Reference
| Item | Owner | Holds up |
|---|---|---|
| Confirm Speak's notice period and billing date | Ned, Sarah | 1.3 |
| A post with the redirect field filled in, or approval to create a test post | Sarah | 9.1 |
| Sign-off on the proposed image sizes | Britani | 2.14 4.1 8.5 |
| Event images in Google Drive for bulk conversion, if they choose 16:9 | Britani | 8.5 |
Received: Emma API key or connection credentials. This request is complete.
Staff can replace the homepage slideshow photos in Elementor. Punch-list item 4.4 is complete.
- In WordPress, go to Pages > Home > Edit with Elementor.
- Find the slideshow beside Opera, your way. and click it. The left panel will show Edit Image Carousel.
- Under Content, click the image thumbnails in the box labeled 4 Images Selected in the screenshot. The number may change as photos are added or removed.
- In the gallery window, click the × on each photo you want to replace. This removes it from the slideshow, not from the Media Library.
- Choose Add to gallery. Select replacement photos from the Media Library, or use Upload files to upload new ones. Click Add to gallery to include them.
- Drag the thumbnails into the order you want, then click Insert gallery to apply the selection.
- Click Publish or Update at the top right to save the homepage.
Only change the images. Your account may show only the image controls. If other settings appear, leave them unchanged, including settings under Style, Advanced, and Additional Options.
To edit season sponsors in the WordPress admin, go to Opera Memphis > Season Sponsors.
Upload sponsor logos in SVG format. The site inverts the logos to white for display, and scalable SVG files keep them sharp instead of blurry or pixelated.
All 27 comments from the Opera Memphis sweep are tracked below. The linked comment shows the full thread; the punch-list item carries the action and current task status. A Pastel status is separate from this punch-list status.
| Pastel comment | Punch-list item | Current Pastel status |
|---|---|---|
| #26 | 7.6 | Still open in Pastel |
| #56 | 5.1 | Still open in Pastel |
| #83 | 12.4 | Still open in Pastel |
| #88 | 2.17 | Resolved in Pastel |
| #89 | 7.8 | Still open in Pastel |
| #108 | 4.3 | Still open in Pastel |
| #109 | 4.4 | Still open in Pastel |
| #110 | 2.8 | Resolved in Pastel |
| #111 | 2.8 | Resolved in Pastel |
| #112 | 12.5 | Still open in Pastel |
| #114 | 6.1, 6.2 | Resolved in Pastel |
| #118 | 7.8 | Still open in Pastel |
| #122 | 11.4 | Still open in Pastel |
| #126 | 2.18 | Still open in Pastel |
| #127 | 2.19 | Resolved in Pastel |
| #134 | 2.20 | Resolved in Pastel |
| #143 | 12.7 | Still open in Pastel |
| #145 | 1.5 | Still open in Pastel |
| #146 | 2.21 | Resolved in Pastel |
| #147 | 2.22 | Still open in Pastel |
| #148 | 2.6 | Resolved in Pastel |
| #149 | 7.7 | Resolved in Pastel |
| #150 | 7.4 | Resolved in Pastel |
| #151 | 2.6 | Resolved in Pastel |
| #152 | 8.4 | Resolved in Pastel |
| #156 | 2.12 | Still open in Pastel |
| #157 | 12.6 | Still open in Pastel |
For the board: Search visibility is part of how the new site is built. Before launch, New Urban Media sets up the SEO foundation that helps Google find, understand, and present Opera Memphis: clear page titles and descriptions, organized content, fast-loading pages, and event details that search engines can read.
That same foundation supports GEO, or generative engine optimization. Clear, useful page content, descriptive headings, and accurate organization and event details make it easier for AI-powered search features to understand and reference the site. No one can guarantee that a page will appear in an AI-generated answer, and GEO does not require a separate set of special markup.
After launch, we maintain this foundation through the SiteCare plan as the team adds content and the site changes. An ongoing campaign targeting specific search topics is a separate service with its own scope and budget. We can discuss one if a program or season calls for it.
1. How Google reads and presents each page
| What we do | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Write a custom SEO title and meta description for every page, based on a review of what each page should rank for | This is the blue link and summary people see in Google results. Without it, Google pulls whatever text it finds first. |
| Assign every page a featured image using the first image in its content | Gives each page a representative image for its SEO metadata. Flag pages without an image for review. |
| Configure Rank Math, the site's SEO tool, and generate the XML sitemap | The sitemap tells Google every page and post that exists and when it changed. |
| Connect Google Analytics and Google Search Console | Shows who visits, how they found the site, and any indexing problems Google reports. |
| Show staff where to set focus keywords and edit search snippets on their own posts | Lets the team tune a blog post or event page for a specific topic without calling us. |
2. Structured data for events and the organization
| What we do | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Add event schema to every event: name, date, time, venue, and ticket link | This is how Opera Memphis shows up when someone searches "what's happening in Memphis this week." The site has dates everywhere; the schema tells Google which date is the performance. |
| Add organization details (name, address, logo, social profiles) as structured data | Helps Google show accurate company information and keeps it consistent across search features. |
3. Content structure
| What we do | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Tag headings by meaning, in a logical order (H1, then H2, then H3), across every template | Search engines and screen readers both use headings to understand what a page is about. |
| Build content as structured post types (events, productions, seasons, honorees, audition notices, stories) instead of loose pages | Each item gets its own clean URL, consistent layout, and correct listing on archive pages. |
| Keep clean, readable URLs grouped by section | Short, descriptive URLs are easier for people to trust and for Google to understand. |
| Require alt text on images and show staff where to add it | Alt text describes images for Google Images and for visitors who use screen readers. |
| Use Stories for topic-focused posts that link back to program pages | The practical way to rank for phrases like "young artist program" without renaming the Handorf page. |
4. Speed and performance
| What we do | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Host on Kinsta with server-level and edge caching, plus Cloudflare's CDN in front of the site | Pages load from a server close to each visitor. Google uses page speed as a ranking factor, and slow pages lose visitors on phones. |
| Handle caching and security at the host level instead of with extra plugins | Fewer plugins means a lighter site, fewer conflicts, and fewer things that can break during updates. |
| Set fixed image sizes and aspect ratios for each container (see 2.14) | Correctly sized images load faster and stop the layout from jumping as the page loads. |
| Load images and older posts only as visitors scroll | The Stories archive and image-heavy pages open quickly instead of loading everything at once. |
| Build with shared site-wide styles, no inline styling, and one responsive element per section instead of hidden duplicates for mobile | Less code per page, faster loads, and a site that stays consistent as staff edit it. |
| Hide the header on scroll on small screens | More of each page is visible on laptops and phones. |
5. Protecting search rankings at launch
| What we do | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Map old site URLs to their new locations with permanent (301) redirects | Links from Google, press coverage, and partner sites keep working, and the ranking those old pages earned carries over. |
| Resubmit the sitemap to Google Search Console after the domain switch and watch for crawl errors | Gets the new site indexed quickly and catches broken links in the first weeks. |
| Support redirects on individual Stories posts (see 9.1) | A post that points elsewhere sends visitors to the right place, including those arriving from Google. |
6. Ongoing, under the SiteCare plan
| What we do | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Keep WordPress, the theme, and plugins updated; Kinsta handles malware monitoring and daily backups | An outdated or compromised site gets flagged or dropped by Google. Uptime and security protect rankings. |
| Keep the structural work above intact as the site changes: headings, schema, sitemap, redirects | Updates and edits over time can quietly undo SEO groundwork. We catch that. |
| Fix layout drift caused by browser and software updates when staff report it in Pastel | Keeps pages looking right and working on every device. |
Additional services, when the need arises
| Service | When it makes sense |
|---|---|
| Ongoing keyword campaigns with monthly rank tracking and content updates | When a program, season, or initiative needs sustained visibility for particular search terms over several months. Scope and budget are shaped around the goal. |
| Off-site SEO: business listings, directory profiles, backlink outreach | When listings on Google Business Profile, Yelp, and similar directories need attention. A few still show the former Wolf River Parkway address, so this may be worth a look. |
| Targeted help for a single event or program that isn't ranking | Scoped to the need. If a request falls outside our specialty, we'll recommend a trusted partner who can help. |
Compiled from the meeting transcript of the Sep 25, 2026 website check-in with Ned Canty, Britani Campbell-Nowlin, and Sarah Squire. Internal use only.