WordPress / WooCommerce Site Optimization, SEO & Feature Development Project Overview I am seeking an experienced WordPress & WooCommerce developer to audit, fix, optimize, and extend my existing website. The site currently uses multiple plugins and requires technical, SEO, performance, structural improvements, along with new content features (Pet News and AI-powered Q&A). The work must be done carefully on a live or staging site, following best practices and without data loss. Project Scope & Requirements 1. SEO, Sitemap & Google Search Console Setup Properly configure Yoast SEO Generate, validate, and submit XML sitemaps Ensure all relevant pages are indexed in Google Search Console Identify and resolve: Indexing issues Exclusions Crawl errors (Note: Any premium plugin costs such as Yoast Premium will be paid separately by me.) 2. Plugin Management Update all installed plugins to latest stable versions Identify and safely deactivate/remove inactive or unused plugins Ensure no plugin conflicts post-update 3. Duplicate Content Cleanup Identify duplicate or thin content pages Implement proper 301 redirects where required Ensure clean URL structure and correct canonical tags 4. Meta Description Optimization Identify pages with missing or weak meta descriptions Create and implement SEO-friendly meta descriptions (AI-assisted content is acceptable) 5. Affiliate Category Landing Page (Subdomain Setup) Page Details Subdomain: petsupplies.[domain].com Page slug: /petsupplies Create one landing page featuring 15 pet-related categories Categories Dog Supplies Cat Supplies Fish & Aquatic Pet Supplies Bird Supplies Small Animal Supplies Reptile & Amphibian Supplies Horse Supplies Pet Food Pet Treats Pet Health & Wellness Pet Training & Behavior Aids Pet Grooming Supplies Pet Beds & Furniture Pet Travel & Outdoor Gear Pet Cleaning & Waste Management For each category 3-block grid layout per row AI-generated category image Unique AI-generated description (~100 words) Affiliate link to my Amazon affiliate URL Fully responsive & SEO-friendly structure Geo-Redirection Rules Visitors from India → open main site index Visitors from outside India → redirect to petsupplies landing page All 404 errors must redirect to the petsupplies landing page 6. PHP Version Upgrade Upgrade PHP to a recommended, compatible version Ensure compatibility with: WordPress core WooCommerce Theme Plugins 7. WordPress Auto-Update & Security Fix Issue to resolve: WordPress security and maintenance releases are blocked by: define('WP_AUTO_UPDATE_CORE', false); Tasks Enable automatic background updates for security & maintenance Fix WP_AUTO_UPDATE_CORE configuration Ensure WordPress updates work without FTP or permission issues 8. Performance & Page Caching Optimization Install and configure page caching solution Reduce server response time Current: ~1655 ms Target: <600 ms Enable browser caching headers: cache-control expires etag last-modified Validate improvements using standard speed-testing tools 9. Theme Cleanup Identify and remove inactive or unused WordPress themes Retain only: Active theme Required default themes 10. Pet News Section Requirements Dynamic news section pulling only pet & animal-related news Use free RSS/JSON feeds from reputable sources: Google News (Pet category) Animal welfare organizations Pet & veterinary blogs Strict filtering to exclude: Politics Finance General tech Non-pet content Display Features Title Summary Image Source link Publish date Pagination or infinite scroll Category filters (Dogs, Cats, Wildlife, Vet News, Adoption, etc.) Auto refresh (hourly or daily) Admin moderation: approve / reject / hide items Preferred approach Feed aggregator plugin (e.g., Feedzy or similar) SEO-friendly output & caching 11. AI-Powered Q&A Section – “Ask About Pets & Animals” Functionality Users can ask questions related only to: Animals & pets Health, food, behavior, training, care, welfare, breeds Answer Logic Search existing site content first If no answer found: Use licensed AI knowledge base (ChatGPT or alternative) Reject unrelated topics politely (e.g., politics, finance, tech) Example refusal “Sorry, I can only answer questions about animals and pets.” Features Simple Q&A UI Instant responses Optional admin moderation Store Q&A in searchable database/FAQ Source attribution for AI-generated answers Show related internal content links 12. AI Licensing & Integration Possible options: OpenAI (ChatGPT API – paid, topic-restricted) Anthropic Claude API Hugging Face hosted models Self-hosted open-source models (LLaMA, Falcon) Preferred OpenAI API with strict topic filtering & cost controls Deliverables Fully optimized and secure WooCommerce website Correct Google Search Console indexing Improved SEO health and crawlability Faster page load and server response times Clean plugin & theme environment Functional Pet News section AI-powered Pet Q&A system Final summary report of completed work Vendor Requirements Proven WordPress & WooCommerce experience Strong technical SEO & performance optimization skills Experience with caching, redirects, PHP upgrades Ability to work safely on live or staging sites Clear communication and realistic timelines