Just wrapped up a project migrating a client's mid-size ecommerce store off Shopify to self-hosted WooCommerce, age-restricted products so compliance was heavy, on managed hosting with Cloudflare Enterprise through the host. Ran into a solid bot traffic problem during the process and wanted to share what I did, plus ask you all a question since my fix only works because the client is US-only.

The site started getting 503s during traffic spikes. Turned out PHP-FPM workers were getting exhausted from bot traffic hammering the site. Didn't help that the caching plugin the host had installed by default had a broken cookie exclusion rule, so way more pages were loading fresh instead of from cache. That piled onto the bot load, but the bots were the real driver.

What I did about it:

- Ditched the host's default caching plugin, switched to WP Rocket, set up preload and a longer cache lifespan. Fixed the cache bypass issue.
- Geo-blocked all non-US traffic at the edge since the client only ships domestically anyway, with Google and Bing whitelisted so SEO wasn't affected. This alone wiped out most of the international bot traffic.
- Added rate limiting on the busiest pages, again with search engines excluded.
- Blocked xmlrpc.php at the server level instead of using a plugin for it.
- Turned on 2FA for all admin accounts plus a login attempt limiter.
- Switched WP cron to a real server-side scheduled task instead of the default.

Funny side effect, the geo-block also caught PageSpeed Insights and GTmetrix checks since those run from servers outside the US. Sorting out whitelisting for that now.

So here's my question: geo-blocking basically solved this since the client doesn't ship outside the US, but what do you do when that's not an option? If you've worked on a store that ships internationally, how do you deal with bot traffic without being able to just block by region? Behavioral bot management, different rate limiting approach, something else entirely? Also happy to hear if you'd have done anything differently with the above.

https://preview.redd.it/2i0bd18tk0lh1.png?width=1280&format=png&auto=webp&s=a717e67e020cafdb3bb1a304992956a4e58f7db3

I’ve been building sites with WordPress since 2007 or so, but until now I had never released one of my themes publicly. Absolute 2026 has passed review and is now available from the WordPress.org Theme Directory.

It’s a native block theme with complete page patterns and smaller component patterns for building your own layouts. There’s no proprietary builder, custom Project post type, or theme-specific content system.

I’m posting to ask for reviews and suggestions for improvement. The theme is a 1:1 translation of the components and page structures from my portfolio, so I’m interested to see what other practical uses people might find for it — case studies, personal projects, small service-business sites, or TBD. If anyone feels like installing it and kicking the tires, I’d like to hear about bugs, friction, missing features, and suggestions for improvement.

————

If you’re interested in the lore behind the design:

I’ve been introducing AI-generated images and vibe coding into my workflow, with reactions ranging from neutrality to blistering hostility. The positives I hear are about speed and convenience, never quality. And especially never about interesting or exciting design.

So I took it upon myself to start with the most banal Claude-meets-Tailwind pablum I could find — the true design voice of 2026 — and see how far I needed to tweak the typography, color, and structure to reach a place outside the bounds of AI slop. I found what I consider a reasonable middle ground and used it for my portfolio site, then thought it would be fun to convert it into a native WordPress block theme.

And imperfect as it might be, it was fun. I hope other folks find something interesting or even useful in it. I mean, it’s open source, so go nuts.

————

Getting Started:
https://donschnitzius.com/absolute-2026/getting-started/

WordPress.org Theme Directory:
https://wordpress.org/themes/absolute-2026/

I’m trying to find a good CRM for my type of business. I own a service-based B2B company where I’m a vendor for apartment communities, so a lot of my sales/outreach is done in person.

Right now I’m using Notion, basically set up like Excel/Google Sheets. It works, but it’s almost entirely manual. It’s just me and my secretary using it.

I do a lot of follow-ups through in-person visits, phone calls, and emails. I understand I’ll probably still have to manually enter some information, but I’d like a CRM that can automate or assist with things like follow-up reminders, tracking contacts, sales stages, notes, tasks, etc., rather than having everything written down and managed manually.

What CRM would you recommend for a small B2B service business with a heavy emphasis on in-person sales and follow-up?

When looking at a pipeline, the deal stage doesn't always tell you enough.

Two deals can both be in the same stage, but one might be moving normally while the other has been sitting there for too long.

So I added a simple Deal Health check based on the expected date.

The idea is to make it easier to spot:

→ Deals that are on track

→ Deals getting close to their expected date

→ Deals that are late

→ Deals that are already done

It's a small feature, but I think these little visual cues make a deal tracker much easier to scan

curious what's one thing you think a deal tracker should flag automatically?

Its free if anyone wants it

I'm by no means an expert but around 10 years ago I hosted a WordPress site and I was changing the theme manually, I think I even set up an unsuccessful e commerce site for a few months at one point. Has much changed since then? Is there anything revolutionary that wasn't used in the past? I'm thinking of setting a website up to post content about my projects

Hello everyone,

I am a first time web developer and recently landed a client for SEO. The thing is they now want me to completely redesign their website. As far as I can tell, their current site is built on WordPress.

To get an idea I used ChatGPT to generate a prototype. It gave me a static HTML file and ngl it hits all the boxes theme, fonts and layout the client needs.

Since I have this HTML file my question is Can I use this AI blueprint to actually build and launch the live WordPress site?

If so what is the best way to do this using AI or page builders? (e.g., converting HTML to a WordPress theme or using AI tools inside WordPress?)

I wanna make sure I deliver a clean, functional site without getting in over my head on the backend side since I'm new to this.

Trabalho com CRM e vejo esse erro em praticamente todo report que passa numa

reunião. Vale compartilhar porque é simples de reconhecer depois que alguém aponta.

O caso típico: base de 200 mil, 180 mil têm e-mail válido e recebem a campanha, 20 mil ficam de fora porque o cadastro está incompleto. No fim do período: recebeu a campanha: 1.620 compras em 180.000 = 0,90% não recebeu: 60 compras em 20.000 = 0,30% 

"A campanha triplicou a conversão." Ninguém questiona, porque o número é grande.

O problema é que quem não recebeu, não recebeu por um motivo, e esse motivo tem

relação direta com propensão de compra. Cadastro incompleto anda junto com menor

vínculo com a marca. Esses dois grupos já eram diferentes antes de qualquer envio.

Quando se sorteia 10% da base ANTES do disparo, o grupo de fora converte a 0,75%,

porque é feito da mesma gente. Aí o lift real aparece: 20%, não 200%. A campanha

funcionou, mas o report exagerou dez vezes, e foi sobre esse número inflado que a

empresa decidiu aumentar o investimento.

O teste de dez segundos que resolve a maioria dos casos: "existe alguma razão para

esse grupo comprar mais ou menos que o outro, independentemente da campanha?" Se

a resposta for sim, não é grupo de controle. Se você precisar pensar muito para

responder, também não é.

Os falsos controles mais comuns, todos parecem legítimos: quem não tem e-mail

válido, quem deu opt-out, quem não abriu a mensagem, quem ficou fora do segmento,

quem teve falha de entrega, e o mesmo período do ano anterior.

I'm building a new WordPress website for my writing project, Madeline Oona Writes, and I'm at the beginning of putting everything together.

I recently found a beautiful theme that I love (Vivre), but before I start installing plugins and filling the site with content, I want to build it thoughtfully from the beginning, especially from an SEO perspective.

I've heard that SEO should guide the site's structure rather than being something you try to add at the end, and that makes a lot of sense to me. So I'm wondering:

What should I establish first in terms of site structure and SEO?

Should I plan my pages, categories and content strategy before installing plugins?

Which SEO plugin would you recommend in 2026, and why?

What other plugins are genuinely worth having for a writer/author website?

What would you avoid installing?

Are there any common mistakes I should avoid when building a site from the ground up?

I'm mainly looking for advice on how to approach the setup strategically.

If you're a writer, author, blogger, or someone who builds WordPress sites, I'd especially love to hear how you approached your own site and what you wish you'd known when you were starting out.

I'm hoping to build something with room to grow, so I'd rather make thoughtful decisions now than have to restructure everything later.

Thank you! I'd really appreciate hearing from people who've been through this before.

As always, I tested again 8 featured plugins from WordPress.org. The second batch of August.
Here is what I think;

Lineate - Poetry Blocks (4.9/5)
Adds a dedicated poetry block, including an image export function.
Does exactly one thing and does it really well, and the poem-to-image export is a nice touch.
I can't find much to complain about. Maybe the native core poetry block is enough for you, but if you are serious about poetry, this is a great plugin.

VovaBlocks - Marketing & Content Blocks for Gutenberg (4.6/5)
A block collection focused on marketing and content blocks.
Very intuitive, lots of options, and I like that you can toggle which blocks actually show up.
Not a lot of unique blocks though, and the better ones are locked behind pro. Solid and it works, just a little bit too little to offer right now.

Hafenstudios Ads - Ad Manager, AdSense & Banner Ads (4.5/5)
Manage AdSense, banner ads, and split tests.
Split testing is probably my favorite feature, the AdSense/AI integration is nice, and the HTML block gives you a lot of freedom.
The regular templates are limited, and I think you suppose to convert them into a HTML block, if you like to do more… Not super intuitive. Also there are a few missing convenient functions like media and date picker. Reviews also look a little sus, low downloads but a lot of 5 star ratings....idk.

Sense Forms (4.4/5)
Form builder with GDPR tools, analytics, and conditional logic.
Nice onboarding, tons of fields, solid privacy and tracking options, and conditional logic that most free form plugins skip.
Some style options are buggy, especially hover states, and performance could be better since styles and scripts load unconditionally.

VertiFeed - Vertical Media Gallery (4.3/5)
A TikTok-style vertical video gallery block.
Simple interface, no bloat, lightweight.
First load can take a while, in Firefox especially (probably a bug…), and there's no video filesize limit. Otherwise pretty solid.

UnoDock (4.0/5)
A mobile sticky nav bar with icon buttons.
Easy to use, 8 templates to start from.
Preview isn't accurate, some icons have the wrong size or color, and you can't style buttons individually. It's okay, but I think there are better options.

BellePopups (3.8/5)
Yet another popup builder, this time with 10 starter templates.
Easy to use and it has a built-in contrast checker.
Preview is tiny, options like the darken-image slider are limited, and you're stuck with predefined templates. Doesn't really offer anything the others don't, and it feels a bit AI generated.

eBook Crafter - Convert Posts to PDF eBooks, Ready to Print (3.4/5)
Turns your posts into downloadable PDF ebooks.
Nice use of the block editor, and it keeps multiple versions of the PDFs you create.
Messes with your normal editor styling, the PDF output looks very different from the editor, and it feels unfinished overall. I like the idea, but it needs more work.

See the full breakdown with all the details on YT:
https://youtu.be/oQWJRlMAToo

What do you think about this selection? Will you install any of those?

Hello everyone!

I’m having an issue with a WordPress website. The site suddenly started showing the following critical error:

Warning: require_once(/home/www/public/wp-admin/includes/plugin.php): Failed to open stream: Permission denied in /home/www/public/wp-settings.php on line 579

Fatal error: Uncaught Error: Failed opening required '/home/www/public/wp-admin/includes/plugin.php' (include_path='.:/usr/share/php') in /home/www/public/wp-settings.php:579 Stack trace: #0 /home/www/public/wp-config.php(111): require_once() #1 /home/www/public/wp-load.php(50): require_once('...') #2 /home/www/public/wp-blog-header.php(13): require_once('...') #3 /home/www/public/index.php(17): require('...') #4 {main} thrown in /home/www/public/wp-settings.php on line 579

Has anyone encountered this issue before?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

I am beginner at wordpress and building my first woocommerce website, my site is getting hanged when i edit pages, it stuck real bad. Plz suggest if there is any solution.

Hi everyone,

I was trying to start the 7-day free trial of SEMrush, but I found out that they no longer accept virtual cards for the trial. Unfortunately, I only have virtual cards available, so I can't activate it.

It's a bit frustrating because I wanted to test SEMrush properly for keyword research and competitor analysis.

Does anyone know a good SEMrush alternative that is cheaper but still has a solid keyword database and competitor research features?

I need something close to SEMrush, mainly for keyword research, SERP analysis, and finding opportunities from competitors.

Thanks!

With the recent surge in AI-driven scrapers, brute-force attempts, and automated vulnerability scanning, basic setups are struggling. I want to know what are you guys using for protecting wordpress websites ?

I am currently building a registration form on my site using the paid User Registration form from WPexperts. It connects to my WooCommerce store.

Idea being that i am using the default fields for the standard email, password etc - and using the "extra fields" for a) File Upload (For picture ID's) b) Checkbox for consent.

However, when i go to the registration page - it only shows the default form and won't load the Extra feilds despite the options enabled in the settings to show extra feilds at the registration page.

Default Form shortcode [wc-user-registration-page] correctly displays account fields and enabled billing fields, but no fields saved under Default Form → Extra Fields are rendered on registration despite “Display Extra Fields on Registration” being enabled. Tested with File, Checkbox and plain Text Field.

The Default Form shortcode works and responds to General Settings and Default Fields. Billing fields enable/disable correctly and updated labels appear on the front end. However, no fields created under Default Form → Extra Fields render on [wc-user-registration-page], even with “Display Extra Field"” enabled. Tested with File, Checkbox and simple Text Field, including on a plain Gutenberg page with no Elementor.

Any idea what could be the issue? - I have raised a ticket but it's been nearly 24 hours with no response and I need to get this done.

Thank you!

I'm struggling with a multi-layered issue on my site oraultima.com and could really use some expert advice. My site focuses on a strict niche: insurance, mortgages, and banking (YMYL).

Here is my current setup and situation:

• Platform: WordPress with Classic Editor (no heavy page builders).
• Theme: Blocksy.
• Plugins/Setup: I use WPCode to inject the global AdSense script in the header.
• Status: No manual actions, no security issues, and clean green status in Google Search Console. The ads.txt file is properly configured and authorized.

My Auto Ads configuration in AdSense:

• Overlay formats: Only "Anchor ads" are enabled (set to Bottom only). Vignettes and Side-rail ads are turned off.
• In-page formats: "Banner ads" are enabled (with max ads per page set to 6, and options like "Find other ad placements on article pages" and "Optimize existing ads" checked).

What I've already done regarding Autoptimize: I've fine-tuned Autoptimize to prevent script conflicts with AdSense:

1. JavaScript: Disabled "Aggregate JS" to stop Autoptimize from merging or delaying Google scripts. Added strict exclusions: /adsbygoogle/, /pagead/, /doubleclick/, google_service_ad.js, show_ads.js, pagead2.googlesyndication.com, adsbygoogle, pagead/js.
2. CSS & HTML: Standard CSS/HTML optimizations are active (aggregation and inline CSS), which don't interfere with ads.
3. Image Lazy-load: Active, but excluded adsbygoogle, googlesyndication, wp-post-image, and logo.webp.
4. Extra options: Kept only safe options (remove emojis, query strings, combine Google Fonts), avoiding preconnect, preload, or async JS to prevent conflicts.

Despite all this, I am facing three massive roadblocks:

1. AdSense Impressions / Coverage is broken: Even though I get page views, AdSense impressions are practically at zero or single digits (coverage is around 12%). Specifically, in recent articles the in-page banner ads do not show up at all—users only see the single bottom anchor ad. Do any of you experience this behavior with Auto Ads?
2. Google won't recognize my true niche: I am trying to rank for banking, insurance, and mortgages, but Google completely ignores my site for these keywords. According to my Search Console data, Google only sends me impressions and clicks for unrelated public employment queries (like "arretrati contratto medici 2026" or "ultimissime contratto medici 2026"). Surely a few sporadic posts about public contracts shouldn't dictate my entire site's niche or block me from ranking in finance. My traffic has dropped, and Google treats the site like it has no authority in the YMYL space.
3. Low overall traffic: Because of the lack of visibility in my core niche, traffic remains very low.

My questions to the community:

• Could the Blocksy theme be conflicting with Google Auto Ads (preventing in-page banners from rendering while only showing the anchor ad)? Should I switch to manual ad units?
• How can I signal to Google that Ora Ultima is dedicated to finance/insurance when Google keeps pigeonholing me into unrelated topics (like public contracts) and ignoring my core YMYL content?
• Any advice on recovering traffic and fixing this abysmal ad delivery?

Thanks a lot in advance for any insights!