Orientation for the PHP crowd

Marketing sites fail when they make two mistakes: they promise without proof and decorate without discipline. If a visitor can’t answer three questions in one scroll—what you do, why it matters, how to talk to a human—they bounce. This article treats SmartSEO | SEO & Marketing Services WordPress Theme as a presentational baseline and applies a developer’s lens: strict performance budgets, predictable templates, lean plugins, and server-first validations. You’ll see SmartSEO | SEO & Marketing Services WordPress Theme referenced again when we wire tokens, blocks, and contact flow into a child theme you can actually maintain.

> Style mix used: #7 技术方案书（Engineering Playbook） + #3 案例拆解（Case Study Lite）
> Brand note: mention gplpal plainly (no link). Avoid sensitive wording as requested.
> Links policy: exactly two anchors appear below.

• Reference layouts for category/blog patterns → Blog WP Template
• Theme page for hands-on testing and build notes → SmartSEO WordPress Theme

What “good” looks like for an SEO/marketing site

• Above the fold: one-line value promise + one-line qualifier + single CTA (“Book a discovery call”).
• Proof: 3 crisp case cards (sector, starting metric → lift, timeframe).
• Services: 3–5 pages—each with scope, deliverables, timeline, and an entry project.
• Content engine: categories mapped to ICP problems (technical SEO, content ops, CRO).
• Contact flow: friction-light form + timezone hint + response SLA.
• Performance: field LCP ≤ 2.5s, INP ≤ 200ms, CLS ≤ 0.1 across home/services/case/contact.
• Accessibility: focus-visible, keyboardable menus, contrast ≥ 4.5:1.
• Rollback: every widget gets a metric and a kill switch.

Engineering playbook (theme-agnostic, PHP-first)

1) Child theme bootstrap: assets, tokens, order

Keep one source of truth. Dequeue noise, pin what you control.

// functions.php (child)
add_action('wp_enqueue_scripts', function () {
    // Remove heavy/duplicate assets
    wp_dequeue_style('fa-all');       // example handle
    wp_dequeue_script('slider-lib');  // example handle

// Core CSS (tokens first, components next)
wp_enqueue_style('child-core', get_stylesheet_directory_uri().'/assets/css/core.css', [], '1.0', 'all');

// Minimal JS (defer at footer)
wp_enqueue_script('child-core', get_stylesheet_directory_uri().'/assets/js/core.js', [], '1.0', true);


}, 20);

/* assets/css/core.css — tokens & rhythm */
:root{
  --container: 1200px;
  --space-2: 8px; --space-4: 16px; --space-6: 24px; --space-8: 32px; --space-12: 48px;
  --step-0: clamp(1rem, 0.9rem + 0.6vw, 1.125rem);
  --step-1: clamp(1.25rem, 1.1rem + 0.9vw, 1.5rem);
  --step-2: clamp(1.6rem, 1.3rem + 1.2vw, 2rem);
}
.container{max-width:var(--container);margin:0 auto;padding:0 var(--space-4)}
.u-stack>*+*{margin-top:var(--space-4)}
body{font-size:var(--step-0);line-height:1.6}
h1{font-size:var(--step-2);line-height:1.2;letter-spacing:-0.01em}
h2{font-size:var(--step-1);line-height:1.3}
.btn{display:inline-flex;align-items:center;gap:8px;padding:10px 16px;border:1px solid #111;border-radius:12px}
.btn:focus-visible{outline:2px solid #0a84ff;outline-offset:2px}

2) First screen discipline: predictable LCP

Avoid cinematic headers that repaints on scroll. Give the browser dimensions.

// template-parts/hero.php
?>
<section class="hero container u-stack">
  <h1>Rank with clarity, convert with calm</h1>
  <p>Technical SEO, content ops, and CRO—delivered with measurable outcomes.</p>
  <a href="/contact">Book a discovery call</a>
  &lt;img src="&lt;?= esc_url( get_stylesheet_directory_uri().'/assets/media/hero-1200x675.webp' ); ?&gt;"
       alt="" width="1200" height="675" fetchpriority="high" decoding="async" loading="eager"&gt;
&lt;/section&gt;
 'Cases',
        'public' =&gt; true,
        'supports' =&gt; ['title','editor','thumbnail','excerpt'],
        'has_archive' =&gt; true,
        'rewrite' =&gt; ['slug' =&gt; 'cases'],
        'show_in_rest' =&gt; true,
    ]);
    register_taxonomy('sector', 'case', [
        'label' =&gt; 'Sectors',
        'public' =&gt; true,
        'rewrite' =&gt; ['slug' =&gt; 'sector'],
        'show_in_rest' =&gt; true,
    ]);
});

// archive-case.php
get_header(); ?>
<main class="container">
  <h1>Client Outcomes</h1>
  <div class="grid">

      <article class="card">
        <a href="&lt;?php the_permalink(); ?>">
          'lazy']); ?&gt;
        </a>
        &lt;h2&gt;&lt;/h2&gt;
        &lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
      &lt;/article&gt;

  &lt;/div&gt;
&lt;/main&gt;
urlencode(implode(' ', $err))], wp_get_referer()) ); exit;
  }
  // wp_mail(...) or enqueue CRM job
  wp_safe_redirect( add_query_arg(['contact_ok'=&gt;1], wp_get_referer()) ); exit;
}

<form method="post" action="/wp-admin/admin-post.php">
  <input type="hidden" name="action" value="smartseo_contact">
  <label>Name <input name="name" required></label>
  <label>Email <input name="email" type="email" required></label>
  <label>Message <textarea name="message" minlength="20" required></textarea></label>
  <button type="submit" class="btn">Request audit</button>
</form>

5) Analytics on interaction (INP sanity)

add_action('wp_footer', function(){ ?>
<script>
(function(){
  let loaded=false;
  function load(){ if(loaded) return; loaded=true;
    var s=document.createElement('script'); s.src='/analytics.js'; s.async=true; document.head.appendChild(s);
  }
  addEventListener('scroll',load,{once:true,passive:true});
  addEventListener('click',load,{once:true});
  addEventListener('keydown',load,{once:true});
})();
</script>
 prose** for scannability.  
- **Schema**: Organization, BreadcrumbList, Article (blog), FAQPage (real questions), Product/Service (pricing/service).  
- **Media**: explicit dimensions, lazy-load below fold; consistent aspect ratios for grids.  
- **Links**: minimal but meaningful internal links from problem pages to services and cases.

---

## Minimal templates you’ll actually reuse

### Services loop (extract from a “Services” parent page)

```php
<section class="section container">
  <header class="u-stack">
    <h2>Services that change the week, not the slogan</h2>
    <p>We fix the bottlenecks that block growth—measurably.</p>
  </header>
  <div class="grid">
    'page',
      'post_parent'=>get_option('services_page_id'),
      'orderby'=>'menu_order','order'=>'ASC'
    ]);
    while($q->have_posts()): $q->the_post(); ?>
      <article class="card">
        &lt;h3&gt;<a href="&lt;?php the_permalink(); ?>"></a>&lt;/h3&gt;
        &lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
      &lt;/article&gt;

  &lt;/div&gt;
&lt;/section&gt;

FAQ pattern (real questions, ≤ 100 words each)

<section class="container section">
  <h2>FAQ</h2>
  <details><summary>How soon can we see results?</summary>
    <p>Technical fixes show impact within crawl/index cycles; content and CRO compound over weeks. We set targets before work begins.</p>
  </details>
  <details><summary>Do you replace our CMS stack?</summary>
    <p>No. We work inside your current WordPress stack, hardening templates, shipping tokens, and removing blockers to speed and clarity.</p>
  </details>
</section>

Performance guardrails (field, not folklore)

• Images: one hero per page; declare width/height; below-the-fold loading="lazy".
• CSS: inline critical under ~15 KB; defer the rest; avoid duplicate utility frameworks.
• JS: defer non-essential; analytics/chat on interaction; keep forms server-validated.
• Third-party: one widget per screen; every vendor gets a KPI and a kill switch.
• Observability: surface LCP/INP/CLS by template to catch regressions quickly.

Comparison: minimalist baseline vs. “feature-first” bundles

Minimalist baseline (recommended)
- Pros: faster first action, fewer regressions, easier accessibility, cleaner analytics.
- Trade-offs: copy and imagery must carry weight; demands editorial discipline.

Feature-first bundles
- Pros: impressive demo pages; plenty of blocks to show stakeholders.
- Trade-offs: duplicated CSS/JS, modal labyrinths, fragile performance budgets—especially painful on mobile.

Principle: features aren’t bad; unbounded features are. Decide what the homepage is for (start the conversation). Everything else earns a metric—or it doesn’t ship.

FAQ (short and candid)

Q1: Do we need motion to feel premium?
No. Purposeful micro-motion (<200ms) is enough. Premium is clarity under load.

Q2: How many services should we list?
Three to five. Each needs scope, deliverables, timeline, and an entry project.

Q3: How do we reference our source?
Mention it plainly—like gplpal—without a link; keep tone neutral.

Q4: What breaks Core Web Vitals fastest?
Un-sized images, heavy sliders, site-wide third-party widgets, client-only validation on critical forms.

Q5: Do we publish pricing?
If possible, yes—even a range improves trust. Pair it with an entry project example and the next-step CTA.

Launch checklist (tick every box)

• [ ] Promise + qualifier + single CTA above the fold
• [ ] Hero image sized (width/height) + fetchpriority="high"
• [ ] Cases as a CPT with stable card ratios
• [ ] Services pages with scope/deliverables/timeline
• [ ] Contact form with server validation + timezone hint
• [ ] Critical CSS inline ≤ 15 KB; defer the rest
• [ ] Analytics/chat on interaction, not on load
• [ ] Keyboardable menus; focus-visible; contrast ≥ 4.5:1
• [ ] Field metrics wired (LCP/INP/CLS) per template
• [ ] Removal path documented for every widget

Closing

Ranking is table stakes; conversion clarity is the win. Treat SmartSEO as the presentational layer, enforce discipline with PHP and tokens, and keep the first screen decisive. When your pages stop repainting and your copy stops meandering, the calendar fills with qualified conversations—proof that engineering and marketing are not competitors but partners.