Ghost Integration

Connect your Ghost blog to Forest SEO for automated content publishing. Ghost integration supports two authentication methods for maximum flexibility.

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✅ Prerequisites

Before starting, ensure you have:

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🔐 Authentication Methods

Ghost supports two authentication methods:

Method 1: Admin API Key ⭐ Recommended

Format: {id}:{secret}

Example: 63af31d6d5e60cf73bf6730e:a7c4f3e8b2d9a1e6c5f7d8e9a2b3c4d5e6f7a8b9c0d1e2f3a4b5c6d7e8f9a0b1

How to Get:

1. Login to Ghost admin panel
2. Go to Settings → Integrations
3. Click + Add custom integration
4. Name it "Forest SEO"
5. Copy the Admin API Key (24 hex chars, colon, 64 hex chars)

Method 2: Staff Access Token

Format: JWT token (three base64url parts separated by dots)

When to Use:

• For user-based authentication
• When you need user-specific permissions
• For multi-author workflows

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🚀 Setup Guide

Step 1: Create Custom Integration in Ghost

Detailed Steps:

1. Access Ghost Admin

   • Navigate to https://yourblog.com/ghost/
   • Login with administrator credentials

2. Create Integration

   • Click Settings (gear icon in sidebar)
   • Select Integrations tab
   • Click + Add custom integration button
   • Enter name: "Forest SEO"
   • Click Create

3. Copy Credentials

   • Admin API Key — The key in format id:secret (you'll need this)
   • API URL — Your Ghost API endpoint (automatically detected from Admin URL)
   • Content API Key — Not needed for Forest SEO (read-only)

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Step 2: Connect in Forest SEO

In Forest SEO Dashboard:

1. Navigate to Settings → Integrations

2. Click "Add Integration"

3. Select "Ghost"

4. Fill in connection details:

5. Click "Test Connection" to verify
6. If successful, click "Save Integration"

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⚙️ How It Works

API Key Format Validation

Forest SEO validates your API key format:

Admin API Key: Must match pattern [24 hex chars]:[64 hex chars]

63af31d6d5e60cf73bf6730e:a7c4f3e8b2d9a1e6c5f7d8e9a2b3c4d5e6f7a8b9c0d1e2f3a4b5c6d7e8f9a0b1
├─────────────┬─────────────┘ └──────────────────────┬──────────────────────┘
     24 hex chars                        64 hex chars

Staff Access Token: Must be valid JWT format (three parts separated by dots)

eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJzdWIiOiIxMjM0NTY3ODkwIiwibmFtZSI6IkpvaG4gRG9lIiwiaWF0IjoxNTE2MjM5MDIyfQ.SflKxwRJSMeKKF2QT4fwpMeJf36POk6yJV_adQssw5c
├─────────────┬─────────────┘ └────────────┬────────────┘ └──────────┬──────────┘
     Header                      Payload                    Signature

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📝 Content Publishing

Content Mapping

Forest SEO maps content to Ghost fields automatically:

Supported Content Types

Rich Content:

• ✅ HTML content
• ✅ Markdown formatting
• ✅ Images with captions
• ✅ Code blocks
• ✅ Embedded media

Ghost Cards:

• ✅ Image cards
• ✅ Markdown cards
• ✅ HTML cards
• ✅ Bookmark cards

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🧪 Testing Your Integration

Connection Test

Test Checklist:

1. Click "Test Connection" in integration settings
2. Verify:
   • Admin URL is correct
   • API key format is valid
   • Ghost API is reachable
   • Write permissions granted
3. Review test results
4. Fix any issues
5. Save integration

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Test Publish

Steps:

1. In Forest SEO, select an article
2. Click "Publish" → "Ghost"
3. Set status to "draft"
4. Click "Publish Now"
5. Wait for confirmation
6. Check Ghost Admin:
   • Navigate to Posts section
   • Find the published draft
   • Verify all content fields
   • Check images uploaded correctly
   • Review tags and metadata

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🔧 Troubleshooting

Common Issues

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401 Unauthorized

Problem: Authentication fails

Causes:

• Invalid Admin API Key
• Key was regenerated in Ghost
• Wrong key format

Solutions:

1. Regenerate Key:

   • Go to Ghost Settings → Integrations
   • Delete old "Forest SEO" integration
   • Create new integration
   • Copy new Admin API Key

2. Verify Format:

   • Key should be 24hexchars:64hexchars
   • Contains exactly one colon (:)
   • Only lowercase hex characters (0-9, a-f)

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404 Not Found

Problem: Ghost API endpoint not found

Causes:

• Incorrect Admin URL
• Ghost instance not running
• Network issues

Solutions:

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Invalid API Key Format

Problem: "Invalid API key format" error

Expected Formats:

Admin API Key:

Pattern: /^[a-f0-9]{24}:[a-f0-9]{64}$/
Example: 63af31d6d5e60cf73bf6730e:a7c4f3e8b2d9a1e6c5f7d8e9a2b3c4d5e6f7a8b9c0d1e2f3a4b5c6d7e8f9a0b1

Staff Access Token:

Pattern: JWT with 3 parts separated by dots
Example: eyJhbGciOi...{payload}...{signature}

Debugging:

1. Check for extra spaces
2. Verify colon position (if Admin API Key)
3. Ensure entire key was copied
4. Try regenerating the key

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📚 Ghost-Specific Features

Content Features

Featured Posts:

• Mark posts as featured in Ghost
• Appear in featured section
• Controlled via Ghost settings

Internal Tags:

• Use tags starting with # for organization
• #forest-seo — Identify auto-generated content
• #review-needed — Flag for editorial review
• Internal tags don't appear publicly

Visibility Options:

• Public — Visible to everyone
• Members — Free members and above
• Paid — Paid subscribers only

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🔗 Integration with Features

With Content Generation

• Generate AI content
• Publish as draft or public
• Auto-create tags

Learn more about Content →

With Schedules

• Automate publishing
• Batch operations
• Scale to 100+ posts/month

Learn more about Schedules →

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📚 Resources

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💡 Best Practices

API Key Security

• Never share your Admin API Key
• Regenerate keys if compromised
• Use separate integrations for different projects
• Monitor usage in Ghost analytics

Content Publishing

• Test first with draft status
• Review content before publishing
• Use tags for organization
• Set featured images for better engagement

Monitoring

• Check sync status regularly
• Review failed publications in Forest SEO
• Monitor Ghost for published content
• Track performance with Ghost analytics