Blocks, Boundaries, and Breakthroughs: Product Development in Modern Woo

WordPress is moving fast on AI, and plugin builders need to keep up. On Jan 21 at 6pm UTC+1, WP Product Talk sits down with Jason Adams, Core AI Team Lead at Automattic, to unpack how plugins WordPress AI efforts are shaping what’s possible right now. Jason joins Zack Katz and Matt Cromwell for a practical conversation on where core AI is headed, how plugin teams can build on it, and what to pay attention to if you want your product to stay relevant as AI lands deeper in WordPress.

Today's users expect speed, clarity, and polish by default. In this episode of WP Product Talk, we dig into Product User Expectations and what WordPress product owners need to stop ignoring if they want to stay relevant. Carl Alexander joins Paul Carter, CEO of BuiltFast, to talk honestly about where products fall short and how teams can raise the bar without burning out. Join Matt Cromwell and Zack Katz live on January 14, 2026 at Noon Eastern Time for a practical conversation about performance, UX, and the real cost of excuses. This one is for builders who want fewer complaints, happier customers, and products that feel modern out of the box.

In this episode of WP Product Talk, hosts Zach Katz and Ian Meisner dive into the potential of MCP (Model Context Protocol) for WooCommerce product builders. Joined by Nik McLaughlin from SkyVerge, the discussion covers how MCP enables apps, tools, and AI models to communicate, its readiness for real-world use, and whether it's worth the investment. This episode explores the technical intricacies of MCP, its potential applications, and how it could revolutionize everything from store management to customer experience. They also tackle the challenges, risks, and the future of MCP in the WordPress ecosystem. Tune in for insights on how this technology could unlock new opportunities for product owners and developers.

Product positioning is one of those things everyone talks about, but very few get right, especially when a product’s value isn’t immediately obvious. In this episode of WP Product Talk, we’re going all in on what product positioning really means and how to make it work in the real world. Nathan Tyler, founder of BlinkMetrics, joins co-hosts Matt Cromwell and Zack Katz to unpack how founders can clarify their message, sharpen their positioning, and help the right customers “get it” faster. Join us live today at Noon ET for a practical, founder-focused conversation.

Join us for Making WordPress Weird: Nick Hamze on Building for Fun in WordPress, as we explore what happens when you stop taking things so seriously and start creating just because it’s fun. Nick Hamze is known for his playful, unconventional approach to building and his relentless push to keep the creative spirit of WordPress alive. From his pro-Wapuu advocacy to his experiments with AI and offbeat product ideas, Nick shows us why weirdness might just be WordPress’s greatest strength. We’re going live Wednesday, December 11 at Noon ET, with co-hosts Ian Misner and Matt Cromwell, who’ll help unpack how curiosity, experimentation, and a bit of chaos can lead to more meaningful work and maybe even better products.

Join us for Blocks, Boundaries, and Breakthroughs: Product Development in Modern Woo as we dive into the future of WooCommerce development with the brilliant Kathy Darling, known for her deep expertise in building powerful Woo extensions. We’ll explore how Woo’s shift toward blocks is shaping product strategy and what today’s builders need to understand to stay ahead. We’re going live today, Dec 3 at Noon ET, with co-hosts Ian Misner and Katie Keith, who will help unpack what these changes mean for anyone building or scaling a WordPress product business.

In a market where subscription pricing has become the default, choosing a one-off model can feel almost rebellious. In this episode of WP Product Talk, hosts Katie Keith (Barn2 Plugins) and Matt Cromwell (GiveWP/StellarWP) sit down with Rodolfo Melogli from Business Bloomer and Checkout Summit to examine why he has doubled down on low-cost, single-payment utility plugins instead of recurring revenue. We will cover: Why Rodolfo believes one-time pricing can be more sustainable than people think How small but focused utility plugins can outperform larger subscription-based products When a non-subscription model makes strategic sense and when it does not What this means for founders deciding how to price their next product If you are rethinking your pricing strategy or wondering whether subscriptions are always the right answer, this conversation offers a rare look at a completely different approach.

Hosts Katie Keith (Barn2 Plugins) and Zack Katz (GravityKit) are joined by Melissa Love from thedesignspace.co, who builds and sells Kadence add-ons, to explore what it takes to succeed when your product relies on someone else’s platform. We’ll unpack the realities of building an add-on business inside another company’s ecosystem – from navigating limitations and dependencies to building relationships that help your product thrive. 🎯 Key Takeaways 🧩 1. Build Where There’s a Proven Market — But Do Your Homework The biggest insight for me was how all three guests — Melissa (Star Cloud), Zack (GravityKit), and Katie (Barn2) — emphasized that building on top of a popular platform is a shortcut to product–market fit. But it’s not enough to just pick the biggest name. Melissa shared how her team interviewed potential ecosystems (like KadenceWP, Elementor, Divi) before committing — digging into: How active and open their developer communities were Whether founders were visible and communicative If the product had technical stability and funding longevity Zack echoed this: when he chose Gravity Forms, it wasn’t just the market share — it was their developer-first culture, predictable updates, and strong backward compatibility. 💡 Actionable takeaway: Before you build, vet your platform partner like an investor. Check their roadmap, Slack groups, and developer documentation. If they don’t value external developers, move on. 🤝 2. Treat the Platform Owner as a Partner — Not a Competitor This theme kept coming up: success in an add-on business depends on having a mutually beneficial relationship with the parent product. Zack shared that Gravity Forms gives certified developers Slack access, roadmap previews, and early GitHub updates — which let his team stay compatible and confident. Katie contrasted that with WooCommerce, where early on, there was zero relationship — and she had to grow independently. Only in recent years has WooCommerce opened up to community dialogue. Melissa described Cadence as “democratic,” letting devs monetize through Cadence Cloud and even licensing APIs. 💡 Actionable takeaway: Be proactive in communication. Offer feedback, share improvements, and show how your success lifts the platform’s ecosystem. Collaboration gets you access, visibility, and smoother integrations. ⚙️ 3. Expect Platform Risk — and Outperform It by Being Excellent Every guest admitted that when you build on someone else’s product, you’re vulnerable to that platform changing direction or adding your feature into core. But instead of fearing it, they all agreed on one defense: be the better version. Melissa: “We deal with threats by being excellent.” Her team invests in documentation, training, and customer education — things most platform developers don’t do. Zack: “If Gravity Forms built a GravityView competitor, we’d just have to be better.” Katie: pointed out how WooCommerce often adds basic versions of popular plugin features — but leaves plenty of room for specialized, advanced solutions. 💡 Actionable takeaway: Don’t just rely on your integration — differentiate through support, UX, and focus. Your edge is execution quality and customer experience, not just your technical connection. ✳️ In short: If I had to summarize this episode in one line: “Add-on success = great partner choice + great relationships + relentless excellence.” It’s a masterclass in how to build with an ecosystem, not under it. Mentioned in this Episode NameURLContextWooCommercehttps://woocommerce.comDiscussed as a major WordPress eCommerce platform that many developers build add-ons for.Gravity Formshttps://www.gravityforms.comReferenced multiple times as a base plugin ecosystem for third-party add-ons like GravityKit.GravityKithttps://www.gravitykit.comZack Katz’s product suite built on top of Gravity Forms.KadenceWPhttps://www.kadencewp.comMelissa’s current platform focus; mentioned for its “Cadence Cloud” feature and developer openness.Divihttps://www.elegantthemes.com/gallery/divi/Mentioned as one of the first ecosystems Melissa built for; the first third-party marketplace she participated in.Elementorhttps://elementor.comCompared alongside Divi as a design framework with large plugin ecosystems.StyleCloudhttps://stylecloud.coMelissa’s company; builds add-ons and hosts a Facebook community.Freemiushttps://freemius.comMentioned as WP Product Talk’s “growth partner” that handles plugin licensing and sales.GiveWPhttps://givewp.comUsed as an example of a plugin ecosystem originally forked from Easy Digital Downloads.Easy Digital Downloads (EDD)https://easydigitaldownloads.comReferenced as the base that GiveWP was forked from.Fluent Product Suite by WP Manage Ninjahttps://wpmanageninja.com/Mentioned in audience question about building internal systems on top of Fluent products.FloThemeshttps://flothemes.com/Former competitor in the photography WordPress theme space, referenced by Melissa.Genesis Frameworkhttps://www.studiopress.com/genesis-framework/Cited as one of the earliest WordPress ecosystems to inspire add-on marketplaces.Foodie Pro Themehttps://feastdesignco.com/foodie-pro/Mentioned in a discussion of third-party acquisitions within the Genesis ecosystem.

It’s that time of year again—Black Friday and Cyber Monday are almost here, and WordPress product owners are gearing up for their biggest sales season. Join us for Black Friday Strategies for WordPress Products, a special episode where our co-hosts share proven tactics, lessons learned, and insider advice for running high-performing holiday promotions. We’ll cover everything from pricing psychology to partnership campaigns, so you can make the most of your Cyber Monday WordPress plugins strategy. 🎯 Key Takeaways 🧭 1. Black Friday Is About Meeting Customer Expectations — Not Just Discounts If there’s one drum the whole panel kept beating, it’s this: you don’t have to love Black Friday, but you can’t ignore it. Zack Katz (GravityKit) admitted he used to resist the consumerism of it all — he even tried a “Giving Thanks” sale instead — but eventually realized that expectation trumps philosophy. Customers come to your site that week expecting a deal. If they don’t find one, they’ll just go buy a similar plugin from someone who’s running one. Katie Keith (Barn2) added a nuanced point: even if you don’t discount, you still need to “show up” in the conversation. A promotion doesn’t have to mean a percentage off; it can mean a lifetime plan, a bonus add-on, or an early renewal perk. Ian Misner (KestrelWP) framed it perfectly: “Black Friday is the one time of year your audience’s buying intent shows up for free — so lean into it.” For product founders, the takeaway is clear: Black Friday is less about sales psychology and more about participation. You can choose the format — bundle, credit, or limited edition offer — but being absent makes you invisible. 💌 2. Email Segmentation Is the Unsung Hero of Black Friday Wins Every panelist agreed: email drives the majority of Black Friday revenue. But what separated their results wasn’t volume — it was segmentation. Ian shared that last year, his team learned people will “let you email them way more than usual” during Black Friday week — as long as the messages feel relevant. He’s now leaning into deep segmentation and personalization, even with a relatively small list (~10K subscribers). Matt Cromwell (ex-StellarWP) highlighted a specific tactic he learned from Chris Lema: “Put a link at the top of every email saying, ‘Not into Black Friday promos? Click here,’ and tag them as opt-out. That way, you can email aggressively without burning out your long-term subscribers.” Katie Keith built on that, explaining how Barn2 tailors their Black Friday messages by customer type — offering upgrades or cross-sells to existing users instead of generic discounts. So the tactical lesson here: Start early. Warm up your list before November. Segment smartly. “New,” “active,” and “churned” users need different offers. Give control. Let people opt out without unsubscribing altogether. Black Friday email success isn’t just “more emails.” It’s more respect with strategy. 💡 3. Treat Black Friday Like a Retention Strategy — Not a One-Weekend Cash Grab This was one of the most refreshing themes of the episode: all four co-hosts talked about turning Black Friday customers into long-term loyalists. Ian described how CheckoutWC is using their “Account Funds for WooCommerce” extension to give customers store credit or rewards that bring them back in January. Katie and Zack both shared stories of early renewal campaigns — offering existing subscribers a smaller pre-Black Friday discount (like 25% off instead of 40%) to renew early and skip the chaos. Ian summed it up well: “It’s not about the four days — it’s about how you attach those buyers to you so they keep buying after the sale.” That’s also why several of them prefer Cyber Monday positioning over Black Friday — it aligns with digital products, software, and continuity rather than impulse shopping. The broader takeaway: treat Black Friday as a loyalty event, not just a sales event. Build offers that bring customers back, not just in. 💬 Mentioned in this Episode Name / LabelURLContextMatt Cromwell’s personal bloghttps://www.mattcromwell.com/finding-the-next-right-thing/Matt announced it’s his last day at StellarWP and referenced a post he wrote explaining his transition.WP Product Talk websitehttps://wpproducttalk.comMentioned multiple times — where Matt’s article about FIUs partnership was published and where blog roundups will appear.Freemius https://freemius.comWP Product Talk’s growth partner helping reach 10K YouTube subscribers.YouTube (WP Product Talk channel)https://www.youtube.com/@wpproducttalkReferenced in the “road to 10,000 subscribers” announcement and in calls to subscribe.CheckoutWC / KestrelWPhttps://checkoutwc.com / https://kestrelwp.comIan mentioned giving away a WooCommerce extension (“Account Funds for WooCommerce”) as part of their Black Friday promotion.Account Funds for WooCommercehttps://kestrelwp.com/products/account-funds-for-woocommerceIan’s WooCommerce extension discussed as part of their Black Friday bundle strategy.Popup Makerhttps://wppopupmaker.comZack Katz recommended using Popup Maker to build email lists and promote Black Friday deals.Restreamhttps://restream.ioMatt mentioned this as the platform they use to live-stream the podcast, praising its Black Friday banner example.Elegant Themeshttps://www.elegantthemes.comDiscussed as an example of effective Black Friday marketing; their homepage “takeover” and real urgency units were referenced.WP Enginehttps://wpengine.comCited as another example, known for a large modal takeover during Black Friday.PlayStationhttps://www.playstation.comMentioned in comparison to Black Friday design examples (big hero banner, neon colors).Bosehttps://www.bose.comCited as an example of a minimal Black Friday landing experience.SiteGroundhttps://www.siteground.comUsed as an example of a full-site takeover during Black Friday sales.Liquid Webhttps://www.liquidweb.comAnother visual example discussed for its Black Friday hero design.Nexushttps://www.nexcess.netMentioned in Matt’s Black Friday design walkthrough (small banner example).Applehttps://www.apple.comDiscussed in context of not offering traditional Black Friday discounts (gift card instead).Targethttps://www.target.comReferenced as a reseller that participates in Apple’s gift card promos.Costcohttps://www.costco.comSame context as Target — participates in Apple’s gift card promotions.Recapture.iohttps://recapture.ioZack Katz referenced this for automated abandoned cart flows during Black Friday campaigns.Stranger Studios – Sitewide Sales Pluginhttps://sitewidesales.comZack recommended this plugin for handling automated discounting during Black Friday; compatible with EDD and WooCommerce.Design Space (Melissa Love’s company)https://thedesignspace.coMentioned in preview of next episode — upcoming guest Melissa Love from Majorca.Kadencehttps://www.kadencewp.comReferenced because Melissa Love sells Kadence add-ons.Gravity Formshttps://www.gravityforms.comMentioned as the base plugin for Zack Katz’s add-ons (GravityKit).WooCommercehttps://woocommerce.comReferenced throughout — Katie Keith’s add-ons, Ian’s account funds plugin, and general Black Friday tactics.Barn2 Pluginshttps://barn2.comKatie Keith’s company, referenced in introductions and when discussing discount tactics.StellarWPhttps://stellarwp.comMentioned in Matt’s farewell announcement.

As product founders, we LOVE when customers share ideas…but how do you decide which requests to act on and which to let go? In this episode, Robby McCullough and Justin Busa from Beaver Builder join us to talk about finding that balance between listening and overbuilding, how Beaver Builder approaches feedback, and why saying “no” can actually make your product better. 👉 Tune in to learn how to turn feedback into focus without letting feature creep take over.