I find bait very area specific. For eg sandeel is a good ray bait of course but I wouldn’t bother with it further up the BC for targeting thornies.
Smoothies like ragworm but here we tend to find crab and then squid are the best baits.
Black lug here won’t do a lot and it’s not found in many places locally.
As Tat says, fresh mackerel is hard to beat as an all rounder.
In the estuary here targeting flounder, if you haven’t got harbour rag it’s not even worth getting out of bed. I know elsewhere lug is the go to bait for them.
I’ve persisted trying razor fish as they are found locally, but yet to catch a fish on them here.
Also some baits can be very seasonal, presumably because that’s what the fish are expecting to find.
It’s all about knowing the marks you fish and what works, though generally the mainstays of mackerel, squid and lug will be a good foundation for many areas.