Why Starting Fresh Is Sometimes the Cheaper Choice

I’ve been asked many times to take a look at a website that just isn’t performing. It might be slow, unstable, hard to update, or simply not do what it was meant to do. On the surface, it often sounds like a quick fix. In reality, that initial check can already be time-consuming.

The moment I step into an existing website, I’m entering an environment that wasn’t built by me. I need to understand what platform it’s on, how it was put together, what has been customised, and what might have broken along the way. Sometimes the issue is simple. Plugins haven’t been updated. There’s deprecated code. Something small is holding the whole thing back. In those cases, a careful update, with proper backups and one step at a time, can solve the problem.

Other times, the issues run much deeper.

Some websites are still sitting on very old foundations. In Squarespace, for example, I still see sites built on version 7.0, which was launched back in 2014. We are now well into the era of Squarespace 7.1 and Fluid Engine. While many 7.0 sites still technically work, they are built on an older system that hasn’t evolved as much. That alone can limit what’s possible and how easy it is to maintain or improve the site.

In WordPress, I often see sites running outdated WordPress versions, old PHP, and a long list of plugins that haven’t been touched in years. Most of these issues can be fixed with care. Backups are essential. Updates need to be done slowly and methodically. It is absolutely possible, but it takes time, and it carries risk, especially when the site is live.

The real challenge comes when the structure itself is the problem. Poor theme choices. Over customised layouts. Plugins are doing jobs they were never meant to do. Code layered on top of code with no clear logic. Undoing that kind of setup can take hours and hours, and even then, you are still working inside a fragile system. Every change risks breaking something else. Testing becomes difficult. Stress levels go up. Costs quietly climb.

This is where starting fresh often becomes the cheaper option.

A clean rebuild allows everything to be done properly from the beginning. The right platform. A solid structure. Clean layouts. Modern standards. Better performance. Less technical debt. Instead of spending time untangling old decisions, that time is invested in building something stable, scalable, and easier to maintain in the long term.

I always approach this honestly. If a site can be fixed without unnecessary expense, I will say so. But if the website has been a headache from day one, chances are the foundations are the issue. In those cases, patching things up is often more expensive than rebuilding, both financially and emotionally.

Starting fresh is not about throwing work away. It’s about stopping the slow bleed of time, money, and frustration. Sometimes the smartest fix is knowing when to let go and build something that actually supports the business.

If your DIY site is starting to feel like a time trap, or you’re ready to build something smarter from the beginning, I can help.

We’ll start with what you actually need, skip the overwhelm, and build something that grows with your business. Get in touch here.