=== SEO Mason Bridge ===
Contributors: seomason
Tags: seo, publishing, rest-api, automation
Requires at least: 6.0
Tested up to: 7.0
Requires PHP: 7.4
Stable tag: 1.0.13
License: GPLv2 or later
License URI: https://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-2.0.html

Publish SEO Mason articles directly to WordPress with secure site connection, media handling, and SEO metadata support.

== Description ==

SEO Mason Bridge connects your WordPress site to SEO Mason so approved articles can be published directly into WordPress. It is built for site owners and teams who manage content in SEO Mason and want a reliable way to send finished articles, images, categories, tags, and SEO details to their WordPress site.

The plugin works as a secure publishing bridge. It does not generate content inside WordPress and it does not require sharing a WordPress administrator password with SEO Mason. A site administrator connects the site with a one-time connection key, chooses which local WordPress user should publish content, and can test the connection from the WordPress admin area.

= Features =

* Direct WordPress publishing - Create or update posts from approved SEO Mason content.
* Secure site connection - Connect with a one-time bridge key instead of WordPress account credentials.
* Author control - Choose the WordPress user that published articles should use.
* WordPress block support - Publish article content as WordPress blocks by default, with an HTML compatibility option.
* Media handling - Save SEO Mason article images to the WordPress media library and place them in the article.
* Categories and tags - Apply WordPress categories, tags, and slugs from the publishing workflow.
* SEO metadata support - Save article SEO details and work alongside supported SEO plugins where available.
* Multilingual publishing support - Accept language metadata for sites that use compatible multilingual workflows.
* Admin connection tools - View connection status, run a test connection, disconnect, or regenerate the bridge connection.

= How It Works =

1. Create or open your site connection in SEO Mason.
2. Install and activate SEO Mason Bridge in WordPress.
3. Open Settings, SEO Mason Bridge.
4. Paste the one-time connection key from SEO Mason.
5. Choose the WordPress user articles should publish as.
6. Run Test connection.
7. Publish approved content from SEO Mason to WordPress.

SEO Mason sends content to this plugin only after the site has been connected and an authorized publishing action is performed from SEO Mason.

== Installation ==

1. Install SEO Mason Bridge from the WordPress plugin directory, or upload the plugin zip from SEO Mason.
2. Activate the plugin.
3. In WordPress admin, open Settings, SEO Mason Bridge.
4. Paste the one-time connection key from SEO Mason.
5. Choose the existing WordPress user articles should publish as.
6. Run Test connection.
7. Return to SEO Mason and publish approved content to this WordPress site.

== Frequently Asked Questions ==

= Does this plugin generate articles by itself? =

No. SEO Mason Bridge only connects WordPress to SEO Mason and saves approved content in WordPress. Article planning, generation, review, and publishing choices happen in SEO Mason.

= Does this plugin send data to SEO Mason? =

No. The plugin does not make outbound requests to SEO Mason. SEO Mason sends secure publishing requests to this site's WordPress REST API only after an administrator connects the site.

= Can I disconnect SEO Mason? =

Yes. Open Settings, SEO Mason Bridge, then use Disconnect or uninstall the plugin.

= Do I need an SEO Mason account? =

Yes. An SEO Mason account is required to create the connection key and use the publishing service.

= Can I choose who appears as the author? =

Yes. A WordPress administrator chooses an existing local WordPress user during setup. Published articles use that selected user for authorship.

== Security Notes ==

SEO Mason Bridge is designed so you do not need to share WordPress account credentials with SEO Mason.

Protected publishing requests are verified before content is saved. The plugin also checks that a valid publish user has been selected and that the selected user has the required WordPress permissions.

Saved connection secrets are not displayed again after setup.

== External services ==

This plugin connects WordPress to the SEO Mason service at https://seomason.com/. SEO Mason is a separate SaaS platform used to plan, create, manage, and publish SEO content. An SEO Mason account is required to generate the connection key and use the publishing service.

The plugin does not send outbound requests to SEO Mason. After an administrator installs the plugin and pastes a connection key from SEO Mason, the SEO Mason service can send secure HTTPS requests to this site's WordPress REST API when the site owner chooses to test the connection or publish content.

Those requests may include article titles, slugs, excerpts, article content, category choices, tag names, image files, image details, structured data, language details, and SEO metadata. The plugin validates the request and creates or updates WordPress content locally using WordPress APIs.

SEO Mason terms and privacy information are available at https://seomason.com/terms and https://seomason.com/privacy.

== Privacy ==

This plugin stores connection details, publish-user settings, publishing format preferences, and recent publish status in this WordPress site's database.

The plugin does not track visitors, does not add analytics scripts, does not place front-end tracking cookies, and does not send outbound requests to SEO Mason.

After connection, SEO Mason may send publishing requests to this WordPress site that contain content needed for publishing, including article text, metadata, taxonomy choices, image data, image metadata, and language metadata. The plugin validates those requests and stores the resulting WordPress posts, post meta, taxonomy terms, and media attachments locally.

Uninstalling the plugin removes the plugin's stored connection options and transient nonce/idempotency records. It does not delete published posts, pages, media attachments, post meta, categories, or tags that were created through normal WordPress publishing APIs.

== Changelog ==

= 1.0.13 =
Prevents duplicate header images by using the WordPress featured image thumbnail without adding a second body header image.

= 1.0.12 =
Improves featured image display so SEO Mason images stay visible in the article and fit the content area more naturally.
Makes image handling more reliable when an article includes more than one SEO Mason visual.

= 1.0.11 =
Publishes new article content as WordPress blocks by default for a cleaner editing experience.
Adds a setting to use the older HTML publishing format when a site needs it for theme or editor compatibility.

= 1.0.10 =
Improves how featured images are saved, displayed in the article, and connected to the WordPress media library.
Helps republished articles keep their SEO Mason images in the right places.

= 1.0.9 =
Adds secure post lookup support so SEO Mason can confirm a published post title and URL after publishing.

= 1.0.8 =
Reuses existing SEO Mason media on repeat publishes to reduce duplicate uploads.
Improves infographic placement when an article is updated.

= 1.0.7 =
Adds the SEO Mason infographic to the article body when there is not already a clear image location.

= 1.0.6 =
Adds extra content cleanup before saving articles to WordPress.

= 1.0.5 =
Adds secure discovery of published posts and pages so connected sites can be matched more easily in SEO Mason.

= 1.0.4 =
Improves structured data compatibility with popular WordPress SEO plugins.
Improves image handling for SEO Mason article visuals.

= 1.0.3 =
Improves publishing reliability, media uploads, multilingual site support, and SEO plugin compatibility.

= 1.0.2 =
Simplifies connection status details in the WordPress admin area.

= 1.0.1 =
Adds a Settings link from the Plugins screen.
Opens the SEO Mason Bridge settings page after activation so setup is easier to find.

= 1.0.0 =
Initial public release of SEO Mason Bridge.
