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Is AI quietly changing the kind of websites people need — before it even changes how we build them?
In this episode of the Breakdown Podcast, Matt sits down with Jon Schroeder, founder of Elodin Design, for an honest look at how the WordPress freelance and agency world is shifting in early 2026.
Jon shares what he's seeing on the ground: agency work slowing down, mid-range projects drying up, and growing demand at both extremes — simple one-pagers and full-blown web applications built on WordPress.
The conversation covers AI's hidden impact on search and lead generation, why WordPress remains a powerhouse for affordable app development, and a real-world case study using Gravity Forms as the backbone of a property management application.
Connect with Jon:
Resources Mentioned
Elodin Design — Jon's web development studio- Rent Fetch — Jon's apartment rental sync plugin for WordPress
- Brindle Digital — Agency partner for Rent Fetch projects
- Gravity Forms — Form plugin used in Jon's property management app and Rent Fetch integration
- GravityWiz API Alchemist — Advanced add-on for connecting Gravity Forms to any API
- Admin Columns Pro — Used for managing custom content types and CSV exports in WordPress
- Advanced Custom Fields (ACF) — Referenced as an alternative to native custom fields
Standout Moments
"A significant percentage of traffic is getting routed to Google where it never leaves Google. It never comes to your site." — Jon Schroeder
"WordPress can be used for an awful lot of things. It has the authentication layer and all of that baked into it, where a lot of times you can build something that's a wireframe... at a fraction of the price where all of the functionality is actually in place." — Jon Schroeder
"I trust myself more than the AI. And I have built some test sites and some landing pages with AI, but I don't know if I would trust it going live." — Jon Schroeder
