In reply to Alec.

@Alec I'm linking to the comment because sometimes comment threads go askew here.

A few things in order of importance.

First and very important: My forum title of "Brute Squad" is a reference to one of my favorite movies of all time The Princess Bride.

It's not just a movie, it symbolizes the hope and enthusiasm of an entire generation summed up in two words "Princess" and "Bride".

Second (and a remote second it is): Where can you leave a review for WordPress itself? (hint: the Requests and Feedback sub-forum).

I'm not talking about reviews for any author's reputation, I'm referring to WordPress itself as a community.

Taking advantage of the plugin page at the WordPress repo is a benefit to the authors. It's not a big ask or even imposition to have the support link point to the WordPress community volunteer forums.

Having it point directly to a 3rd party site could go epically wrong for the user. Replying and providing support for the "free" version of the plugin in the forums isn't a big deal or trade off.

Many plugin authors do and provide support in both successfully all the time. When someone says they have the "pro" version of the plugin they reply with "Hey, please start a ticket at this site " and that works.

An author may not like the lack of control or features in the WordPress forums, and that's where the moderators add value, but the community volunteer support model works.