Guide · Agent skill
How to use the Article date markup audit agent skill
Updated · written with AI from the project's own documentation and checked against our catalogue data
The content-dates skill is an agent skill that tells an AI agent how to check article and blog pages for dates shown to readers and for machine-readable date data such as JSON-LD and Open Graph tags. Once installed, it lets the agent review templates, generate Article markup, and advise on keeping the modified date accurate. This guide explains what the skill does, how to install it, how to ask for it, and where to be careful.
Article date markup auditthedaviddias/Front-End-Checklist · MIT Download the skill Quick start
- 1Download the ZIP. Get the content-dates skill ZIP from the page where you found it.
- 2Unzip into a skills folder. Extract it into ~/.claude/skills/ for personal use or into a project's .claude/skills/ folder.
- 3Or upload in the Claude apps. In the Claude apps, go to Settings → Capabilities → Skills and upload the skill.
- 4Ask in plain language. Describe your task, such as auditing an article template or generating Article JSON-LD.
- 5Review the output. Check the agent's findings and generated markup against your own page and CMS before publishing.
What the content-dates skill makes the agent do
The skill is a checklist-style guide for article and blog pages. It tells the agent to check three things: whether a visible published date appears in the page body or byline, whether the Article or BlogPosting JSON-LD block includes datePublished and dateModified in ISO 8601 format, and whether the head includes article:published_time and article:modified_time Open Graph tags.
The skill also gives example code for fixing gaps and advises ensuring your CMS or build system updates dateModified automatically on content saves. It explains what to look for and provides examples; it does not run tools against your site.
- Checks visible publication dates in the byline or body
- Checks Article or BlogPosting JSON-LD for datePublished and dateModified
- Checks Open Graph article time tags in the head
- Generates example markup and advises on CMS date behaviour
Install the content-dates skill
Download the ZIP for the skill from the page where you found it. Then either unzip it into your personal skills folder, ~/.claude/skills/, or into a project's .claude/skills/ folder so it applies only to that project.
If you use the Claude apps, you can instead upload the skill under Settings → Capabilities → Skills.
- Personal: unzip into ~/.claude/skills/
- Per project: unzip into the project's .claude/skills/ folder
- Claude apps: Settings → Capabilities → Skills, then upload
Trigger the skill with natural requests
You do not need a special command. The skill's description tells the agent when to use it, so ask in plain language about the task. The skill applies when you are auditing article or blog pages for date markup, generating Article JSON-LD with datePublished and dateModified, or checking whether a CMS template surfaces dates correctly.
- Audit this article template for missing date markup
- Generate Article JSON-LD with datePublished and dateModified for this post
- Check whether our blog template shows the correct publish and update dates
- Add Open Graph article:published_time and article:modified_time tags to this page
Example: auditing an article page
Give the agent the HTML of an article page or a path to your template. The source includes a before-and-after case: an article that only says 'Last updated March 2024' has no machine-readable date, while the corrected version wraps the visible date in a time element with a datetime attribute.
The skill's example of a correct visible date looks like this:
<article>
<h1>How to Optimise Core Web Vitals</h1>
<p>Published <time datetime="2024-03-15">March 15, 2024</time>
· Updated <time datetime="2024-11-20">November 20, 2024</time></p>
</article>Keep the modified date honest
The skill is clear that dateModified should change only when content meaningfully changes. Updating it for trivial edits misleads readers and search engines. Ask the agent to review how your CMS sets dateModified so it updates on real content saves rather than on every deploy.
- Update dateModified for substantive content changes
- Do not update it for typo fixes or cosmetic tweaks
- Confirm it changes on content saves, not on every deploy
Safety notes: scripts and network
According to the skill's listing, it does not run scripts and does not use the network. It requires nothing beyond the agent and the files in the skill folder. Because it is guidance, any code the agent writes for your site should be reviewed and tested before you deploy it.
- Runs scripts: no
- Uses network: no
- Requires: nothing listed
What people use it for
- Reviewing a blog template for missing visible publication dates
- Generating Article JSON-LD with datePublished and dateModified for a news post
- Adding Open Graph article time tags to a static site's article layout
- Checking whether a CMS shows the correct update date after an edit
Frequently asked questions
What is the content-dates skill?
It is an agent skill for auditing article and blog pages for date markup. It covers visible dates, Article JSON-LD with datePublished and dateModified, and Open Graph article time tags. It explains what to check and gives example code.
How do I install the content-dates skill?
Download the ZIP and unzip it into ~/.claude/skills/ for personal use or into a project's .claude/skills/ folder. In the Claude apps, you can upload it under Settings → Capabilities → Skills.
Does the skill need anything else installed?
The listing states that it requires nothing. It does not run scripts and does not use the network.
Is the content-dates skill free?
It is released under the MIT licence, as listed on the page. Check the licence file in the repository for the full terms.
Will this skill improve my rankings?
Not guaranteed. The skill explains that dates help search engines show correct publication and update dates, and that freshness matters for time-sensitive queries. Its claims about ranking are general and not verified by the files.
Can I use a different tool instead?
Yes. You can review article templates manually using the checklist in the skill, or use other SEO audit tools. This skill is a guide for the agent, not an automated site crawler.
New agent skills, repos and AI tools — every week
The best new skills and open-source projects, the fastest-growing repos, and one free prompt. Five minutes to read. Unsubscribe anytime.
Our verdict
This skill suits site owners, SEO staff and front-end developers who work on blog or news article templates and want consistent visible and machine-readable dates. It is a poor fit for sites without article content, or for anyone who plans to bump the modified date on trivial edits. Treat it as a checklist and code generator, and verify the output on your own pages.
Download the skill