{"id":2062,"slug":"rule-cumulative-ordered-tiers","title":"Rule — Tiers 1-3 are cumulative and ordered; never recommend a higher tier on a failing lower one","kind":"rule","scope":"business","status":"current","audiences":["kevin","candid-team"],"topics":["digital-presence-work-tiers"],"reference_body":"**Rule:** The three work tiers are cumulative and ordered. Tier 2 work is wasted on a broken Tier 1 foundation (a fast site that converts is the prerequisite for SEO traffic to matter). Tier 3 work is wasted without Tier 2 (a brilliant calculator nobody can find earns nothing). A widget should NEVER recommend a higher tier while a lower tier is failing.\n\n**Why:** Mechanism-evident — traffic is wasted without conversion; a tool is wasted without traffic. Confirmed by the absence of any documented case where Tier 3 worked without Tier 1+2 in place.\n\n**How to apply:**\n\n- Broken/slow/no site → recommend **Tier 1 only**.\n- Solid site but invisible/under-reviewed → recommend **Tier 2**.\n- Solid site + good findability but stuck against entrenched competitors → consider **Tier 3**.","rationale_body":null,"metadata":null,"links":{"outgoing":[{"slug":"tier-1-foundational-web-presence","title":"Tier 1 — Foundational web presence (SMALL GAP)","kind":"reference","scope":"business","link_type":"depends-on"},{"slug":"tier-2-findability-and-trust","title":"Tier 2 — Findability + trust infrastructure (MODERATE GAP)","kind":"reference","scope":"business","link_type":"depends-on"},{"slug":"tier-3-data-and-interactive-tools","title":"Tier 3 — Data intelligence + interactive tools (LARGE GAP)","kind":"reference","scope":"business","link_type":"depends-on"}],"incoming":[{"slug":"research-brief-smb-widget-difficulty-to-work-june-2026","title":"Research brief: SMB widget difficulty-to-work mapping — three tiers of work for three sizes of gap (June 2026)","kind":"reference","scope":"business","link_type":"depends-on"}]},"created_at":"2026-06-23T19:16:02.747Z","updated_at":"2026-06-23T19:16:02.747Z"}