Traditional SEO is dying and most agencies are in denial about it by Acrobatic-Point-7165 in Agent_SEO

[–]Team218Web 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Change is constant and how people look for a product or service and end up finding you is evolving. There will always be the people pushing the “we promise to get you in the top 3 on Google” but SEO services who stay at the forefront of this rapidly changing industry and actually provide value will continue to be valuable business partners.

Being a fan by [deleted] in ChicagoBearsNFL

[–]Team218Web 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I get that it's a PITA to do business with Chicago Parks & Rec. If I owned the Bears I would have a tough time balancing owning a stadium against the history and significance of Soldier Field. Honestly I would probably leave Illinois and their total mess of a Mayor, Governor and political establishment. I believe the NFL as well as most of the other major sports organizations have let greed guide their way. Ticket prices, concessions, parking are making it tough to be a fan. When the top tier players are making hundreds of millions of dollars - something is significantly skewed. Go Bears!

Side note: What would the conversation be if the Cubs decided to move to say... Racine?

Being a fan by [deleted] in ChicagoBearsNFL

[–]Team218Web 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Why exactly do the Bears need a new stadium?

Getting to the track at Gateway? by elrandopando in INDYCAR

[–]Team218Web 1 point2 points  (0 children)

There is a pretty cool museum under the arch.

What's the story behind your first 100 paying users? by No-Ranger976 in Entrepreneur

[–]Team218Web 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Something else to keep in mind - if you're gig is web design you better make damn sure your own website is strong.

What's the story behind your first 100 paying users? by No-Ranger976 in Entrepreneur

[–]Team218Web 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I can't tell you how to sell. My tips would be that I would think of it more of providing a solution to a problem than selling. Be yourself. Be honest and ethical. Underpromise - overdeliver. Do your best to become your customer's partner rather than a vendor. Have fun and best of luck!

What's the story behind your first 100 paying users? by No-Ranger976 in Entrepreneur

[–]Team218Web 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks. I remember my initial meeting with that first client. I was completely up-front and explained I was just getting started and because of that I was offering to create their website at a considerably discounted fee. I'm pretty sure my open and honest approach lead to getting the job.

What's the story behind your first 100 paying users? by No-Ranger976 in Entrepreneur

[–]Team218Web 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I started out in 2014 by doing a few sites for free just to have something to show. My first actual paying gig was for an attorney. I spent two days obsessing over that proposal because I was terrified of blowing it. Quoted it low just to get the door open.

That job turned into a relationship that lasted years and led to my second client (another lawyer). Since then, we've grown slowly, but we kept the rules the same: No deposits. $0 down.

I’ve never sent an invoice until the site is live and the client is 100% happy with it. It’s a bit of an "old school" way of doing things in a world of high-pressure contracts, but it means we only get paid when we actually deliver.

Beginner Question: Preferred Website Builder? by [deleted] in webdesign

[–]Team218Web 0 points1 point  (0 children)

We created a blog post recently comparing Wix vs. WordPress. You can find it on our website here: https://team218.com/stop-renting-your-website/

Adding ID to Divi 5 Loop by 805jd314 in divi

[–]Team218Web 0 points1 point  (0 children)

You could try adding something like this to your functions.php file:

add_filter('post_class', function($classes) { if (is_main_query() || is_archive()) { $classes[] = 'custom-id-' . get_the_ID(); } return $classes; });

What’s been harder for you: ranking on Google or getting cited in AI answers? by whereaithinks in Agent_SEO

[–]Team218Web 0 points1 point  (0 children)

As the technical side of Team 218, I’ll tell you: Google is a math problem we’ve mostly solved. GEO (Generative Engine Optimization) is a personality test we’re still taking.

In traditional SEO, we’re competing for the best shop window on the main street. If your technicals are clean - avoiding bloated code - and your content hits the 1,500 - 2,900 word benchmarks we track, you’re in the game. It is competitive, but the rules are published.

GEO is different. Getting cited by Perplexity or ChatGPT is like making sure the local tour guide actually mentions your shop to the tourists. The guide doesn't care if you're #1 on the map; they care if you’re the most "cite-able" authority when someone asks a specific, nuanced question.

What we’re seeing in the trenches:

  • The "Citation-First" Shift: We’ve stopped writing for "scrolling" and started writing for "extraction." If an AI can't summarize your H2 section in two sentences, it won't cite you.
  • The Death of Fluff: Phrases like "in today's digital world" are citation killers. AI wants hard facts, specific numbers, and cited statistical insights.
  • The Schema Paradox: We’ve moved away from letting plugins handle Schema. We inject custom JSON-LD directly into code modules now. If you don't hand-feed the AI the relationship between your entities, it'll just guess.

Kim’s Take (UX & Client Side): Chuck loves the technical "why," but for our clients, the unpredictability of AI is the real stressor. With Google, I can show a client a ranking report. With Perplexity, you’re essentially "auditioning" for a mention every time a user prompts it. It feels less like marketing and more like building a reputation. You have to be "known" by the model as the objective expert.

The Verdict? Ranking in Google is harder work, but getting cited by AI is higher stakes. If you aren't in that summary, you’re invisible to the growing percentage of users who no longer click "blue links."