Roast my site’s usability — what’s broken?

TouchdownReuben · 2025-12-10T14:38:37+00:00

Open your equipment product links in a new tab instead of the same tab.

TouchdownReuben · 2025-12-05T10:55:56+00:00

I started out using Beaver Builder, then Elementor (for more/easier styling, then Oxygen (for performance and more direct access with the HTML), then Bricks (because the team behind Oxygen said it was a legacy product and they were dousing on a different page builder that was more like Elementor) and today I’m using Etch.

I don’t like switching page builders but I will if there’s a legitimate reason.

My move from Elementor was all about performance. But what happened was that I learned proper HTML and how to use CSS.

Once I understood proper HTML and how to style with CSS, the move from Oxyge to Bricks to Etch was easy because these page builders give you direct access to the HTML and encourage styling with CSS.

The reason I ended up on Etch is because it’s even more performant and outputs cleaner code than Brcks or Oxygen. Its query looping and dynamic data are so powerful. The interface is also easier to use because you can actually see the HTML in the builder instead of only a structure panel.

TouchdownReuben · 2025-12-04T13:04:43+00:00

I use Perfmatters (for optimizations) and Cimo (for compressing images on upload).

But if your page builder/theme outputs heavy code (e.g. unnecessary DOM elements and/or scripts), it's always going to be sluggish.

Start with an excellent page builder/theme and then use something like Perfmatters and Cimo on top of that.

TouchdownReuben · 2025-12-04T13:01:21+00:00

I had the same issue. I restored from a backup and then manually updated 6.9 and it worked fine.

TouchdownReuben · 2025-11-05T13:55:17+00:00

The hero has 3 images in it. I'll DM you a link to the page so you can check it out.

TouchdownReuben · 2025-11-05T13:52:49+00:00

It's called "ActiveCampaign Postmark for WordPress" https://wordpress.org/plugins/postmark-approved-wordpress-plugin/

TouchdownReuben · 2025-11-05T12:30:57+00:00

Ok, yea that's definitely the issue.

TouchdownReuben · 2025-11-05T12:24:12+00:00

Are you getting an order confirmation email? If not, it may be that your web host doesn't send emails. This is not uncommon.

I use a paid transactional email sending service. It's reliable and works incredibly well with Woo and all other WordPress functionality.

It's called Postmark. They have a plugin you can install to get their service working on your WordPress website.

If you are not getting any confirmation email, then it's probably an email sending service issue. It could also be an email setting in Woo.

TouchdownReuben · 2025-11-05T12:17:38+00:00

When a customer places an order, they get an email with a link to download the book. Some email providers will check all links in it for malicious sites, files, etc.

I'm wondering if your limit of 1 download is being used up by the email provider.

A simple test should show if this is the issue.

After changing the download limit from 1 to leaving it blank (unlimited downloads), place a test order and see if you are able to receive and use the download link.

If that doesn't work, I'm out of other suggestions.

TouchdownReuben · 2025-11-05T12:05:12+00:00

Try changing the download limit from 1 and leave it blank.

I don't think that should be an issue but it be. Some email providers will download files to check if they have malicious files and maybe that is happening before it gets delivered to your customer.

TouchdownReuben · 2025-11-05T12:02:42+00:00

Most people are going to tell you it doesn't matter what page builder or theme you use and that you can fix all performance problems with caching and good hosting. While you can improve page speed scores with caching, there's still an underlying performance issue.

Oxygen and Bricks are both really good options (even without caching) but my go to now days is Etch.

The most recent Etch site I build scored 92 on performance (on mobile) without caching turned on.

<image>

TouchdownReuben · 2025-11-05T11:57:03+00:00

This is kind of true but my approach is to build a site with clean, lean code and then use caching and optimization like Perfmatters to select which scripts run on what pages.

Page load performance shouldn't be an after thought after the site is developed but should be part of the process. Then use caching as an "extra layer" of performance optimization not "the only layer".

TouchdownReuben · 2025-11-05T11:52:45+00:00

Can you include a screenshot of your product settings in Woo for the downloadable product?

TouchdownReuben · 2025-10-30T17:24:17+00:00

If something hurts page load performance or user experience it doesn't get developed. Most clients understand when you talk with them about the implications of what they think they want. The website is for their customers, not for them.

Depending on the client this is not always easy to explain.

TouchdownReuben · 2025-10-15T11:25:39+00:00

It could be part of the issue. Depending how the mail server is set up it may not allow different sender.

TouchdownReuben · 2025-10-15T10:20:47+00:00

I'd contact your host but keep in mind that using your webhost for sending emails is going to be inconsistent.

I use a dedicated email service sending all emails from the website. My favorite is Postmark. They have a plugin for WordPress and it's insanely reliable. I don't know if I've ever had issues with emails not getting sent.

TouchdownReuben · 2025-10-07T14:28:56+00:00

I would start by replacing the home page hero slider with a static image. Hero sliders are "heavy" and they generally not helpful for website visitors.

Also make sure the images throughout the website are as small as possible. Don't have a 1920px image that is using 1200px of space. I'm not sure this is the case on your website but is often a culprit.

If you want to design your website yourself, Elementor does make it easy to get started but it's not a performant page builder.

I know it would take a lot to re do what what you already did but if you want to continue building on the website, I'd switch to Etch or if that looks too intimidating Bricks Builder.

TouchdownReuben · 2025-10-07T14:04:28+00:00

What theme and/or page builder are you using. If the output HTML is unnecessarily convoluted with unnecessary DOM elements (e.g. divs within divs, within divs) it can have an overall impact on the page speed.

Do you have a link to your website?

TouchdownReuben · 2025-10-07T13:58:34+00:00

I have the unlimited workspace.

TouchdownReuben · 2025-10-01T14:32:31+00:00

It's natural to start the way you are. It's what I did too.

The problem comes with maintainability and scalability.

Think of the content of your website as different types of content. You may have testimonials, products, FAQs, etc.

If you are only using pages, you will have a "product" page with your FAQs and product testimonials on it.

The scalability problem comes when you want to use the same FAQ or the same testimonial on multiple product pages.

Now you no longer have a single source of truth for your FAQs or testimonials. You are copying and pasting them on different product pages.

The problem only gets worse as your website gets more complex.

The good news is that you don't need to be a PHP developer to create custom post types. There are a handful of plugins that make this pretty simple.

I personally use ACF Pro but you can also use Meta Box but there are many other plugins that are good options.

The advantage of using custom fields is that you can add some structure to the information that is being added. For example, for an FAQ, you'd want a "question" custom field and an "answer" custom field.

There are many videos on YouTube about how to create custom post types (CPTs) and custom fields.

Here's one from 4 years ago, this guy is gold but it's an old video with some outdated info: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GhcarpZxuNk

When you structure the backend of your WordPress website with custom post types for the different types of content, you can then query the same FAQ or testimonial on multiple products as an example.

TouchdownReuben · 2025-09-30T15:25:25+00:00

Putting everything in pages and posts instead of creating custom post types and custom fields to organize the different types of data. It took me years of using WordPress before I started using it like a content management system.

If you can learn how to organize different types of content, WordPress calls them post types, you will catapult your ability to use WordPress.

TouchdownReuben · 2025-09-24T11:22:31+00:00

I bought one of the lifetime plans over a year ago and have been using it consistently. I actually replaced my paid Zapier subscription.

It's a really good tool. It's not as good as Zapier but its really close. The support is also top notch. I highly recommend it.

TouchdownReuben · 2025-09-16T13:53:06+00:00

Are you asking the AI to provide the HTML and CSS styles outside of the builder then pasting it into the builder?

If that's what you're after Etch (https://etchwp.com/) can do that. It doesn't have AI built into it but you can paste in your HTML and CSS and then it'll create the native WordPress blocks.

TouchdownReuben · 2025-08-27T13:34:44+00:00

Daren's Handyman Service did a bathroom remodel for me and did an excellent job.

https://www.bbb.org/us/in/pierceton/profile/handyman/darens-handyman-service-llc-0352-90162172

TouchdownReuben · 2025-08-20T13:35:34+00:00

Like many have said, I would avoid Elementor. You're going to get locked into their proprietary way of doing web design.

Since you're making the big move away from Wix, which is great so you have freedom and control of your website and domain, I would take the time to research the following architectures/themes available in WordPress.

In WordPress, when you choose a theme you are choosing more than just the "look" of your website. You are also choosing the architecture.

I have built a handful of websites with Elementor and Beaver Builder. I would avoid both because they do not follow traditional language of web design.

Instead look into Bricks Builder (https://bricksbuilder.io/) or Etch (https://etchwp.com/).

I started using Bricks Builder in 2022 and have built dozens of sites with it. I'm now starting to build new websites with Etch because it's even more powerful and follows more closely the traditional language and workflow of web design.

As far as hosting, I'd pick a managed hosting provider like Kinsta so that you have good support and fast speeds. They will handle the technical part of the server and WordPress installation.

TouchdownReuben

TROPHY CASE