thyroiddoctornc.com SEO Action Plan

Dr. Hilary Rutledge, Functional Medicine Thyroid Specialist, Wilmington NC — Comprehensive SEO, AEO, GEO, and Local Optimization Strategy

Core Pages

Blog Posts

Organic Keywords

Schema Types

Bottom Line: The site has strong authentic content from real practitioners (13 blog posts, two named doctors with credentials). The core problem is structural: generic title tags, zero local search presence, no MedicalBusiness schema, no NAP anywhere on the site, author attribution showing an email address instead of doctor names, and no service-area or condition-specific landing pages. The domain name (thyroiddoctornc.com) has excellent keyword and geo signals but none of that potential is being realized. This plan fixes all of it.

Current Site State

Pages in Sitemap

Page	Title Tag	Meta Desc	Issues
/ (Home)	Home - thyroiddoctornc.com	Generated by Rank Math	Generic title, no city/state, no service keyword
/our-story/	Our Story - thyroiddoctornc.com	Generated by Rank Math	Weak title, no keyword focus, no doctor name
/thyroid-testing/	Thyroid Testing	Generated by Rank Math	No geo-targeting, no keyword expansion
/faq/	FAQs	Generated by Rank Math	Generic title, no FAQPage schema
/blog/	Blog	Generated by Rank Math	No optimization
/contact/	Contact	Generated by Rank Math	No NAP, no embedded map
/book-call/	Book Discovery Call	Generated by Rank Math	Good CTA but thin page

Blog Articles (13 Posts)

Article	Topic Cluster	Quality	SEO Issues
What is Hashimoto's Hypothyroidism?	Hashimoto's	Excellent pillar content	No meta desc, no FAQ schema, no internal links to services
What is Hyperthyroidism?	Hyperthyroidism	Good educational content	No meta desc, no author schema
Why Labs Normal But Feel Terrible	Diagnosis	High search intent topic	No meta desc, no comparison table
Root Cause Thyroid Testing	Testing	Strong service connection	No MedicalTest schema, weak internal links
Diet & Thyroid Health	Lifestyle	High search volume topic	No meta desc, needs specific foods list
Is My Thyroid from Old Infections?	Root Causes	Niche but valuable	No viral panel testing info
Hormonal Imbalances & Hypothyroidism	Hormones	Good depth	No hormone testing cross-links
Vitamin & Mineral Deficiencies	Nutrition	Informative	No nutrient testing cross-links
Excess Stress & Hypothyroidism	Stress	Good narrative	No adrenal testing cross-link
Is My Problem Hashimoto's?	Diagnosis	High intent content	No link to Hashimoto's condition page

Note: 3 additional blog posts may exist but were not fully extracted. Verify full inventory in WordPress admin.

Navigation Structure

Only 6 items. No condition pages, no location signals, no clear conversion path
"Our Story" is not a keyword anyone searches for
No dropdown for conditions, testing types, or service areas
"Book Free Discovery Call" CTA exists but is not in the nav
Footer has no NAP, no service links, no location signals
No mention of Wilmington, NC anywhere in navigation or footer

Technical SEO Audit

Critical Issues

Author shows as email (shanemdlm@gmail.com) in Twitter cards, Open Graph, and Article schema. Kills E-E-A-T signals
No LocalBusiness or MedicalBusiness schema despite being a physical healthcare practice
Title tags are brand-first instead of keyword-first ("Home - thyroiddoctornc.com")
No NAP anywhere on site (Name, Address, Phone missing from all pages)
No FAQPage schema on the FAQ page (perfect candidate for rich results)
No robots.txt AI bot allowances for GPTBot, ClaudeBot, PerplexityBot
No location-specific pages for Wilmington or surrounding cities

Warning Issues

Rank Math schema is basic (WebSite/WebPage/Article only, no healthcare types)
Blog posts lack author bylines with credentials visible on page
No "Last updated" dates on any blog posts
No internal linking strategy (hub-and-spoke not implemented)
Blog post H2s may link to related articles instead of being section headings
No breadcrumbs in schema or visible on page
Divi theme can be heavy on page speed (needs testing)

robots.txt Analysis

Current robots.txt blocks only /wp-admin/. Missing explicit Allow rules for AI crawlers (GPTBot, ChatGPT-User, PerplexityBot, ClaudeBot, Google-Extended). These bots may be able to crawl anyway, but explicit permission is best practice for AEO/GEO and signals intent to include your content in AI training and retrieval.

Platform Stack

Component	Current	Status
CMS	WordPress + Divi Builder	✅ Fine, flexible and well-supported
SEO Plugin	Rank Math (free)	⚠️ Upgrade to Rank Math Pro for schema control
Analytics	Google Analytics (G-G0583KVWMT)	✅ Working
Authors	Dr. Hilary Rutledge, Dr. Mathew Bradshaw	❌ Not configured as WP users
Domain	thyroiddoctornc.com	✅ Excellent keyword + geo signals

Site Architecture Restructuring

Current vs Proposed URL Structure

Current Structure (Flat)

/                                    (Home — generic title)
/our-story/                          (About — no keyword value)
/thyroid-testing/                    (Services — everything lumped here)
/faq/                                (FAQs — no schema)
/blog/                               (Blog index)
/blog/[article-slug]/                (13 blog posts, no categories)
/contact/                            (Contact — no NAP)
/book-call/                          (Book Discovery Call)

Proposed Structure (Hub + Spoke with Location Pages)

/                                    (Home — optimize for "thyroid doctor wilmington nc")
/about/                              (About — rename from /our-story/, add practitioners)
/about/dr-hilary-rutledge/           (E-E-A-T hub page)
/about/dr-mathew-bradshaw/           (Second practitioner)

/conditions/                         (Hub — conditions treated)
/conditions/hashimotos-disease/      (P0 — primary condition)
/conditions/hypothyroidism/          (P0 — high search volume)
/conditions/hyperthyroidism/         (P1)
/conditions/thyroid-symptoms-normal-labs/ (P1 — high intent)

/testing/                            (Hub — expand from /thyroid-testing/)
/testing/thyroid-panel/              (TSH, Free T3/T4, Reverse T3, antibodies)
/testing/adrenal-hormone-testing/    (Cortisol, DHEA, sex hormones)
/testing/gut-health-testing/         (Food sensitivities, gut microbiome)

/locations/                          (Hub — service areas)
/locations/wilmington-nc/            (Primary — homepage doubles as this)
/locations/leland-nc/                (P0 — fastest-growing nearby town)
/locations/jacksonville-nc/          (P1 — 70K+ population)
/locations/hampstead-nc/             (P1 — Pender County)
/locations/wrightsville-beach-nc/    (P2)
/locations/carolina-beach-nc/        (P2)
/locations/southport-nc/             (P2)

/blog/                               (Blog index — categorize by cluster)
/blog/[existing-slugs]/              (Keep all current blog URLs)

/faq/                                (FAQ — expanded with FAQPage schema)
/book-call/                          (Book Free Discovery Call — expand content)
/contact/                            (Contact with NAP + map)

Hub-and-Spoke Model: Each Conditions page becomes a hub linking to related blog posts, testing info, and location pages. Each blog post links back to its hub and to the testing/booking pages. This creates topical authority signals that both Google and AI engines reward.

Navigation Redesign

Proposed Main Navigation

Item	Dropdown	Purpose
Home	—	Brand + primary keyword landing
Conditions ▾	Hashimoto's \| Hypothyroidism \| Hyperthyroidism \| Normal Labs	Topical authority hub, matches search queries
Testing ▾	Thyroid Panel \| Adrenal & Hormones \| Gut Health \| How It Works	Service pages, matches "thyroid testing" queries
About ▾	Our Story \| Dr. Rutledge \| Our Approach	E-E-A-T signals, practitioner authority
Blog	—	Content hub
FAQ	—	Common questions with schema
Book Free Call	—	Primary CTA — always visible

Footer Navigation: Should include all condition pages, all testing pages, NAP (Name, Address, Phone), embedded Google Map, service area cities list, link to Google Business Profile, and a secondary "Book Free Discovery Call" CTA. Footer links are crawlable and reinforce site structure.

On-Page SEO Fixes

Title Tag Rewrites

Page	Current Title	Proposed Title
Home	Home - thyroiddoctornc.com	Thyroid Doctor Wilmington NC \| Root-Cause Thyroid Care \| Dr. Hilary Rutledge
About	Our Story - thyroiddoctornc.com	About Dr. Hilary Rutledge \| Functional Medicine Thyroid Specialist Wilmington NC
Testing	Thyroid Testing	Thyroid Testing Wilmington NC \| Complete Panels & Root-Cause Lab Work
FAQ	FAQs	Thyroid FAQ \| Hashimoto's, Hypothyroidism & Testing Questions Answered
Blog	Blog	Thyroid Health Blog \| Root-Cause Insights from Wilmington NC
Contact	Contact	Contact Thyroid Doctor NC \| Book Your Free Discovery Call
Book Call	Book Discovery Call	Book a Free Thyroid Discovery Call \| Wilmington, NC

Title Tag Formula: Primary Keyword + Location | Value Proposition | Brand. Keep under 60 characters for the core message. Front-load the keyword and city.

Meta Description Writes

Page	Proposed Meta Description
Home	Dr. Hilary Rutledge provides root-cause thyroid care in Wilmington, NC. We find what's actually causing your Hashimoto's or hypothyroidism symptoms. Book a free discovery call.
About	Meet Dr. Hilary Rutledge and Dr. Mathew Bradshaw, functional medicine practitioners specializing in thyroid disorders at Thyroid Doctor NC in Wilmington, NC.
Testing	Comprehensive thyroid testing in Wilmington, NC. Complete thyroid panels, adrenal testing, and food sensitivity analysis. Go beyond standard blood work. Book your free call.
FAQ	Answers to common questions about Hashimoto's, hypothyroidism, thyroid testing, and functional medicine from Thyroid Doctor NC in Wilmington, NC.
Blog	Expert articles on thyroid health, Hashimoto's, hypothyroidism, root-cause testing, and functional medicine from Dr. Hilary Rutledge in Wilmington, NC.

Local SEO Strategy

Critical Gap: The site has zero local search presence. No NAP on any page, no location pages, no embedded map, no service area definition, and no LocalBusiness schema. For a physical healthcare practice in Wilmington, NC, this is the single biggest missed opportunity. The domain name itself signals "thyroid doctor NC" but the site does nothing to reinforce this.

Local Pack Rankings

Location Pages

GBP Status

Google Business Profile (GBP) Action Items

Action	Priority	Details
Claim/verify GBP listing	Critical	Primary category: "Functional medicine practitioner" — Secondary: "Thyroid doctor", "Holistic medicine practitioner", "Endocrinologist"
Complete all GBP fields	Critical	Business description with "thyroid", "Hashimoto's", "Wilmington NC", "functional medicine"
Add all services	Critical	Thyroid Testing, Hashimoto's Treatment, Root-Cause Analysis, Food Sensitivity Testing, Gut Health Testing
Upload 15+ geotagged photos	High	Office exterior/interior, team photos, Dr. Rutledge. EXIF geotag with Wilmington coordinates
Seed Q&A section	High	Post 12-15 questions matching FAQ page. Answer with keyword-rich responses
Weekly Google Posts	High	Blog excerpts, thyroid tips, "Did you know" posts. Include CTA to book call
Review generation	High	Ask every patient. Encourage mentioning "Hashimoto's", "thyroid", "Wilmington", "Dr. Rutledge"

Review Strategy: Reviews are the #2 local ranking factor. Encourage patients to mention: (1) their condition ("Hashimoto's"), (2) the doctor's name ("Dr. Rutledge"), (3) the city ("Wilmington"). Keywords in reviews directly influence local pack rankings. Target 2-4 new reviews per week minimum.

Local Citation Building

Tier 1 — Must-Have

Google Business Profile
Apple Maps
Bing Places
Yelp (Healthcare category)
Facebook Business Page
BBB Profile

Tier 2 — Healthcare-Specific

Healthgrades
Zocdoc
Vitals.com
WebMD Physician Directory
Wilmington Chamber of Commerce
NC Medical Board directory

NAP Consistency

NAP (Name, Address, Phone) must be identical on every page footer, every citation, and the GBP listing. Use "Thyroid Doctor NC" or the practice's legal name consistently. Include full address, local phone number, and website URL. Embed this in the Divi site footer on every page. Must exactly match Google Business Profile listing.

Location Page Blueprint: /locations/wilmington-nc/

Each location page needs:

H1: "Thyroid Doctor in [City], NC"
600+ words of unique, locally-relevant content
Embedded Google Map showing distance from city to office
Mention of local landmarks, neighborhoods
Remote testing callout: "No need to drive to Wilmington. We ship testing kits directly."
Internal links to all condition pages and testing pages
NAP in the page body
FAQ section specific to that city's patients
CTA: Book Free Discovery Call
LocalBusiness schema with city-specific areaServed

Answer Engine Optimization (AEO) & Generative Engine Optimization (GEO)

Why This Matters for Thyroid Doctor NC

When someone asks ChatGPT "Who is a good thyroid doctor in Wilmington NC?" or "Why do my thyroid labs come back normal but I feel terrible?" — the AI should cite this site. The existing blog content is authentic and expert-level. The problem is structural: no schema, no passage optimization, no entity authority signals, and AI bots are not explicitly allowed in robots.txt.

AEO Action Items

Passage-Level Optimization

Every blog post answer paragraph should be self-contained (40-80 words) and work if pulled out of context
Lead paragraphs with the direct answer, not setup
Use H2 headings as questions: "What is Hashimoto's Disease?" matches how people ask AI engines
Include specific numbers, percentages, and claims that AI wants to cite
Add "Last updated: [date]" to every article
Use definitive language: "X causes Y" not "X might contribute to Y"
Name the entity: "Dr. Hilary Rutledge" not "our doctor"

Citation-Worthy Content Assets

Publish patient outcome data: "In our Wilmington practice, X% of Hashimoto's patients test positive for food sensitivities"
Create named frameworks: "The Root-Cause Thyroid Protocol"
Original comparison tables: Standard TSH testing vs Complete Thyroid Panel
Local data points that AI engines want to cite

Target AI Queries

Structure content to be the answer when someone asks ChatGPT or Perplexity:

"Who is a good thyroid doctor in Wilmington NC?"
"What is the best thyroid testing in North Carolina?"
"How do I find the root cause of my thyroid problems?"
"What tests should I get for Hashimoto's?"
"Can functional medicine help with hypothyroidism?"
"Why do my thyroid labs come back normal but I feel terrible?"
"What foods should I avoid with Hashimoto's?"

GEO Action Items (LLM Visibility)

Action	Platform	Why
Answer thyroid questions on Reddit (r/Hashimotos, r/Hypothyroidism, r/wilmingtonnc)	Reddit	Heavily weighted in LLM training data. Genuine expert answers with brand mention
Create YouTube videos: "What is Hashimoto's?", "Thyroid Testing Explained", "Why Your Labs Are Normal"	YouTube	Transcripts included in LLM training. Video titles indexed
Get Dr. Rutledge listed as expert source on Healthline/WebMD via HARO	Health directories	Multi-platform entity saturation for LLMs
Publish LinkedIn articles from Dr. Rutledge about thyroid health	LinkedIn	Entity authority + professional credibility signals
Answer thyroid questions on Quora with detailed, cited responses	Quora	Build co-occurrence: "Thyroid Doctor NC" + "Wilmington"
Guest on health and wellness podcasts	Podcasts	Each appearance = training data + backlinks

robots.txt Additions for AI

User-agent: GPTBot
Allow: /

User-agent: ChatGPT-User
Allow: /

User-agent: PerplexityBot
Allow: /

User-agent: ClaudeBot
Allow: /

User-agent: Google-Extended
Allow: /

User-agent: cohere-ai
Allow: /

User-agent: *
Disallow: /wp-admin/
Allow: /wp-admin/admin-ajax.php

Sitemap: https://thyroiddoctornc.com/sitemap_index.xml

Schema Markup Strategy

Current Schema: Rank Math generates basic Organization, Person, WebSite, and WebPage types. The Person entity shows an email address (shanemdlm@gmail.com) as the name. No healthcare-specific schema exists. No LocalBusiness, no FAQPage, no MedicalCondition. This needs a complete overhaul.

Required Schema Types

Schema Type	Page(s)	AEO/SEO Impact
MedicalBusiness / Physician	Every page (site-wide)	Critical — Tells Google this is a healthcare practice. NAP, hours, services, areaServed
LocalBusiness	Every page (site-wide)	Critical — Required for local pack eligibility
FAQPage	/faq/, Homepage FAQ section, blog posts	Critical — Enables FAQ rich results in SERP
Person (Author)	Every article, About page	High — Dr. Rutledge and Dr. Bradshaw with credentials
MedicalCondition	Condition pages (Hashimoto's, Hypothyroidism)	High — Signals medical content to Google
MedicalTest	Testing pages	High — Describes thyroid panel, adrenal testing
Article / BlogPosting	Every blog post	High — Must include author Person with real name
HowTo	Process-oriented blog posts	Medium — Step-by-step rich results
BreadcrumbList	Every page	Medium — Site structure signals, improved SERP display

LocalBusiness Schema Template

{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "MedicalBusiness",
  "name": "Thyroid Doctor NC",
  "description": "Root-cause thyroid care in Wilmington, NC. Dr. Hilary Rutledge helps Hashimoto's and hypothyroid patients find what's actually causing their symptoms.",
  "url": "https://thyroiddoctornc.com",
  "telephone": "+1-XXX-XXX-XXXX",
  "address": {
    "@type": "PostalAddress",
    "streetAddress": "...",
    "addressLocality": "Wilmington",
    "addressRegion": "NC",
    "postalCode": "28401",
    "addressCountry": "US"
  },
  "areaServed": [
    {"@type": "City", "name": "Wilmington"},
    {"@type": "City", "name": "Leland"},
    {"@type": "City", "name": "Jacksonville"},
    {"@type": "City", "name": "Hampstead"},
    {"@type": "City", "name": "Wrightsville Beach"},
    {"@type": "City", "name": "Carolina Beach"},
    {"@type": "City", "name": "Southport"},
    {"@type": "City", "name": "Brunswick County"}
  ],
  "physician": {
    "@type": "Physician",
    "name": "Dr. Hilary Rutledge",
    "jobTitle": "Functional Medicine Practitioner",
    "knowsAbout": ["Hashimoto's Disease", "Hypothyroidism", "Functional Medicine", "Thyroid Testing"]
  },
  "medicalSpecialty": "Endocrinology",
  "openingHoursSpecification": {
    "@type": "OpeningHoursSpecification",
    "dayOfWeek": ["Monday","Tuesday","Wednesday","Thursday","Friday"],
    "opens": "09:00",
    "closes": "17:00"
  }
}

Content Gap Analysis

High-Priority New Pages Needed

Page	Target Keyword	Search Intent	Priority
/conditions/hashimotos-disease/	hashimotos doctor wilmington nc	Informational + Transactional	Critical
/conditions/hypothyroidism/	hypothyroidism treatment wilmington nc	Informational + Transactional	Critical
/locations/wilmington-nc/	thyroid doctor wilmington nc	Local	Critical
/locations/leland-nc/	thyroid doctor leland nc	Local	Critical
/conditions/hyperthyroidism/	hyperthyroidism treatment wilmington nc	Informational	High
/conditions/thyroid-symptoms-normal-labs/	why are my labs normal but i feel terrible	Informational	High
/testing/thyroid-panel/	complete thyroid panel wilmington nc	Transactional	High
/locations/jacksonville-nc/	thyroid doctor jacksonville nc	Local	High
/testing/adrenal-hormone-testing/	adrenal testing wilmington nc	Transactional	Medium
/blog/functional-medicine-vs-endocrinology/	functional medicine vs endocrinologist thyroid	Informational	Medium

Content Breakup Recommendations

The homepage is doing too much. It currently contains hero section, service cards, condition overview, testing summary, doctor bios, and CTA all on one page.

Keep hero + trust bar + condition overview + CTA on homepage
Move doctor bios to /about/dr-hilary-rutledge/ and /about/dr-mathew-bradshaw/
Move testing details to /testing/ hub and sub-pages
Create dedicated condition pages (Hashimoto's, Hypothyroidism, etc.)
Homepage FAQ section should link to /faq/ instead of duplicating content

Blog Article Fixes

Structural Issues (All Blog Posts)

What's Wrong

Author attribution shows email (shanemdlm@gmail.com) instead of doctor names
No author byline with credentials visible on page
No "Last updated" date on any post
No internal links to testing page or book-call CTA within content
No FAQ schema despite Q&A format content
H2 headings may be used for related-article links, not content sections
No table of contents for long articles
Blog posts don't cross-link to each other

What To Fix

Create WordPress user accounts for Dr. Rutledge and Dr. Bradshaw
Reassign all content to Dr. Rutledge as primary author
Add author box: "By Dr. Hilary Rutledge, Functional Medicine Practitioner" with photo and bio
Add "Last updated: [date]" at top of every article
Restructure H2s as content section headings (questions where possible)
Add contextual CTA mid-article and at end
Add FAQ schema to every article with Q&A content
Add a "What to Read Next" section linking to related posts AND testing page
Internal linking: every post should link to at least 2 other posts and 1 service page

Article-Specific Fixes

Article	Title Fix	Key Addition
What is Hashimoto's Hypothyroidism?	"Hashimoto's Disease: Causes, Symptoms & Testing \| Wilmington NC (2026)"	Expand to 2000+ words, add FAQ schema, link to testing page
Why Labs Normal But Feel Terrible	"Why Your Thyroid Labs Are Normal But You Feel Terrible (2026)"	Add comparison table (TSH-only vs complete panel), high-intent CTA
Root Cause Thyroid Testing	"Root-Cause Thyroid Testing: Beyond Standard Blood Work \| Wilmington NC"	Add MedicalTest schema, link to testing sub-pages
Diet & Thyroid Health	"Thyroid Diet Guide: Foods That Help (and Hurt) Hashimoto's (2026)"	Add specific foods list, FAQ schema for "what to eat"
Is My Problem Hashimoto's?	"Is It Hashimoto's? Signs, Tests & Next Steps \| Wilmington NC"	Make definitive. Link to Hashimoto's condition page and booking CTA

Conversion Optimization (Discovery Call Funnel)

The Goal: Every page should move visitors toward booking a free discovery call. The CTA exists on the homepage but needs to be present on every page, at multiple scroll depths.

Conversion Fixes

Fix	Where	Impact
Add sticky CTA button in header nav	Every page	Always-visible "Book Free Call" button, even when scrolled
Add mid-content CTA blocks	Every blog post, service page	After the "aha moment" in each article, insert a CTA
Expand /book-call/ page	Book Call page	Add: what to expect, how long (15 min), that it's free, testimonials
Add patient testimonials near CTAs	All pages	Social proof near booking buttons reduces friction
Add "What to expect" section	Service pages	"The call is free, 15 minutes, no obligation, we just listen"
Phone number in header	Every page	Click-to-call for mobile users who prefer calling
Sticky mobile CTA bar	Mobile only	Bottom bar with "Book Free Call" button on all mobile pages

Full Implementation Checklist

Phase 1: Technical Foundation (Week 1-2)

Fix author attribution: create WP users for Dr. Rutledge and Dr. Bradshaw, reassign all content
Rewrite all title tags (keyword-first format, see title tag table)
Add meta descriptions to all 7 core pages
Add NAP to Divi footer template (site-wide)
Add MedicalBusiness + LocalBusiness schema to all pages
Add FAQPage schema to /faq/ page
Update robots.txt with AI bot allowances
Fix Person schema: replace email with real practitioner names and credentials
Verify GBP is claimed and optimized (categories, services, photos, hours)
Verify sitemap is complete and submitted to Google Search Console
Run PageSpeed Insights on homepage and blog

Phase 2: Site Architecture (Week 2-4)

Create /conditions/ hub and individual condition pages (Hashimoto's, Hypothyroidism)
Create /locations/wilmington-nc/ location page
Create 2-3 additional location pages (Leland, Jacksonville)
Restructure navigation with dropdowns (Conditions, Testing, About)
Add "Book Free Call" button to nav
Rebuild footer with condition links, testing links, NAP, and map
Expand /book-call/ page with content and embedded scheduler
Create /testing/ hub with sub-pages (thyroid panel, adrenal/hormones)

Phase 3: Content Optimization (Week 3-5)

Restructure H2 headings on all blog posts (questions where possible)
Add author bylines with credentials to all blog posts
Add "Last updated" dates to all blog posts
Add internal links: every blog post to 2 other posts + 1 testing/condition page
Add mid-article and end-of-article CTAs to every blog post
Add FAQ schema to blog posts with Q&A content
Expand top 3 blog posts to pillar content (2000+ words)
Add comparison tables to blog posts (AI-citation-worthy structured data)
Add "What to Read Next" section to every blog post

Phase 4: Local SEO (Week 4-6)

Claim and verify Google Business Profile
Complete all GBP fields (categories, description, services, hours, attributes)
Upload 15+ geotagged photos
Seed GBP Q&A with 12-15 questions from FAQ
Begin weekly Google Posts cadence
Set up review generation system (post-appointment email/SMS with GBP link)
Build Tier 1 citations (Apple Maps, Bing Places, Yelp, Facebook, BBB)
Build healthcare citations (Healthgrades, Zocdoc, Vitals, WebMD)
Join Wilmington Chamber of Commerce
Verify NAP consistency across all citations

Phase 5: AEO/GEO (Week 5-8)

Rewrite blog article opening paragraphs as self-contained answers (40-80 words)
Add named framework ("The Root-Cause Thyroid Protocol")
Publish patient outcome data points
Create Reddit presence: answer questions in r/Hashimotos, r/Hypothyroidism
Create YouTube channel with 3-5 educational videos
Publish LinkedIn articles from Dr. Rutledge
Set up monthly AI visibility testing (search target queries in ChatGPT, Perplexity)
Create comparison content (functional medicine vs endocrinology) for AI citation

Priority Roadmap

1. Author + Titles

→

2. Schema + NAP

→

3. GBP

→

4. Condition Pages

→

5. Blog Fixes

→

6. Local SEO

→

7. AEO/GEO

This Week

Fix author attribution
Fix all title tags
Add NAP to footer
Add MedicalBusiness schema
Update robots.txt
Audit GBP listing

Weeks 2-4

Create Hashimoto's page
Create Hypothyroidism page
Create Wilmington location page
Restructure navigation
Fix all blog posts (author, dates, internal links)
Expand /book-call/ page

Weeks 4-8

Create additional location pages
Local citation building
Review generation campaign
New blog content (2-4/month)
AEO/GEO optimization
Reddit/YouTube presence

Expected Impact: After implementing Phase 1-3, expect the site to move from 4 organic keywords to 20-30 within 4-6 weeks, and begin appearing in local pack results for "thyroid doctor wilmington nc" within 6-8 weeks. AI citation potential begins immediately after allowing AI bots in robots.txt. After Phase 4-5, expect AI engines to begin citing the site's content for thyroid-related questions within 3-6 months. The combination of authentic practitioner content + strong domain signals (thyroiddoctornc.com) + proper technical SEO creates a significant competitive moat in this niche.

Change Log

What's been done and what still needs to be done. Updated live as changes are made.

#	Item	Status	Details	Date
1	SEO action plan created	Done	Full audit, strategy, and implementation checklist built and deployed.	2026-09-17
2	Fix author attribution in WordPress	Manual	Create WP user for Dr. Hilary Rutledge (email, display name, bio, photo). Reassign all blog posts and pages from "shanemdlm@gmail.com" to Dr. Rutledge. Update Rank Math author settings.	—
3	Rewrite all title tags	Manual	In Rank Math: Home, About, Testing, FAQ, Blog, Contact, Book Call. See title tag table above for exact copy-paste titles.	—
4	Add NAP to site footer	Manual	In Divi Theme Builder, add Name, Address, Phone to the global footer template. Must match GBP listing exactly.	—
5	Add MedicalBusiness schema	Manual	Install Rank Math Pro or add JSON-LD via code snippet plugin. Use the schema template above. Apply site-wide.	—
6	Update robots.txt	Manual	Add AI bot allowances (GPTBot, ChatGPT-User, PerplexityBot, ClaudeBot, Google-Extended, cohere-ai). See robots.txt section above.	—
7	Audit and optimize Google Business Profile	Manual	Verify categories, add services, upload photos, seed Q&A, enable booking link. See GBP action items above.	—
8	Create Hashimoto's condition page	To Do	/conditions/hashimotos-disease/ — 2000+ words, MedicalCondition schema, FAQPage schema, internal links to blog posts and testing.	—
9	Create Hypothyroidism condition page	To Do	/conditions/hypothyroidism/ — 2000+ words, root-cause vs symptom management comparison table.	—
10	Create Wilmington location page	To Do	/locations/wilmington-nc/ — 600+ words, embedded map, NAP, local content, LocalBusiness schema.	—

Status Key: Done Completed and verified. Manual Requires site owner action (WP Admin, plugin settings, GBP dashboard). To Do Not started yet.