People ask me this a lot. “How do you manage everything?” “What’s your stack?” “How is it just you?”
Honestly? It’s not magic. It’s a pretty lean set of tools I’ve built up over 15 years of running WordPress sites — and a couple of newer ones that have genuinely changed how fast I can move.
This is the real list. Not aspirational. Not sponsored fluff. The actual tools running LoudCow.ai right now.
WordPress + AI — The Foundation
I’ve been building on WordPress for 15 years. I’m not switching. It’s not broken.
What has changed is the layer on top. AI tools have made it faster to create, edit, and manage content than anything I used five years ago. The combination of WordPress + AI is where I live now.
But none of that matters if your hosting is slow, unreliable, or requires a sysadmin to babysit it.
That’s where 10Web comes in.
I moved LoudCow.ai to 10Web’s managed WordPress hosting and it’s been the quietest infrastructure decision I’ve made in years. Fast load times. Automatic backups. Google Cloud infrastructure underneath. And I haven’t thought about server stuff since.
For anyone running a client site or their own business on WordPress — managed hosting isn’t a luxury. It’s the thing that lets you focus on the business instead of the server.
AppSumo — Where I Find Tools Before Paying Monthly
I have a rule. Before I sign up for any new SaaS tool on a monthly plan, I check AppSumo first.
Because nine times out of ten, there’s a lifetime deal for exactly what I need — or something close enough. Pay once. Own it. No recurring invoices eating into margin.
I’ve been buying AppSumo deals for years. Some have been brilliant. Some have collected digital dust. The ones that stick are the ones I’ve tested properly in the first 60 days — which is exactly how long their money-back guarantee lasts.
It’s how smart operators build a software stack without the ongoing subscription tax. I recommend it to every client who asks me how to keep overheads lean.
Browse This Week’s AppSumo Deals →
Vibe Coding with Base44 — Building AI Agents Without Writing Code
This one’s harder to explain. But stick with me.
“Vibe coding” is the term floating around right now for building software by describing what you want in plain English — and having AI actually build it. No code. No developer. No $150/hour agency bill.
I was sceptical. Then I tried Base44.
Base44 lets you build AI-powered apps and agents through conversation. You describe the workflow, it builds the thing. I used it to build the agent that automatically writes and publishes blog posts to this site every week.
This post? Written and published by that agent. On a Tuesday morning. While I was doing something else.
I’m not saying it’s perfect. There’s a learning curve in getting the agent to sound like you — I spent time dialling in the voice, the formatting, the guardrails. But once it’s set up? It runs.
For small business owners and solo operators who are drowning in repetitive tasks — content, client comms, reporting, data entry — Base44 is worth a serious look. It connects to Gmail, Slack, Google Calendar, WordPress. You build workflows in plain English.
It’s not replacing me. It’s handling the stuff that used to eat my Tuesdays.
The Honest Summary
My stack isn’t flashy. It’s just stuff that works.
WordPress is the foundation — it’s not going anywhere. 10Web keeps it fast and drama-free. AppSumo keeps my software costs sane. And Base44 handles the automation layer that used to eat hours every week.
If you’re running a WordPress site and you’re still doing everything manually — start with one of these. Any one of them. The compounding effect of getting even one thing off your plate is real.
Disclosure: Some links in this post are affiliate links. I only recommend tools I actually use. Your purchase supports LoudCow.ai at no extra cost to you.
