Tools I Actually Trust and Use

DNS, security, performance, caching, tunnels—it quietly powers almost everything.

Cloudflare sits in front of nearly every site I build. It's not flashy, and that's exactly why it works. Fast DNS, intelligent caching, DDoS protection, and zero-trust tunneling—all without adding complexity where you don't need it. Over the years it's become less of a tool I choose and more of a layer I simply expect to be there—like electricity.

My primary CMS for content-driven, SEO-focused, and custom-built sites.

WordPress gets unfair criticism from people who've only seen badly built sites. Used correctly—custom themes, clean code, intentional plugin choices—it's a powerful, flexible platform that gives clients real control without sacrificing developer capability. I've been building on WordPress since the early days, and it remains my first choice for content-heavy, long-term projects.

Industry-standard tools for photography editing, image manipulation, and vector design.

Photoshop and Lightroom handle all serious photo editing and retouching work. Illustrator creates logos, icons, and anything requiring precision vector work. These aren't tools you outgrow—they're tools you get deeper into over time.

Modern interface design and collaborative prototyping.

Figma replaced older design workflows because it's collaborative by default, browser-based, and genuinely fast. I use it for website layouts, component design, and client collaboration when visual feedback loops need to be tight.

My go-to for scalable commerce, subscriptions, and event-driven sales.

Shopify works when you need commerce infrastructure that scales without requiring constant maintenance. Clean APIs, reliable checkout flows, extensive app ecosystem, and excellent performance out of the box. I've built everything from single-product launches to multi-variant subscription businesses on Shopify.

Ideal when WordPress flexibility and deeper backend control are required.

WooCommerce makes sense when the rest of the site is already WordPress, when you need deep customization, or when the commerce logic needs to integrate tightly with content. It requires more hands-on management than Shopify, but that control pays off in complex scenarios.

Clean APIs, dependable infrastructure, and excellent developer experience.

Stripe is what I reach for when payment processing needs to be custom, embedded, or part of a larger automation workflow. Transparent pricing, well-documented APIs, and infrastructure that just works. It's boring in the best possible way.

Forms, workflows, lifecycle logic, attribution, and segmentation—used intentionally.

HubSpot shines when marketing automation needs to be sophisticated without requiring a dedicated admin. I've built nurture sequences, lead scoring models, and attribution systems in HubSpot that directly tied to revenue. It's powerful when used strategically, bloated when used carelessly.

Enterprise-grade CRM and reporting environments.

Salesforce is where I've worked on large-scale, multi-team sales and marketing operations. It's not a tool you choose lightly—it requires commitment, configuration, and ongoing management. But when scale and complexity demand it, Salesforce delivers.

High-impact lead routing and booking—directly tied to conversions.

Chili Piper solved a specific problem: getting qualified leads into sales conversations faster. Intelligent routing, instant booking, and seamless calendar integration. Small tool, significant impact on conversion rates.

My preferred automation engine—powerful, visual, and deeply extensible.

n8n is what I reach for when automation needs to be sophisticated, maintainable, and auditable. Self-hosted option, visual workflow builder, and the ability to write custom JavaScript when logic gets complex. It's not the easiest entry point, but it's the most capable once you understand it.

Fast connections for simple workflows when speed matters.

Zapier wins when you need something working in ten minutes. The interface is approachable, the integrations are extensive, and it handles 80% of automation needs without breaking a sweat. Not as powerful as n8n for complex logic, but often that doesn't matter.

Chosen when logic, branching, and data shaping are required.

Make sits between Zapier and n8n—more capable than Zapier for handling conditional logic and data transformation, more accessible than n8n for visual thinkers. I use it when workflows need intelligence but don't need full custom code.

The current standard for website analytics—imperfect but essential.

GA4 is built around events and user journeys rather than pageviews. It's free, deeply integrated with Google's ecosystem, and provides the baseline data most businesses need. Setup requires thought—default tracking misses critical events and reports need customization—but once configured correctly it becomes reliable.

The layer that makes modern tracking actually manageable without code changes.

GTM lets you deploy and update tracking tags through a visual interface instead of hardcoding scripts. Real value shows when tracking specific interactions—clicks, form submissions, scroll depth—or integrating multiple platforms. Learning curve exists, but the payoff is flexibility and iteration without developer bottlenecks.

Public content, live streams, long-tail discovery.

YouTube is where content lives when you want it found. SEO-friendly, massive reach, reliable infrastructure. Not always the most elegant embed, but unmatched for discoverability.

Clean embeds, privacy, and brand control when presentation matters.

Vimeo is the choice when video quality, clean player design, and privacy controls matter more than maximum reach. I use it for portfolio work, client presentations, and anywhere the video itself needs to feel professional without YouTube's surrounding noise.

Real-time communication for teams that need speed and searchability.

Slack replaced email for internal communication because threads are searchable, integrations are extensive, and async collaboration actually works. Used well, it reduces meeting overhead. Used poorly, it becomes noise. I've built Slack workflows that connect directly to project management and automation systems.

Project management for multi-step workflows and team coordination.

Asana structures work when projects have dependencies, timelines, and multiple collaborators. I use it to keep client projects organized, track deliverables, and maintain visibility across longer timelines.

Backend logic, WordPress internals, custom plugins and integrations.

PHP powers WordPress, custom backend systems, and API integrations. I write clean, documented PHP that other developers can maintain—not clever code that only I understand.

Frontend behavior, tracking implementation, automation glue.

JavaScript handles interactivity, dynamic content, third-party integrations, and the logic that makes modern websites feel responsive. I write vanilla JavaScript when it makes sense, use libraries when they solve real problems.

Used intentionally where it's fast and stable.

jQuery gets dismissed as outdated, but it still solves cross-browser compatibility and DOM manipulation faster than rewriting everything in vanilla JS. I use it where it makes sense, not everywhere by default.

Modern component-driven interfaces and applications.

React is my choice for complex, stateful web applications where component reusability and performance matter. I've built dashboard interfaces, interactive tools, and custom applications in React that feel fast and maintainable.