Ready for Ten
Rebuilding my own affiliate site after a Google update
My own Amazon affiliate review site on an aged domain I bought in 2013. It once ranked for 1,000+ keywords, lost its rankings in a major Google update, and is now recovering after two redesigns.
Where it stands
Ranking and sales history are from my own records. Speed scores are Google Lighthouse lab tests on the live site (4 Nov 2026), plus counts from the site’s own sitemap. Lab scores move a little between runs.
I bought this aged domain in 2013 and built it into an Amazon affiliate site. It ranked for more than 1,000 keywords and earned steady sales and commission, until a major Google update pulled its rankings down. Review sites live or die on trust. Google rewards reviews that show real testing and clear authorship, and readers leave quickly if a page feels like an advert. The redesign had to make more than 170 buying guides easy to browse, put the testing method and affiliate disclosure in plain sight, and stay fast on phones. I redesigned it twice: first in late 2025, then a full rebuild in October 2026.
Ready for Ten is my own independent review site: buying guides and product comparisons across kitchen, home, automotive, jewellery-making tools, outdoor and crafting, earning commissions through Amazon links.
A clean editorial look: an “Editor’s choice” hero guide with author and update date, a “Trending guides” list, shop-by-category, and “Top picks” cards with key specs and “Check price” buttons. Trust pages — how we test, editorial policy and an affiliate disclosure at the top of every page — sit in the header.
- Client
- Ready for Ten
- Industry
- Amazon affiliate review site (my own)
- Location
- Online
- Work
- Design + SEO
- 1,000+keywords ranked before the Google update
- Recoveringrankings, sales and commission coming back after the October 2026 rebuild
- 99Lighthouse performance on desktop
The tech behind Ready for Ten’s website.
A custom WordPress theme, RFT 1.3.9 — built for this site, with the tools it needs inside.
- WordPress
- Custom theme
- Replaces 15 plugins
- AI content agents
Platform
- WordPressThe system the website runs on.
- Theme: RFT 1.3.9Made for Ready for Ten — not a bought template. Version on the live site.
- MHR License ServerTheme updates are delivered and licensed from my own server.
Code & languages
- PHPThe theme’s templates and features are written in PHP; WordPress builds each page on the server.
- HTML5 & CSSHand-written markup; the main styles are inlined in the page for speed.
- JavaScriptPlain JavaScript, no jQuery — 1 theme script (uses the browser’s IntersectionObserver and fetch() APIs).
- Schema.org JSON-LDOrganization, WebSite — structured data on the homepage.
- ImagesWebP and AVIF images on the homepage.
- FontsSelf-hosted web fonts (WOFF2) — no Google Fonts request.
- ServerNginx.
Inside the theme
- Custom WordPress themeReplaces GeneratePress and 15 plugins.
- RFT BoardCache, images, backups, security, 2FA, SEO tables, table of contents and AI content agents.
From the theme’s own details and the live site’s pages and files, 6 Nov 2026.
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