ChatGPT Topical Map: 12 Prompts to Plan Topic Clusters

A ChatGPT topical map is a plan of every pillar and cluster page your site needs to cover one subject in depth, built from your seed topic and the pages you already have. The 12 prompts below help you brainstorm the map, match it to your existing URLs, fix overlaps, plan internal links, and decide what to write first. ChatGPT cannot see real search volumes, so check every topic in your own keyword tool or Search Console.

Build the map

1. Pillars and clusters

Build a topical map for [seed topic] for [audience]: 3 to 5 pillar topics, each with 4 to 8 cluster subtopics written as the reader's question or task.

2. Questions readers ask

List the questions a [audience] asks at each stage of [journey, such as before buying, first week, troubleshooting] about [seed topic].

3. Intent labels

Label each topic in this list [paste] by search intent: learn, compare, buy, or do. Group topics with the same intent that could be one page.

Match it to your site

4. Coverage table

Here is my topical map [paste] and my existing URLs with titles [paste]. Make a table matching each topic to a URL or marking it "gap".

5. Overlap finder

Which of these URLs [paste list with titles] target the same intent? For each pair, suggest merge, redirect, or differentiate.

6. Thin pillar check

From this coverage table [paste], list pillars with fewer than three live cluster pages and the clusters to add first.

Link and prioritize

7. Internal link plan

For this map [paste], plan internal links: clusters link up to their pillar, pillars link down to clusters, plus the two most useful sideways links per page.

8. Writing order

I can write [number] pages a month and my goal is [business goal]. Order these gaps [list] and explain each choice in one line.

9. Use my real data

Here is my Search Console query export [paste]. Map each query to a topic in my topical map [paste] and flag queries with no matching page.

Turn it into pages

10. Pillar page outline

Outline a pillar page for [pillar]: the sections, the cluster pages it should link to [list], and the questions it should answer near the top.

11. Cluster page brief

Write a short brief for a cluster page on [subtopic]: reader, intent, the answer to give in the first two sentences, sections, and the pillar it links to.

12. Map review

Review this topical map [paste] as a strict editor: missing subtopics, topics outside [scope], and any two pages that would compete with each other.

Build the whole map in one prompt

The flagship Topical Map Prompt: Hub and Spoke Plan From Your URLs takes your seed topic, existing URLs, real query data, business goal, topics to skip, and monthly capacity. It returns the map, a coverage table, overlap fixes, an internal link plan, a writing order, and data notes that never invent volumes. Its home espresso example merges two pages about sour espresso into one.

Tips for a ChatGPT topical map

Always paste your real URL list so the map builds on what you have. Treat any search volume the AI mentions as a guess and replace it with data from your own tools. A good map stays focused on what your audience needs and what your site can credibly cover; there is no fixed number of pages that guarantees rankings.

Related prompts

Plan content in more depth with the SEO topic cluster content planner, then wire the pages together with ChatGPT prompts for internal linking. To find topics, read ChatGPT prompts for SEO keyword research, and to write each page, use the SEO content brief and blog outline builder.

When you write each page, use ChatGPT prompts for SEO content writing.

Find more in the SEO category, look through Browse, or post your own on Share.