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Why the Posts read-more reuses button presets instead of duplicating the Button shortcode

· 2 min read
Jon-Michael Lastimosa
Jon-Michael Lastimosa
Senior Web Developer

The question: The card read-more link can render as a button. Do we add Button Content and Button Styling tabs to Posts that mirror the Button shortcode's options, so the read-more is as configurable as a real button?

Context​

Posts is already the largest option surface in the plugin (~70 atts). The read-more is a small call-to-action inside a card, with three styles (button / text-link / arrow). The Button shortcode, meanwhile, has a rich option set — colours, sizes, hover animations, gradients, radius — and exposes its choice lists via helpers (sc_get_button_style_choices(), sc_get_button_size_choices()) sourced from the theme's button presets.

Options considered​

  • Full duplicate tabs. Add Button Content + Button Styling tabs to Posts replicating the Button shortcode. Most control, but it bloats the already-largest shortcode, and it's a second copy of the button option surface to keep in sync forever — the Button shortcode doesn't expose a reusable "whole options block" helper, so it would be literal duplication.
  • Leave it as-is. Just style + text, no button theming.
  • Reuse the preset helpers, gated. Make the read-more style a small picker; when "Button" is chosen, reveal a couple of controls (readmore_btn_style, readmore_btn_size) built from the existing sc_get_button_*_choices() helpers, output as the theme's btn-* preset classes.

Decision​

Reuse the helpers, gated under the Button choice. No new tabs; the read-more picker reveals button colour + size only when Button is selected, drawing both from the shared button-preset helpers and emitting the same btn-* classes the theme already styles.

Why​

Duplicating the Button shortcode would double the maintenance for a minor card CTA and inflate the heaviest options panel in the plugin. Reusing the preset helpers gives the same result — a themed button that tracks the site's button presets — with zero duplicated surface: change a button preset in Theme Settings and the read-more follows automatically, because it's the same source. It also stays consistent with the option-gating direction everywhere else: show the button controls only when they apply.