Here’s something that’ll sound counterintuitive: I just published every single website improvement I’ve made since August. In public. For anyone to see. Including the mistakes, the fixes, and the “why didn’t you do that properly the first time?” moments.
Most agencies would rather eat glass than show that level of transparency.
And that difference? That’s worth understanding.
In This Issue
The Transparency Weapon Nobody Uses — Why publishing your changelog builds more trust than hiding imperfections
The 18 Versions That Chronicle 3 Months of Continuous Improvement — From SEO perfection to newsletter systems to this changelog itself
How Systematic Documentation Became Competitive Advantage — The competitive moat that takes competitors years to replicate
Why Clients Choose Businesses That Show Their Work — Over businesses that hide mistakes and pretend perfection
The Real Workspace Where Systematic Improvement Happens — Cat included
Key Insight: Transparency isn’t weakness - it’s the fastest trust-building mechanism in business. Most competitors can’t copy this because they’re afraid to be seen learning.
The Moment Everything Changed
Last Monday, I was looking at three months of git commits for webuildstores.co.uk. 316 commits. Everything from “SEO Perfection Achieved (42 Issues → 0)” to “Fix: Correct SEO vs PPC FAQ to reflect PPC services offering.”
Big wins. Small fixes. Evolutionary improvements. Systematic refinement.
Most businesses bury this stuff. File it under “internal documentation.” Hide the journey because showing continuous improvement somehow suggests you weren’t perfect from the start.
Here’s what I did instead: Published the lot. Created a changelog page. Documented every version from 1.6 to 3.3. Made it public. Put a “What’s New” link in the footer.
Version 1.6 (6th August): Blog System Enhancement & Content Migration
Version 2.0 (15th August): SEO Perfection Achieved (42 Issues → 0)
Version 2.7 (22nd September): Newsletter System Launch
Version 3.3 (7th October): Changelog System Launch
Eighteen versions. Ninety days. Complete transparency.
My designer friend (the bee’s knees, the borchoy’s bollocks) looked at it and said: “You’re showing them you’re still fixing things. Doesn’t that make you look… unfinished?”
No. It makes me look like I give a damn.
Why Most Businesses Can’t Do This (And Why That’s Their Problem)
Here’s the uncomfortable truth about transparency:
Most agencies can’t publish their changelog because their work doesn’t stand up to scrutiny.
They can’t show continuous improvement because they’re not continuously improving. They can’t document systematic evolution because their changes are reactive, not strategic. They can’t be transparent about their process because their process is chaos disguised as methodology.
Let me show you what I mean. Here’s what’s actually on my changelog:
Version 2.0: “Eliminated all 42 remaining SEO issues”
Version 2.4: “Launched keyword-focused package structure with clear service tiers”
Version 2.9: “Upgraded sitemap from 47 to 115+ pages”
Version 3.2: “Implemented strategic internal linking across 5 key service pages”
Each entry tells a story. Not “We updated some stuff” but “Here’s exactly what we built, why it matters, and what it achieves.”
This is where it gets expensive for agencies that can’t document systematic improvement.
Because when a prospect is choosing between two businesses:
- One shows three months of documented, continuous, strategic evolution
- One shows a “perfect” website with no visible journey
The documented journey wins. Every time.
Why? Because transparency signals competence. Hiding improvement signals you’ve got something to hide.
The Systematic Intelligence Paradox
Most businesses think: “If we show our work, clients will see imperfections.”
Actually: “If you show systematic improvement, clients see professional competence.”
It’s not about being perfect. It’s about being systematic.
Look at Version 2.0: “SEO Perfection Achieved (42 Issues → 0)”
That entry doesn’t hide the fact there were 42 issues. It celebrates fixing them. Systematically. Completely. Documentably.
Competitors can’t copy that. Because they’d have to admit they had 42 issues. Then admit they fixed them. Then prove it with documentation.
The Client Who Thought the Grass Was Greener
Want to know the really interesting bit about transparency?
I lost a client recently. Thought she might find better results elsewhere. Fair enough - business is business, and everyone’s entitled to look for the best fit.
Here’s what’s fascinating: The agency she moved to doesn’t have a changelog. Doesn’t document systematic improvement. Doesn’t show their work publicly.
So how will she know they’re making progress? How will she verify continuous improvement? How will she see the systematic evolution of her SEO strategy?
She won’t. Because they don’t document it. They just expect her to trust them.
Old Tony would have panicked about losing that client. New Tony understands something more valuable: The businesses that win long-term aren’t the ones that promise perfection - they’re the ones that prove systematic improvement.
The changelog isn’t just transparency. It’s accountability. It’s evidence. It’s the documented proof that I’m building something that gets better every single week.
Clients who value that stay. Clients who don’t, leave.
And honestly? That’s exactly how it should be.
What Your Business Is Missing
Let me ask you something.
When was the last time you documented what you actually built?
Not “completed a project.” Documented the systematic improvements. Recorded the evolutionary journey. Published the changelog.
Most businesses I meet can’t answer that question. They do work. Complete projects. Send invoices. But they can’t show the systematic evolution because they’re not evolving systematically.
Here’s an exercise: Take the last three months of your business. Write down every significant improvement. Not “worked on X” but “Built Y feature that achieved Z result.”
Can you fill eighteen version entries? Can you show continuous, documented, systematic evolution?
If not, you’re not failing at marketing. You’re failing at systematic business development.
The Real Revolution: Transparency as Competitive Moat
Everyone’s talking about AI. Automation. Efficiency.
They’re missing the real opportunity.
Transparency isn’t a marketing tactic. It’s a competitive moat.
Once you build systematic documentation, you create something competitors can’t easily replicate:
- Proves systematic thinking over random activity
- Demonstrates continuous improvement over one-time excellence
- Shows professional evolution over static competence
- Builds trust through evidence over trust through claims
But here’s the thing: Most businesses won’t do it. They’re too afraid of showing imperfection. Too committed to the myth of arriving perfect instead of becoming excellent.
That fear? That’s your opportunity.
What Client Success Actually Looks Like
You want to know what success looks like for my clients?
It’s not “I built them a perfect website.”
It’s “I build them a systematic improvement engine that gets better every single week.”
Version 1.6. Version 2.0. Version 2.7. Version 3.3.
Each version documented. Each improvement tracked. Each evolution transparent.
That’s not a website. That’s a competitive advantage delivered systematically, documented publicly, and improved continuously.
And competitors can’t copy it because they don’t think like this.
The Changelog Challenge
Here’s what happens next.
Look at your business. Ask yourself:
- Could you publish a changelog of your improvements?
- Would it show systematic evolution or random activity?
- Does your work stand up to public scrutiny?
- Are you building or just maintaining?
If you can’t publish your changelog, you don’t have a marketing problem. You have a systematic development problem.
If you can publish it but won’t, you don’t have a transparency problem. You have a confidence problem.
If you can and will publish it, you’re building the kind of competitive moat that takes competitors years to replicate.
Reply and tell me: What would your last 90 days look like as a changelog?
Sometimes the most powerful marketing move isn’t hiding imperfection. It’s documenting systematic improvement.
P.S. - Next Week: The £49 revolution - why enterprise infrastructure costs less than your Wix subscription. The Escudero Auto case study that proves platform liberation works.
P.P.S. - The Changelog Itself: Want to see the actual changelog? Visit webuildstores.co.uk/changelog - 18 versions, 316 commits, 90 days of documented evolution.
Tony Cooper
We Build Stores - Where 25 Years of Experience Delivers in One Hour What Twenty Hours of Not Knowing Cannot
tony.cooper@webuildstores.co.uk
07963 242210
See The Live Changelog: webuildstores.co.uk/changelog
Current Version: 3.3 - Changelog System Launch
Updates Since August: 18 documented versions, 316 commits, continuous improvement