Your Website: A Tool Or A Crutch?

Good morning… from the Cotswolds region of the UK.

Currently sitting in a nice cottage not far from Bourton on the Water… overlooking a little valley of countryside. And, it is cold! This Florida boy isn’t supposed to be feeling temps in the low 40’s in September!

And, the Brits don’t take coffee as seriously, so I’m sitting here drinking a cup of Nescafe. Because instant coffee is all I had access to where I’m staying. It’ll have to do.

So, with Nescafe in hand and a determination not to skip a beat with the WP Edge just because I’m traveling…

Let’s talk about… website “busy work”. And the idea of whether your website is actually serving a business purpose…. or has just become a crutch.

And I imagine you’ll be OK with the “news” section of this issue being a little shorter this week, seeing as I’m overseas right now.

Back next week! And let’s dive into it….

Your Website Isn’t Your Business

If you’re reading this, chances are your business lives on your website. It might even feel like your site is your business. But here’s the truth: your business is more than your plugins, theme, or even your content.

It’s easy to forget that when you’re knee-deep in tech tweaks, performance audits, or the latest redesign. But, let’s zoom out.

The Tech Is Just the Wrapper

WordPress is powerful. It’s flexible. It lets you build just about anything… courses, memberships, funnels, you name it. But it’s also a bit of a trap.

Because with great flexibility comes… decision fatigue.

It’s easy to spend hours (or weeks) configuring LMS plugins, tweaking checkout flows, setting up automations – all while avoiding the deeper, harder work of growing the actual business.

You don’t sell plugins. You don’t sell your setup. You sell transformation. A result. A relationship. A promise.

The site is just the delivery vehicle.

Where the Real Business Lives

Your business lives in the specific problem you solve, the audience you serve, the way you talk about what you do. It includes the trust you build through content and experience. And it is powered by the systems that bring people from stranger to subscriber to customer to advocate.

Your website can support all of those. But it can’t replace or BE them.

I’ve seen sites with amazing design and powerful features, but no clear offer. And I’ve seen ugly, barebones WordPress sites doing awesome revenue because the message, market, and follow-up were dialed in.

Is Your Website a Tool or a Crutch?

Here’s a quick gut-check:

• Are you constantly “working on the site” but rarely publishing or promoting?
• Do you obsess over plugins more than you do offers or outcomes?
• Have you delayed launching something because the site “wasn’t quite ready”?

If so, your site might be acting more like a crutch than a tool.

Don’t get me wrong… I love good tooling. A fast, functional, cleanly-built WordPress site makes your life easier and scales your business. I love building them. It is kind of my jam.

But it really only matters if it is in service of something bigger.

Questions to Re-Center Your Strategy

Next time you feel stuck in the weeds, ask yourself:

1. What am I really trying to build – a website or a business?
2. If my site went offline tomorrow, how would I still reach and serve my audience?
3. What is the core promise I’m making to my customers – and does my site communicate that clearly?
4. Am I doing this task because it moves the business forward, or because it feels productive?

These questions can be surprisingly clarifying.

Tech Follows Strategy

Build your strategy first. Then pick the tools to support it — not the other way around.

It sounds obvious, but many of us (myself included) have spent days deep in plugin rabbit holes without stepping back to ask, “Does this help me sell more? Serve better? Retain longer?”
If it doesn’t, maybe it’s not the right problem to solve today.

Your WordPress site is an asset. But it’s not the heart of your business.

The heart is in the problems you solve and the people you help. The systems and strategies you build around that are what really grow your income and impact.

Don’t let the tech become the business. Use it to build the business you actually want.

Concierge Client Update

Out Of Office Notice – Back In A Week!

I’m still out of town in the UK. Currently in the Cotswold area.

I want to thank all of you guys for your patience and understanding while I’m on this family trip. While I’ve taken care of a few minor things for some of you while here, I can tell you guys are keeping the big stuff for when I get back. And I really appreciate that.

Speaking of which…

My first day back in the office will be September 29th. And it is shaping up to be a busy week, with 4 appointments already scheduled for that Monday.

I’m happy to say… I’m looking forward to getting back and hitting the ground running.

Which is always proof that I like what I do… and love working with all of you.

WordPress News & Updates

Fluent Affiliate 1.1. In my video comparing Fluent Affiliate to AffiliateWP, I mentioned how Fluent Affiliate didn’t have a “creatives” section and it didn’t really need it. Well, they just released version 1.1 and…. it now has it anyway. I like the way it is executed better, though, since it doesn’t clutter up the menu system. You can read the full announcement for version 1.1 here.

WP Social Ninja 3.2. They’ve launched version 3.2 of WP Social Ninja. This version has WooCommerce integration, allowing easy display of product reviews. Also a stronger integration with Fluent Forms for collecting reviews, and multiple improvements to the social feeds. Check out the full announcement here.

Fluent Boards Update. Fluent Boards continues to get better, with version 1.85 now giving a table view of tasks, outgoing webhooks, and email reminders for both tasks and sub-tasks. Full announcement here.

WordPress Versus Everyone. The top 6 content management systems were scored and ranked in terms of core web vitals and, frankly, WordPress came in last place. This is due to what they’re calling the “technical debt” of WordPress. I would like to see the innards of how they scored this, though. The thing about WordPress is that there are a million different configurations to run it and there seems to be no discussion about that.

MetaBox New Tools. Man, I keep having Metabox come up on my radar and my reaction is… “why am I not using this?” This custom field plugin now has 4 new tools to help CLEAN the database by removing orphaned custom fields, changing custom field key names and more. Check it out. Why don’t the others do this? Looking at you, Advanced Custom Fields.

API Press. A new plugin called API Press was launched in the free repository thar will allow you to connect to any external API, fetch data, and show the output on your site using a shortcode.

EmbedPress Analytics. EmbedPress is a handy plugin at times that enables you to embed anything on your site. And now it has it’s own Analytics functionality as well. Reminder that EmbedPress Pro is in the Concierge Toolkit if clients need/want to use it.

FlowMattic + FluentCRM. Flowmattic has introduced their 2.0 integration with FluentCRM and…. this one is impressive. 11 new triggers…. 38 new actions. And it fills gaps that FluentCRM just can’t do for now, such as automatic re-engagement of cold subscribers.

Don’t Overbuild: How to Avoid “Feature Creep” in Your WordPress Site

One of the easiest ways to slow down your business isn’t bad design or buggy code. It’s feature creep.

Feature creep is when you keep adding more tools, more options, more functionality… because it might be useful, or because “that’s what other sites do.”

But every new feature adds complexity. And complexity can quietly kill your momentum.

Let’s talk about how to spot it before it hurts your business.

Feature Creep Loves WordPress

WordPress is an amazing platform precisely because it can do almost anything. But that power comes with a downside: temptation.

• You start with a course.
• Then add a gamification plugin.
• Then a points system.
• Then badges.
• Then a community forum.
• Then automated certificates.
• Then a Zap to your CRM when someone completes a module…

It spirals fast. And often, these features get added before you’ve validated your core offer.

Related Reading:
Have You Created A WordPress Frankenstein Site That Breaks All The Time?

Signs You’re Overbuilding

Ask yourself:

• Am I building features no one has asked for yet?
• Do I feel like I need a custom solution for something that could be done manually for now?
• Is the tech stack growing faster than the business?
• Am I procrastinating on launching by “perfecting” the site?

If you said yes to any of those — feature creep might be in play.

Always realize that every new feature, new plugin, new integration and new piece of complexity for your website has an impact. It can lead to slower load times, more support requests and more things to break. It can confuse or complicate the user experience. And it adds additional time and work to maintain it, update it… and debug it when it breaks down.

3 Simple Rules to Keep It Lean

Here’s how to protect your WordPress site (and your sanity):

1. Validate First, Automate Later

If you’re adding a feature that hasn’t been requested or tested, pause. Stop and question…. why. Or, just do it manually for the first 5-10 customers. Then decide if it needs to be automated.

2. Choose Tools That Do Double Duty

Look for plugins that solve multiple problems without bloat. For example, WP Fusion can connect your CRM and protect content without needing separate membership or automation tools. Sometimes, even simple code snippets can do what you need done and spare the need for an extra plugin.

3. Make Feature Decisions Based on Business Goals

Ask: Does this feature directly support revenue, retention, or user experience? If not, it’s probably a distraction.

Your WordPress site is a tool, not a trophy. You’re not building a monument to your tech skills…. you’re building a business.

Keep it lean. Stay focused. Add only what supports your goals.

Let your business lead the build… not the other way around.

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The WP Edge is the official weekly newsletter of the Blog Marketing Academy.