For years I told clients their website should be fast, easy to update and easy to find. Then I'd go back to my own site, which had grown slow to load, fiddly to edit, and looked older every year. So I rebuilt it from scratch. Here's what changed, and why the same ideas matter for your business.
Why I rebuilt my own site
First, a quick note: I still build and look after WordPress sites for clients, and I will keep doing it. WordPress is a great fit for a lot of businesses.
My own site had a different problem. Over the years it had collected a theme, a page builder and a dozen plugins, and every one made it a little slower and a little more fragile. It was also the right place to put the newest tools to work on my own business first, before I recommend them to anyone else.
I wanted three things instead:
- Speed. Pages that load almost instantly, on any phone.
- Easy editing. Change text, photos and blog posts without worrying about breaking the design.
- Found by people and AI. A site that Google and AI tools like ChatGPT can read and understand, so they can recommend us.
What the new site is built on
The new site runs on Next.js, the same framework behind sites like Nike and Netflix. Pages are built ahead of time, so there's very little for a visitor's phone to wait on.
The blog lives in Sanity, an editor that works like a clean document. I write a post, add a photo, and publish. There are no plugins to update and nothing to break.
It's hosted on Vercel, so every change gets its own preview link before it goes live. Nothing reaches the real site until I've seen it.
Every old link still works
The scariest part of any rebuild is losing the Google rankings you've earned. So before launch, every page and blog post on the old site was mapped to its place on the new one. Posts kept their exact addresses, and the handful of pages that moved now redirect to their new home. Then I crawled every page and clicked every link to make sure nothing was broken.
If you've been putting off a new website because you're worried about your rankings, this is the step that protects them.
Built for AI search, not just Google
More people now ask ChatGPT or Google's AI answers which business to call. Those tools recommend the businesses they can understand. Every page on the new site carries structured information (what we do, where we work, what it costs, common questions) in a format AI tools read directly.
It's the same work I do on client sites, and it's quickly becoming as important as traditional SEO.
Every enquiry lands in one place
Each form on the site now goes straight into our CRM and is tagged by what the person asked about: a new website, SEO, a website audit or hosting. Nothing sits in an inbox waiting to be noticed, and every lead gets a reply within one business day.
Is WordPress still a good choice?
Yes, for many businesses it is. If your WordPress site is working, I can keep it fast, secure and up to date, and make it easier for Google and AI tools to understand. If you need more speed, or you're starting fresh, a modern build like this one may be the better fit. I build both, and I'll recommend whichever suits your business and budget.
What this means for your website
You don't need to rebuild everything at once. But if your site is slow, hard to update, or you can't tell whether it brings in any business, those are the same problems I just fixed on my own.
Start with a free Growth Plan. I'll look at your site, how you show up on Google and in AI search, and tell you honestly whether to keep it, fix it or rebuild it.
