You can turn Hermes Agent into a WordPress workbench by connecting it to your website through SSH or the WordPress REST API. With the right connections configured, Hermes can review traffic, update internal links, fix SEO details, and send an article from Notion to WordPress as an unpublished draft. In this demonstration, I used it to make real changes to my website and record the completed work in a spreadsheet.
An SEO audit gives you a list of things to fix. Then you have to find the articles, open WordPress, make the edits, check the pages, and remember to update the spreadsheet. That is usually where the smaller jobs start piling up.
I wanted to handle that work from the same place I use for research and writing. In this walkthrough, Hermes connects to my WordPress site, pulls traffic information, adds internal links, corrects an SEO title and missing author information, and uploads a sample article as a draft.
I use Codex through my existing subscription for this workflow. If you have not connected that account yet, my guide to using Codex inside Hermes Agent covers that part separately.
In this article, you will learn how to use the same approach:
- Connect your website through SSH, an API, or browser control.
- Use traffic reports to choose relevant articles for internal links.
- Check the saved pages instead of relying only on the agent's summary.
- Correct specific SEO details without rewriting the whole article.
- Move an article from Notion into WordPress and keep a record of the changes.
This is for people who already manage a WordPress website and want less manual work between deciding on an update and making it.
From the demonstration: I asked Hermes to list my five most recently published blog posts before asking it to change anything. Reading real information from the site is a useful first test of the connection.
Start with the audit, then choose what to fix
Give Hermes a specific task from your audit rather than asking it to improve the whole website at once.
My audit brings several checks together, including blog content, search performance, internal links, metadata, and information that search engines can read from the page. The findings go into a spreadsheet so I can choose the work and track what has been done. These are skills I developed for my setup, not a standard audit that every fresh Hermes installation already contains.
For this session, I focused on links between existing articles, a shorter SEO title, and missing author information. I also demonstrated uploading a draft. Other recommendations, such as sitemap issues, were part of the report but were not all completed in the video.
I deliberately left one recommendation about an animated image alone because I wanted to keep the image. That does not make page speed irrelevant. It means an audit is a set of recommendations, and I still decide which changes belong on my website.
Choose a connection for your WordPress workbench
The connection determines what Hermes can actually do. There are three approaches worth considering, and they do not all provide the same access.
SSH gives Hermes access to website commands
SSH is an encrypted connection to the computer that hosts your website. Combined with WP-CLI, the tool for managing WordPress through written commands, it lets Hermes read posts and make changes without clicking through the dashboard.
This is the approach I used in the demonstration. It is convenient when the task involves reading existing content, updating selected fields, and checking the saved result.
SSH does not automatically mean unrestricted administrator access to the entire server. Its reach depends on the account and the hosting provider. On managed hosting, that account may have access to your website without control over the whole machine.
The REST API can provide more limited access
The REST API is a way for software to request information from WordPress or send it changes. WordPress already includes this API, so you do not necessarily need a custom plugin to create or edit a post.
A common setup uses a dedicated WordPress account and an application password, a separate credential for the integration. The account's permissions still matter. WordPress documents this in its guide to authenticating requests to the REST API.
A developer can add restrictions, such as rejecting deletion requests or allowing only draft creation. Those restrictions need to be implemented and tested on the website. They are not the same as putting a sentence in a Hermes skill that says not to delete anything. If Hermes also has broader SSH access or another administrator credential, a restriction on one API connection does not limit those other connections.
Browser control works through the dashboard
Browser control lets Hermes use the website through its interface, including opening pages and clicking controls. It can be useful when a task is only available in a plugin's settings screen.
For the content changes in this walkthrough, I prefer a direct connection. It avoids having to navigate the dashboard for every edit. Browser control remains another option rather than the only way to manage the site.
| Connection | How it works | What to check first |
|---|---|---|
| SSH with WP-CLI | Hermes runs WordPress commands through the hosting account. | Confirm that your host supports both tools and understand the account's access. |
| WordPress REST API | Hermes reads or changes content through authenticated requests. | Use an appropriate account and test any restrictions you need. |
| Browser control | Hermes works through the website's interface. | Confirm that it is signed into the correct site and can complete the required task. |
Set up and test your WordPress connection
For the SSH approach, start with your hosting provider's instructions. My website uses WordPress.com, whose documentation covers both enabling SSH for your website and creating and attaching an SSH key.
On WordPress.com, SSH is available with the supported Business and Commerce plans. Other hosts have their own requirements. Check that before starting, because installing Hermes does not add SSH support to a hosting plan that lacks it.
The setup follows this sequence:
- Confirm that your website has a current backup and that you know how to restore it.
- Check whether you already have a suitable SSH key. Do not overwrite an existing key just to follow a tutorial.
- Create a key pair if needed. The private key stays on the computer running Hermes; only the public key goes to the host.
- Register the public key and attach it to the intended website. On WordPress.com, the site connection is managed under Settings, then SFTP/SSH, in the Hosting Dashboard.
- Test by reading the website address and recent posts before requesting any edits.
You can ask Hermes to help with the setup, but do not paste private keys or passwords into a chat. Keep them out of screenshots and recordings, too.
The prompts below are examples you can adapt, not word-for-word transcripts of everything typed in the video.
Confirm the SSH connection to my WordPress website. Report the website address and list the five most recently published posts with their titles and URLs. Do not make any changes.Use traffic data to choose the articles
Look at which pages already receive attention before deciding where to add links to newer work.
In the session, I requested the last 28 days of traffic. Hermes retrieved information from Jetpack and also pulled Google Search Console data. That gave me existing pages to consider as sources for links to my latest posts.
These reports answer different questions. Jetpack records page views on the website. Search Console reports performance in Google Search, including clicks, impressions, search queries, and average position. A page view in Jetpack is not the same thing as a search click, so keep the source and date range attached to the numbers.
The Google Search Console reporting walkthrough covers that connection in more detail. It requires its own authorization. An SSH key for WordPress does not also grant access to your Google account or Notion workspace.
For internal linking, the useful comparison is simple: which established articles cover a subject related to the newer posts? Traffic helps choose where to look, but the content still has to fit.
Add relevant internal links and inspect the result
Ask Hermes to read both articles before deciding where a link belongs. The goal is to give a reader a useful next step, not to attach every new post to every popular page.
I asked it to compare the pages receiving views with my latest five blog posts and to check the homepage as well. It could add a sentence or two where that made the connection natural.
Hermes reported adding 12 internal links across five pages. I then opened the Codex walkthrough and checked the new passages and their destinations myself. One addition connected the discussion of writing with agents to the newer guide about building a writing team.
That distinction matters. The agent's report tells you what it says it changed. Opening the page lets you inspect what a visitor actually sees.
For your own website, you could use a prompt like this:
Read my five latest posts and the five pages with the most views in the selected report. Suggest internal links only where the subjects are related. Show the source page, destination URL, and exact sentence you want to add. Check the homepage separately. Wait for approval before editing, and preserve the original content.After the approved edits, ask for a second check:
Read back each changed page. Confirm that every new link points to the intended destination, the destination opens successfully, and the surrounding sentence still makes sense. Give me the URLs so I can inspect the pages.A newly published article is not automatically an orphan page. That term means a page has no incoming internal links. Check the existing links before making that diagnosis. Either way, relevant links can help visitors find newer articles without a complete rewrite of older posts.
Fix the SEO title and missing author information
The next job was to correct specific details from the audit, not rewrite healthy content across the site.
For the mixture-of-agents tutorial, I shortened the SEO title to "Hermes Mixture of Agents: Two Models, One Better Answer." This is the title supplied for search and browser use, which can differ from the visible heading above the article. The change was an editorial cleanup, not a promise of better rankings.
When requesting that kind of edit, name the field precisely. Changing an SEO title should not also mean changing the URL, rewriting the introduction, or replacing the meta description unless you asked for those changes.
The other issue was missing author information in the structured data, also called schema. This is information in the page's code that describes the article, its author, and other details in a consistent format.
In the demonstration, Hermes checked Yoast, the SEO plugin, and addressed blank author data on the Skill Deck search article and the SEO landing-page article. Both published pages now identify Jason Pollak in their Article author data.
Google's guidance on author information in Article structured data recommends identifying the author and providing a page that helps distinguish that person. This does not replace the visible article or guarantee visibility in search or AI answers. It makes the information about the article more complete.
For a similar correction, have Hermes check the assigned WordPress author, the author's public profile, and the SEO plugin's output. Fix the source of the missing information rather than adding a second, conflicting author description over it.
Send the Notion article to WordPress as a draft
Once the content is ready to review, give Hermes the direct Notion link and ask it to create an unpublished WordPress post.
That is how I finished the demonstration. I already had a short sample article under the video plan in Notion. Hermes retrieved that article and uploaded it to WordPress after I confirmed the request.
The result was a saved draft, not a publicly published article. The distinction is worth stating explicitly in the prompt:
Read the sample article at this Notion link. Create one new WordPress post with its status set to draft. Preserve the headings and links. Do not publish it, replace an existing post, or change other pages. Return the post ID, saved status, and editor or preview link.The Notion connection must already be authorized to read that page. A direct link identifies the article; it does not replace permission to access it.
Open the editor or authenticated preview afterward. Check that the title, paragraphs, headings, and links arrived correctly before making any separate decision about publication.
Keep the spreadsheet and the website in agreement
Have Hermes record the actual changes in the same spreadsheet you use to manage the audit.
During the walkthrough, I asked it to add the internal-link work and the SEO corrections to my priority-fixes workbook. I then opened the spreadsheet to check that the completed work had been recorded. That gives me a way to distinguish a recommendation from something that has already been done.
A useful record names the page, explains the change, includes the date, and says how the result was checked. For recurring tasks, also record the source of any traffic numbers and the reporting period.
Hermes was able to find my existing workbook because it could access my local files and had context about the project. For a new setup, provide the project folder and exact filename instead of assuming the agent already knows where everything belongs.
Save the process as a skill before automating it
A WordPress workbench becomes more useful when the instructions for the website are saved and reusable.
A skill can explain which website you mean, how to connect, where the audit workbook lives, and what checks to perform after an edit. It can also state your working rules, such as creating drafts instead of publishing and asking before changing live content. Those instructions guide the agent; account permissions provide the actual technical limits on its access.
A possible next step is a recurring check that compares new articles with established pages and proposes relevant links. I discussed that in the video, but did not build the recurring automation during this demonstration. Start with a report you review before allowing a scheduled job to edit published pages.
The same setup can fit into a larger content process. My guide to editing videos with Hermes Agent covers preparing the recording. The transcript can then become the source for the blog, while Notion holds the draft and the local project folder holds the supporting files. Those additional connections need their own setup; the WordPress key is only one part.
Start with one change you can check
Begin by reading the latest posts, then choose one relevant link or save one unpublished article. Once you can see the result in WordPress and record what happened, expand the process to the other tasks you repeat.
That is what makes this useful to me. I can use the audit to choose the work, ask Hermes to carry it out, and inspect the website without manually rebuilding the whole process for every small edit.
If you want help connecting content production with website maintenance, you can explore my AI and marketing automation services.
Frequently asked questions
Can I use this with a host other than WordPress.com?
Yes, if your host supports the connection you choose. For the SSH approach, check for both SSH and WP-CLI support; the WordPress REST API is another option when SSH is unavailable. Follow your provider's instructions because its access settings may differ from WordPress.com's.
Do I need to use Codex for this workflow?
No. You need a model in Hermes that can use the required tools and reliably complete the work. I used Codex in this demonstration, but the choice of model does not replace the need for correct website permissions, backups, and verification.
Can I remove access after the work is finished?
Yes. You can detach the SSH key from the website or revoke the application password used by an API connection. Remove any other authorized route separately, because disabling one connection does not automatically disable the others.
About Jason Pollak
Jason Pollak is a marketing strategist with over 10 years of experience building campaigns for entertainment brands, artists, and businesses across music, film, television, eCommerce, and B2B SaaS. As Director of Marketing at Young Money Entertainment, he grew Lil Wayne's Facebook following from 10 million to 50 million and managed over 60 million followers across the roster. He also served as Paid Media Director at Horizon Media, launching major TV shows for History Channel, A&E, WWE, and Lifetime, and led film marketing for Utopia Distribution, generating over $10 million in revenue on a $200K media spend. Jason specializes in paid media, organic social strategy, email automation, SEO, content development, and AI-driven marketing systems. He holds a BA in English Literature from Binghamton University and a master's degree in Media Studies from Brooklyn College. Learn more at Jason Pollak Marketing.