Setup Guide

GET TRAFFICFORGE
LIVE IN UNDER 30 MINUTES

This guide walks you through every step of TrafficForge setup — from getting your API key to publishing your first SEO pages live on Google. You need one API key and one DNS record. TrafficForge hosts everything else.

~25 minTotal setup time

0Technical experience needed

$0Platform hosting cost

~$5/moMax AI API cost (heavy use)

✨New, simpler setup. TrafficForge now hosts your generated pages for you. You no longer create a GitHub repository or a Cloudflare Pages project — those steps are gone entirely. You point one subdomain at us with a single DNS record, and we handle hosting, SSL and deployment. If you set up on the older self-hosted flow, see the FAQ — nothing you already published changes.

Before You Start

Requirements

Two accounts, both free, plus access to wherever your domain's DNS is managed. There is no GitHub account and no Cloudflare account to create — TrafficForge hosts your pages on its own infrastructure.

What You Need	Cost	What It's For	Where
Google / Gmail account	Free	Gemini API key + Search Console	accounts.google.com
A domain you own	Already yours	Your pages live on a subdomain of it	Your registrar
DNS access for that domain	Free	Adding one CNAME record	Registrar or DNS host

💡Your existing website is not affected. Your pages go on a subdomain (like listings.yoursite.com). Your main site stays exactly where it is, on whatever platform it already runs.

Step 1 of 5 · ~5 minutes

Get Your AI API Key

TrafficForge uses AI to write your SEO pages. You supply your own API key — you pay the AI provider directly at their standard rates with zero markup. Most users spend $1–5/month total.

Recommended Option A — Google Gemini (Free Tier)

Google's free tier is generous enough for most users to never pay anything.

Go to Google AI StudioVisit aistudio.google.com/apikey and sign in with your Google account.
Click "Create API Key"Select "Create API key in new project" — Google sets everything up automatically.
Copy your keyIt starts with AIza. Copy it now — you won't see it again in full.
Paste into TrafficForge SettingsOpen TrafficForge → Settings → paste in the AI API Key field.

Option B — OpenAI (GPT-4o Mini)

Slightly different writing style, requires a payment method up front.

Go to OpenAI PlatformVisit platform.openai.com/api-keys.
Add a payment methodGo to Billing → Add payment method. Add $10 as a starting credit.
Create a new API keyClick "Create new secret key". Name it "TrafficForge". Copy it immediately — OpenAI only shows it once. Key starts with sk-.
Paste into TrafficForge SettingsOpen TrafficForge → Settings → paste in the AI API Key field.

Step 2 of 5 · ~5 minutes

Connect Your Domain

One DNS record is the entire hosting setup. You pick a subdomain of your own domain, point it at TrafficForge, and we serve your pages from it with SSL included.

Choose Your Subdomain

Pick any label you like. There is no fixed convention and nothing about the name affects how your pages work:

Example	Reads well for
`listings.yourdomain.com`	Service and location pages
`pages.yourdomain.com`	General purpose
`blog.yourdomain.com`	Article-led content
`seo.yourdomain.com`	Keeping it obviously separate
`www.yourdomain.com`	Only if your main site isn't already there

⚠️A bare domain won't work. You cannot point yourdomain.com itself (with no prefix) at TrafficForge. That is a DNS rule, not a TrafficForge limitation — a domain's root record can't be a CNAME. Pick any subdomain instead. If you want the bare domain to lead people to your pages, most registrars offer a one-click redirect from yourdomain.com to your chosen subdomain.

Add the CNAME Record

Go to wherever your domain's DNS is managed — your registrar (Namecheap, GoDaddy, Google Domains) or your DNS host (Cloudflare, Route 53) — and add one record:

Field	Value
Type	`CNAME`
Name / Host	Your chosen label, e.g. `listings`
Target / Value / Points to	`connect.trafficforge.app`
TTL	Automatic (or 3600)
Proxy status	DNS only, if your DNS host asks

ℹ️The target is the same for every customer: connect.trafficforge.app. You don't need a personalised hostname, and there is nothing to copy from a dashboard. Enter the label only (listings), not the full domain — most DNS panels add your domain automatically.

Verify in TrafficForge

Open TrafficForge → Settings → DomainEnter the full subdomain you just created, e.g. listings.yourdomain.com.
Click "Connect Domain"TrafficForge registers the hostname and requests an SSL certificate for it automatically.
Wait for the status to turn greenUsually under 5 minutes. DNS changes can take up to an hour to reach everyone, occasionally longer at some registrars.
Visit your subdomainOnce the status is active, https://listings.yourdomain.com loads over HTTPS. Certificates are issued and renewed automatically — there is nothing to install or renew.

Step 3 of 5 · ~5 minutes

Configure TrafficForge Settings

Fill in your business details. This is what the AI uses to write accurate pages — the more specific you are, the less generic your pages read.

Site Info

Field	Example
AI API Key	`AIza...` or `sk-...`
Site Name	Acme Plumbing
Site URL	https://listings.yourdomain.com
Niche / Industry	plumbing services, Dallas TX
Tagline	Dallas's Most Trusted Plumbers
Phone / Email / Address	Your business contact info

ℹ️No GitHub token or repo field any more. Earlier versions of TrafficForge asked for a GitHub Personal Access Token and a repository name so it could push pages to a repo you owned. Pages now publish straight to TrafficForge hosting, so those fields are gone. If you're on the older self-hosted setup, your existing repo keeps working — see the FAQ.

Agency: Multiple Client Sites

On the Agency plan, repeat steps 2 and 3 for each client. Every site gets its own subdomain, its own CNAME, its own branding and contact details, and its own page allowance. Switch the active site from the Site Manager and everything — keyword research, generation, publishing — happens in that client's context.

See Plan Limits for how many sites you can add in a month and how many pages each one gets.

Step 4 of 5 · ~5 minutes

Set Up Google Search Console

Tell Google your site exists, submit your sitemap, and monitor rankings. Without this, Google may take weeks longer to discover your pages.

Add Your Property

Go to search.google.com/search-console
Click "Add property" → URL prefixEnter your full URL: https://listings.yourdomain.com

Verify Ownership

Choose the HTML tag methodGoogle shows you a <meta name="google-site-verification" ...> tag.
Paste it into TrafficForge → Settings → Search Console VerificationTrafficForge adds it to every page it serves for you.
Click Verify in Search ConsoleGive it a minute after saving, then verify. If it fails first time, wait 60 seconds and try again.

Submit Your Sitemap

After your first pages publish, go to Search Console → Sitemaps
Enter sitemap.xml and click SubmitTrafficForge creates and updates this file automatically every time you publish.

Step 5 of 5 · ~5 minutes

Generate & Publish Your First Pages

Everything is connected. Time to generate pages and publish them live.

Research Keywords

Open the Keywords tab in TrafficForge
Enter a seed keywordThink about what your customers search right before calling you. Examples: "plumber near me Dallas", "emergency plumbing Houston", "water heater installation cost".
Click "Research Keywords"TrafficForge generates 100+ variations with volume, competition, and intent scores. These are AI pattern-based estimates, clearly labelled as such — useful for direction, not precision.
Focus on green-scored keywords firstGreen = low competition + transactional intent = fastest rankings.

Generate Pages

Select 10–20 keywordsCheck the boxes next to your best opportunities.
Click "Generate X Pages"Each page takes 5–15 seconds. TrafficForge writes a complete page: title, H1, meta, body, FAQs, and schema markup.
Check the QualityForge scoreEvery page is scored 0–100 across 16 criteria before it can go live, with a Publish / Improve / Discard recommendation. One click re-generates a weak page using the feedback as a revision prompt.

Publish

Click "🚀 Publish X Pages"Pages go live on your subdomain directly — no repo, no build step, no deploy queue.
Watch the progress"Publishing 1/15… Publishing 2/15…" — after all pages publish, TrafficForge updates your sitemap.xml automatically.
Pages are live in secondsNo action needed on your side.

Verify Pages Are Live

Visit a pageNavigate to https://listings.yourdomain.com/your-page.html
Check your sitemapVisit https://listings.yourdomain.com/sitemap.xml — your new pages should be listed.

🎉You're live. Check Google Search Console in 1–2 weeks to see impressions appearing for your keywords.

Troubleshooting

Common Issues & Fixes

DNS & CNAME Issues

Symptom	Fix
"CNAME and other data" conflict	Delete any existing A, AAAA or TXT record on that same subdomain, then add the CNAME. A subdomain can't hold a CNAME alongside other record types.
Domain still not connecting after an hour	Check the record at dnschecker.org — it must resolve to `connect.trafficforge.app`. A typo in the target is the usual cause.
You entered the full domain in the Name field	Most DNS panels want the label only (`listings`), and append your domain automatically. Entering the whole thing creates `listings.yourdomain.com.yourdomain.com`.
You tried to point the bare domain	Not supported — use a subdomain and set a registrar redirect from the bare domain to it.

Certificate Pending

Symptom	Fix
Status stuck on "pending" past 30 minutes	The certificate can't be issued until the CNAME resolves. Confirm DNS first, then click Retry in Settings → Domain.
Browser security warning	The certificate hasn't finished issuing. Wait for the green status in TrafficForge before sharing the URL.
Site loads over http but not https	Same cause — wait for issuance to complete. Nothing to install on your side.

Publishing Errors

Error	Fix
"Monthly page limit reached"	You've used this site's 300 pages for the current billing period. It resets on your billing anniversary — see Plan Limits.
"Site creation limit reached"	You've added 20 new sites this billing month. The counter resets on your billing anniversary. Deleting a site does not free a slot in the same month.
Publish button greyed out	Connect your domain first (Step 2) — pages need somewhere to publish to.
Page won't publish after scoring	QualityForge blocks pages with invented claims, doorway-page patterns or keyword stuffing. Re-generate using the feedback shown.

Search Console Issues

Issue	Fix
Verification fails with meta tag	Save the tag in TrafficForge Settings first, wait about a minute, then verify again.
Sitemap "Couldn't fetch"	Publish your first batch of pages first — the sitemap is created on first publish.
Pages showing "Discovered — not indexed"	Normal. Use URL Inspection → "Request Indexing" for your most important pages.

Reference

Plan Limits

Two limits apply. Both are stability guardrails that keep the platform fast for everyone, and both reset on your billing anniversary — the same day of the month you subscribed, not the 1st.

Limit	Value	Applies to	Resets
Pages per site	300 per month	Every plan, counted per site	Billing anniversary
New sites created	20 per month	Account-wide	Billing anniversary
Total client sites	Unlimited on Agency	Agency plan	—

⚠️Deleting a site doesn't free a slot. The site-creation counter only resets on your billing anniversary. If you're rolling out a large batch of client sites, plan it across two billing periods.

ℹ️Example: if you subscribed on the 20th, both counters reset on the 20th of each month. Pages are counted when they publish.

FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions

I set up on the old GitHub + Cloudflare Pages flow. What changes for me? +

Nothing breaks. Your repo and your Cloudflare Pages project are yours and keep serving every page you've already published. When your account moves to TrafficForge hosting we'll contact you first and walk you through it — you won't lose pages, rankings or your domain. The one thing worth knowing is that under the new model TrafficForge hosts the pages rather than you, so if owning the hosting outright matters to you, tell us before you migrate.

Do I still need a GitHub account? +

No. Not for the new setup. There's no repository to create, no Personal Access Token to generate, and no GitHub or Cloudflare fields in Settings. TrafficForge publishes your pages directly.

Can I use TrafficForge with my existing WordPress site? +

Yes. TrafficForge publishes standalone HTML pages on a subdomain — completely separate from WordPress. Your main site continues running exactly as it does. The only change to your domain is one new DNS record.

Which subdomain should I use? +

Any label you like — listings, pages, blog, seo, or www if your main site isn't already there. The name has no effect on how the pages work or rank. What you can't use is the bare domain with no prefix at all; that's a DNS restriction rather than ours.

Do I need to know how to code? +

No coding required. The only technical step is adding one DNS record, which is covered step by step above. If you can copy and paste, you can complete this setup.

Will Google penalize me for AI-generated pages? +

Google's guidelines focus on content quality and helpfulness — not how it was created. TrafficForge generates substantive pages with real business info, FAQ sections, structured schema markup, and proper meta tags, and QualityForge blocks thin or doorway-style pages before they can publish.

What happens to my pages if I cancel? +

Your domain is always yours — you control the DNS record and can point it elsewhere at any time. You can export every page you've generated as a ZIP at any point, including after cancelling, so you can host them anywhere you like. What you lose on cancellation is the ability to generate and publish new pages.

Reference

Full Cost Breakdown

Service	Cost	Notes
Page hosting	Included	TrafficForge hosts your pages — no separate hosting bill
SSL certificate	Included	Issued and renewed automatically
Google Gemini API	Free tier	~$1–3/month for 300 pages on the paid tier
OpenAI GPT-4o-mini	~$2–4/month	At 300 pages/month typical usage
Your domain	~$12/year	Paid to your registrar, as you already do
TrafficForge	$49/month	Includes everything

SETUP COMPLETE. GO BUILD.

Everything is connected. Your first pages are live. The businesses that publish consistently win the rankings game.

Open TrafficForge → Need Help?

GET TRAFFICFORGELIVE IN UNDER 30 MINUTES

Requirements

Get Your AI API Key

Recommended Option A — Google Gemini (Free Tier)

Option B — OpenAI (GPT-4o Mini)

Connect Your Domain

Choose Your Subdomain

Add the CNAME Record

Verify in TrafficForge

Configure TrafficForge Settings

Site Info

Agency: Multiple Client Sites

Set Up Google Search Console

Add Your Property

Verify Ownership

Submit Your Sitemap

Generate & Publish Your First Pages

Research Keywords

Generate Pages

Publish

Verify Pages Are Live

Common Issues & Fixes

DNS & CNAME Issues

Certificate Pending

Publishing Errors

Search Console Issues

Plan Limits

Frequently Asked Questions

Full Cost Breakdown

SETUP COMPLETE. GO BUILD.

GET TRAFFICFORGE
LIVE IN UNDER 30 MINUTES