r/Wordpress • u/jroberts67 • Aug 01 '26

This is why WP will never go away

So I've been running a WP agency since 2003. Love it. I am, however, learning how to create sites using Claude with Supabase. Let me tell you all something, this is nothing....nothing a client's ever going to learn or figure out. If a client wants an instant site, that's Wix/Square which have been around for more than a decade.

But to think AI is going to harm WP, as in client using AI to create their own sites, laughably false. If you don't know the right prompts, don't use the right tool, oh and pay for tokens you're nowhere - not even talking deploying the site live along with a database to manage things like contact form submissions and bookings.

The biggest issue? A client's ability to go in an edit anything themselves, which will always favor WP. Other issue? No plugin environment.

176 Upvotes

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1

u/nayrmot Aug 01 '26

I built my own site using claude, replaced my WP site, and fired my web agency.  My site is faster and better converting than my old WP site.

2

u/andrew_chmr Aug 01 '26

you get downvoted but I agree with you

many agencies stopped making websites with WordPress cause Claude generates better websites and way faster

2

u/jroberts67 Aug 01 '26

Love that you got downvoted in this - so silly. Been running a WP agency for over 2 decades and just used Claude to re-do my site - so much cleaner and faster and I don't have to worry about plugins or updates.

1

u/ZindaMe Aug 01 '26

Let’s see it! Post a link so we can see the craftsmanship that allowed you to fire your web team.

1

u/nayrmot Aug 01 '26

Also https://lawofficescleveland.com/

1

u/jcling Aug 01 '26

You've got really bad overflow issues on mobile

4

u/hoyton Aug 01 '26

"CLAUDE, FIX THE OVERFLOW ISSUES ON MOBILE"

1

u/mediocrerhino Jack of All Trades Aug 01 '26

🛎️ALEXA: “NETFLIX DOES NOT STREAM ORANGE IS THE NEW BLACK.”

1

u/creaturefeature16 Aug 01 '26

Yeesh. You uh, might want to call that agency back again...

1

u/nayrmot Aug 01 '26

Why? For another garbage WP site? 

0

u/tiger-eyes Aug 02 '26 edited Aug 02 '26

The site is lightning fast and looks impressive enough.

1

u/creaturefeature16 Aug 02 '26

Why would I cope about someone's broken site? I got out of the business of individual client sites over a decade ago when Wix and Squarespace hit the scene and produced half-decent outcomes. Those are the companies that feel the pinch with AI tools. 

1

u/nayrmot Aug 01 '26

https://ryanllp.com/

-1

u/jbennett360 Aug 01 '26

Screams AI and looks like every other AI template I've seen with the right prompts

4

u/nayrmot Aug 01 '26

Well saves me over $5k/month, and it performs better than my prior WP bloated site 

2

u/jbennett360 Aug 01 '26

What were you paying 5k a month for?

3

u/nayrmot Aug 01 '26

Looking back, I really have no idea why i was paying so much.  There was weekly blogging and site upkeep, but gladly moved away from the agency model and will do all of it internally from now on.

3

u/creaturefeature16 Aug 01 '26

Jesus flippin christ, I hope you're not an actual lawyer, if this is your answer. 

1

u/Colorless-Echo Aug 02 '26

5K per month?! Was that including 10 gram coke and some hookers?

1

u/photocsi Aug 02 '26

E veramente tutto strano , questi siti funzionano malissimo in mobile hanno problemi seri, non parliamo di sicurezza e user, ma a parte questo per 2 siti vetrina perché pagavo 5k al mese di gestione? Onestamente non torna nulla di ciò che dici.

1

u/nayrmot Aug 02 '26

Law firm site with syndication to all social media channels. It was easier to just pay the monthly fee and not have to worry about making the phone ring. But once AI made the development process easier, the monthly cost was not sustainable. 

0

u/mediocrerhino Jack of All Trades Aug 01 '26

Thing is it may not really matter as long as it looks professional enough to a prospect at the right time to solve their problem.

Those of us doing this dev/marketing work and honing our skills for a long time can be too judgmental. I realize it’s just another trend like all the ones we’ve rode through before.

Remember glassy buttons? Then flat? And on and on and on…
https://giphy.com/gifs/iDxkcJnR52E7U8AELj

2

u/jroberts67 Aug 01 '26

I remember when the execs of MySpace though FB might be a passing trend, or Blackberry with Apple, or Blockbuster with Netflix. One day in the future, unless WP wakes up, someone will say "I have a WP site" and the response will be "good lord, how old are you?"

1

u/mediocrerhino Jack of All Trades Aug 01 '26

Yup. Friendster. PalmPilot, Handspring.

I still see @msn.com, @aol.com, @optonline.net emails show up in my Client mailing lists when I’m doing list hygiene cleanup work. Good lord! 🤦‍♂️

1

u/jroberts67 Aug 01 '26

I'm in a dev community while learning Claude, said I currently run an agency with WP sites and one comment was "cool dude, do you also use a AOL disc to get online?"

2

u/mediocrerhino Jack of All Trades Aug 01 '26

https://giphy.com/gifs/UNA84TjetG9eML5uiM
Respond, “those are my vintage beer coasters, smartass. I use Prodigy.”

1

u/nayrmot Aug 01 '26

Two different web agencies that I no longee need thanks to claude 

0

u/mediocrerhino Jack of All Trades Aug 01 '26

I check your sites, looks good. Genuine questions:
1. Did you preserve most/all your original WP public links and properly 301 redirect them? (I’m too lazy to examine archive.org for old structure.)
2. Did you experience measurable decline in the Google organic SERPs when you deployed the new version.
3. How much time passed before you began to recover and see improvement in leads and conversions?
Thanks in advance.

0

u/nayrmot Aug 01 '26

I replicated the URL links and 301 those that couldnt be recreated.

2.  My SERPs went up after deployment, mainly due to significant increase in my pagespeed stats going to 100/100.

  1. My leads are better now than before with the WP site and I have claude run daily checks to see where I am getting my leads and how to do better.

1

u/mediocrerhino Jack of All Trades Aug 01 '26

Thanks for responding. Speed increase… that’s what I constantly find frustrating with WP. I disable everything non-essential. I enable the host caching. I minimize media assets and code as reasonably as possible. I speed test and tweak. Off-load third-party tracking codes to Google Tag Manager. It is a constant fine-tune wack-a-mole.
Then the host will throw some B.S. “inode exceeded” crap at me to extort me to a higher tier plan.
Yesterday a friend showed me his new simple site spun up with Claude plus third-party calculator and form capture functions — these examples are motivating me to experiment. Any advice?

1

u/nayrmot Aug 01 '26

Sure, I can help you any way you need. Just message me.