Notch Content Intelligence is designed for an existing WordPress site, especially one where the harder question is no longer “what can we write?” but “what do we already cover, what overlaps, and what deserves attention next?” The safest first session is simple: let the plugin map the site before you ask it to judge a keyword list.
1. Install the plugin and start with Site Audit
After activation, open Notch Content Intelligence in the WordPress admin area and run the Site Audit. The audit reads the content that already exists in WordPress and builds a local working map from signals such as titles, slugs, headings, body terms, taxonomies, internal links and supported focus-keyword fields.
The plugin can also include non-public editorial content such as drafts, scheduled posts, pending items and private pages when those are part of your review. That matters because a topic sitting in draft may be just as important to a content plan as a page that is already published.
Running the audit does not rewrite a page, change a URL, alter SEO metadata or publish anything. It is an inventory step.
2. Read the map before importing more ideas
Spend a few minutes with the existing-content view first. Look for obvious topic families, pages that appear to be strong hubs, thin areas with little supporting content, and cases where two URLs appear to chase the same intent. This gives you context that a stand-alone keyword spreadsheet cannot provide.
A Pillar Score in NCI is an internal structural signal. It is useful for comparing pages within the audit, but it is not a Google authority score and should not be presented as one. Likewise, an overlap signal is a reason to inspect two pages, not an instruction to merge them automatically.
3. Import keyword research after the audit
When the current site has been mapped, import your research file. NCI accepts CSV, XLSX and JSON. A keyword is enough to begin; optional fields such as search volume, keyword difficulty, trend or freshness data can make prioritization more informative when your source provides them.
The plugin does not invent missing search volume or keyword-difficulty numbers. If your file contains only phrases, NCI works with the information it actually has: existing coverage, semantic similarity, intent, topical relationships and other local signals. See the Keyword Import guide for file preparation and field handling.
4. Treat the decision labels as a review queue
You may see labels such as Already Exists, Ignore New URL / Merge, Merge or Reframe, Write Long-Tail, Write New Pillar, Write Standalone or Needs Review. They are intentionally phrased as editorial decisions rather than ranking promises.
For example, if a keyword is marked Already Exists, open the suggested existing page before doing anything else. Is the search intent genuinely covered? Is the relevant section substantial and current? Would improving that page serve readers better than adding another URL? If the answer is yes, update the existing page. If the intent is materially different, the recommendation may need to be overridden.
This approach is consistent with Google’s broader guidance to create useful, reliable, people-first content rather than producing pages mainly to manipulate search visibility. NCI helps reduce unnecessary publishing, but the final decision remains yours.
5. Add Search Console only when you want performance context
Google Search Console integration is optional. NCI can operate as a local WordPress content-audit and keyword-planning tool without it. If you connect Search Console, the plugin uses a read-only Google scope and can add query/page metrics such as clicks, impressions, CTR and average position to the review.
Use the dedicated Google Search Console setup guide rather than guessing OAuth settings. In particular, the redirect URI must match the URI shown by NCI.
6. Make changes in WordPress deliberately
NCI stops before implementation. It does not merge posts, delete pages, create redirects, change canonical tags or rewrite content for you. That separation is useful on a real site: you can review a recommendation against analytics, business priorities, conversion value and editorial quality before touching a published URL.
For important sites, make structural changes through a staging or backup-aware workflow. If two URLs truly need consolidation, plan the destination, content merge, internal-link changes and redirect together rather than treating the recommendation as a one-click cleanup.
A practical first-session checklist
- Install and activate NCI.
- Run Site Audit before importing new keywords.
- Review existing topic ownership and obvious overlap.
- Import one clean research file rather than several conflicting copies.
- Inspect the highest-priority decisions manually.
- Connect Search Console only if you want performance data in the analysis.
- Make content changes in WordPress only after human review.
Next, read Understanding Audit Results, or return to the NCI Documentation hub.