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Small Misses, Crucial Impact: Why Your ‘Perfect’ SEO Setup Might Still Be Failing
You are definitely losing visibility and worse, for things you already know: your CSS images are invisible to Google, AI might outmarket you faster than you can blink, and you’re probably turning away real customers at the cost of blocking AI bots.
Welcome to the newsletter that keeps you ahead of every major update in the world of SEO and AI.
You’ve done the SEO audit, cleaned up your meta tags, tested mobile performance, and even updated your sitemap. And, as we’ve continued to recommend, you’ve optimized for both bots and humans.
So when your well-structured content or ecommerce site isn’t converting the way it should, it becomes a mind-racking problem, because doing everything “right” and still getting crickets feels like chasing ghosts in the algorithm.
Today’s edition is about the final nudge to push your performance over the edge.
And yes, some of us may be right after all: AI might actually be coming for our jobs. Talk about a gut punch when new data shows marketing and sales roles among the most impacted by AI.
In this issue:
Google warns against using CSS for content images
Microsoft study reveals marketing and sales are among the most affected by AI
Google’s John Mueller urges testing ecommerce sites for AI agent accessibility
Think of this as a spotlight on the overlooked nooks and crannies that are quietly draining your visibility, traffic and overall performance.
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🛍️ Should SEOs Add Agentic AI Testing To Site Audits?

Google’s John Mueller spotlighted an experiment by Malte Polzin that tested whether the top 50 Swiss ecommerce sites were accessible to ChatGPT's AI shopping agents.
The verdict? Most were, but a surprising number weren’t.
🔎 Why it matters:
As AI-assisted shopping gains traction, inaccessible sites could be missing out on real customers using agentic search tools.
🧪 Key Findings from the Experiment:
Most ecommerce stores were AI-accessible, but several blocked access completely. Here’s what got in the way:
CAPTCHA systems prevented AI agent shopping
Cloudflare's Turnstile tool (CAPTCHA alternative) blocked access
Store maintenance pages denied entry
Bot defense systems triggered false blocks
✅ What To Do:
Test your ecommerce site with AI shopping agents
Review CAPTCHA and bot detection settings
Add agentic AI checks to your SEO audit workflow
Test beyond ecommerce sites; local service sites with forms may also need AI agent access
Ensure bot filters distinguish helpful agents from malicious bots
🔮 Looking Ahead:
Agentic search could soon become standard shopping behavior.
Sites that adapt early will be better positioned to serve the next wave of AI-assisted buyers.
Microsoft Study: Marketing and Sales Most Affected by AI

Microsoft analyzed 200,000 real workplace conversations with Bing Copilot and uncovered where AI is hitting hardest and helping most.
Using an "AI applicability score," they measured how AI fits across different roles.
📊Key Statistics:
Here is the crunched data from the study:
💼 Sales reps topped the list (0.46 AI score)
✍️ Writers & authors (0.45), customer service (0.44)
📣 PR specialists and ad sales (0.36)
📊 Market researchers (0.35)
Overally, sales and related occupations ranked highest in AI impact across all major job categories.
⚡ What AI Does Well:
Information gathering, content writing/editing, communication, and field-specific learning showed high success rates.
The minor downside was that 40% of conversations showed AI performing different tasks than initially requested.
🧍♂️ Human Advantages:
Visual design, creative work, strategic data analysis, and on-site or physically present roles which scored lower for AI satisfaction.
💡 Your Next Move:
Use AI to boost content creation and research productivity
Hone your human strengths: strategy, creativity, critical thinking
Position yourself as AI collaborator, not competitor
Focus on adaptation rather than replacement fears
👉From the study, there was a surprisingly weak link between AI impact and salary (correlation: 0.07)
Goes to show that AI is transforming jobs across the board, not just targeting low-wage work. And it all depends on how well you adapt (and quick!).
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🚫 Google Warns Against Using CSS for Content Images

In a recent Search Off the Record podcast, Google’s Search Relations team issued guidance against using CSS background images for website content.
So, for developers who still believe CSS is better for all images, Google says no.
⚠️ The Problem
Images added via CSS background properties don’t appear in the DOM which means Google Image Search can’t index them.
Real-World Impact:
Lack of proper implementation of HTML tags could affect:
🏠 Real estate listings: Property photos won’t show up in image searches
📰 News sites: Infographics and charts can’t be indexed
🛍️ E-commerce: Product images may not appear in shopping results
✅ What to Do Instead:
Use HTML
<img>
or<picture>
tags for any content-related images even if it is a stock image.Reserve CSS backgrounds only for decorative visuals (patterns, atmospheric effects).
Apply the content test: if users might search for the image, put it in HTML.
Remember that proper HTML implementation improves both SEO and accessibility.
💡 Takeaway:
Just remember, if an image adds meaning or context, Google needs to see it in the HTML not just in your CSS file.
💬 I’d love to hear from you.
Which of these SEO strategies are you already leaning into or planning to explore? Just hit reply and let me know.
And if you found this helpful, forward it to a friend or team member who’s serious about growth. Let’s win together.
Until next time, have a good one!
The Growth Grind Team,
Part of Click Raven, Inc.