL.
/seo dataforseo youtube <video_id>
Deep analysis of a specific YouTube video: info, comments, and subtitles. YouTube mentions have the strongest correlation (0.737) with AI visibility, making this critical for GEO analysis.
Parameters: video_id (the YouTube video ID, e.g., "dQw4w9WgXcQ")
Output: Video metadata (title, channel, views, likes, description), top comments with engagement, subtitle/transcript text.
/seo dataforseo serp-images <keyword>
Fetch live Google Images search results. See which images rank for a keyword,
which domains dominate image results, and identify visual content opportunities.
Parameters: keyword, location_code (optional), language_code (optional). Use ai_opt_llm_ment_loc_and_lang for available locations/languages and ai_optimization_llm_models for supported LLM models.
Workflow:
Search LLM mentions with ai_opt_llm_ment_search (find mentions of a brand/keyword across LLM responses)
Get top cited domains with ai_opt_llm_ment_top_domains (which domains are most cited for this topic)
Get top cited pages with ai_opt_llm_ment_top_pages (which specific pages are most cited)
Get aggregate metrics with ai_opt_llm_ment_agg_metrics (overall mention volume, trends)
Output: LLM mention count, top cited domains with frequency, top cited pages, mention trends over time, cross-platform visibility scores.
Advanced: Use ai_opt_llm_ment_cross_agg_metrics for cross-model comparison (how mentions differ across ChatGPT, Claude, Perplexity, etc.).
Available Utility Tools
Additional DataForSEO MCP tools are available for internal use but do not have dedicated commands. Load references/tool-catalog.md when you need to find a specific utility tool (location lookups, bulk operations, historical data, filter options).
Cross-Skill Integration
When DataForSEO MCP tools are available, other claude-seo skills can leverage live data:
seo-audit:Spawn seo-dataforseo agent for real SERP, backlink, on-page, and listings data
seo-technical:Use on_page_instant_pages / on_page_lighthouse for real crawl data, domain_analytics_technologies_domain_technologies for stack detection
seo-content:Use kw_data_google_ads_search_volume, dataforseo_labs_bulk_keyword_difficulty, dataforseo_labs_search_intent for real keyword metrics, content_analysis_summary for content quality
seo-page:Use serp_organic_live_advanced for real SERP positions, backlinks_summary for link data
seo-images:Use serp_google_images_live_advanced for competitor image SERP data, cross-reference with on-page image audit
seo-geo:Use ai_optimization_chat_gpt_scraper for real ChatGPT visibility, ai_opt_llm_ment_search for LLM mention tracking
seo-plan:Use dataforseo_labs_google_competitors_domain, dataforseo_labs_google_domain_intersection, dataforseo_labs_bulk_traffic_estimation for real competitive intelligence
Error Handling
MCP server not connected: Report that DataForSEO extension is not installed or MCP server is unreachable. Suggest running ./extensions/dataforseo/install.sh
API authentication failed: Report invalid credentials. Suggest checking DataForSEO API login/password in MCP config
Rate limit exceeded: Report the limit hit and suggest waiting before retrying
No results returned: Report "no data found" for the query rather than guessing. Suggest broadening the query or checking location/language codes
Invalid location code: Report the error and suggest using the locations lookup tool to find the correct code
Output Formatting
Match existing claude-seo output patterns:
Use tables for comparative data
Prioritize issues as Critical > High > Medium > Low
Include specific, actionable recommendations
Show scores as XX/100 where applicable
Note data source as "DataForSEO (live)" to distinguish from static analysis
