Finding and hiring a reliable WordPress developer can be daunting for small business owners. A reliable WordPress developer should be knowledgeable with a proven track record. Hiring a WordPress developer is essential for bringing your coding project to life and avoiding issues like security risks and website outages on existing websites. 

The right WordPress developer should be efficient, innovative, and solution-oriented. This article focuses on the process of hiring a WordPress developer.

Benefits of Hiring a WordPress Developer

WordPress powers more than 43% of websites today. Hiring a WordPress developer ensures you get a well-designed, branded website that functions properly. 

An experienced WordPress developer will help you maintain and secure your website. You can keep up with search engine updates and increase your chances of ranking in search engine results with the help of a WordPress developer. 

Other tasks that are handled by a WordPress developer include monitoring website hosting, uptime, bandwidth, storage, and other server-related issues. A WordPress developer monitors analytics and metrics to understand the website and how users interact with it. 

A WordPress developer can understand the design you have in mind and functionally implement it on the website. Experienced developers can include custom features on a website instead of relying on cookie-cutter templates.

Determine the Type of WordPress Developer

The first step for hiring a reliable WordPress developer is to determine your needs according to the project. Writing down the project in its entirety will make the process of filtering and exploring your WordPress developer options easier. 

For instance, you can have a detailed project outline with all the web pages you will need, special features, and additional functionalities for the website.

You can get inspiration for your project scope by analyzing other successful websites in your niche. You might also need to find a WordPress developer who can provide ongoing maintenance and other additional services such as security and malware scans, theme and plugin updates, and plugin integration.

Prepare a Job Post and Qualifying Questions

A job post is required by most recruiting websites whenever you need to find quality candidates. Even if you don’t plan on using a recruiting platform to find your WordPress developer, having an effective and well-written job post will significantly increase your odds of success.

In the job post, clearly outline your expectations and needs for the project. This ensures that prospective WordPress developers understand exactly what you need from them in terms of expertise and service. In a job post, include essential information such as the job title, the type of job (part-time or full-time), etc.

You should also include a detailed description in the job post which includes a list of the tasks that the WordPress developer will need to handle regularly. This is necessary for filtering out candidates that do not meet your project’s requirements.

After screening potential candidates, you will have to conduct interviews. Preparing a list of questions will ensure that you cover everything during the interview process concerning skills, qualifications, and communication.

Here are some of the main touchpoints to base your questions on:

• Experience in writing WordPress code
• Experience developing custom WordPress themes
• Experience optimizing websites for SEO
• Communication with clients
• The average timeline for a typical WordPress development project
• Projects they have worked on that are similar to yours

These questions will help you understand and gauge the technical and soft skills of prospective candidates before making the final hiring decision.

View Developer Portfolios

To ascertain the skill and experience level of a WordPress developer, you need to have a look at the developer’s portfolio.

A portfolio will help you understand the strengths and weaknesses of a WordPress developer in addition to the type of services they offer. An experienced WordPress developer should have a personal website or blog that showcases their skills and creativity in web development.

Those with no portfolio or website can still be considered if they provide other examples of their work such as Github repositories.

Freelance Market Platforms

There are numerous platforms where you can easily find and contact professional WordPress developers on a budget. These platforms are reliable for finding candidates for short projects. One such platform is Upwork. 

Other freelance market platforms include Freelancer, 99designs, and Fiverr.

Browsing these platforms for experienced WordPress developers takes a lot of time and effort so it might not be an ideal solution for a business keen on hiring developers in a short timeframe. 

Some other agencies and services can provide a better selection of experienced WordPress developers for business owners but they do charge for their services.

Verifiable Reviews

It’s a good idea to read reviews and testimonials from previous clients of a WordPress developer before making a hiring decision. These reviews can be found on verifiable review sites, personal websites, and social media platforms.

Reading reviews gives you a better understanding of a WordPress developer’s work ethic, skills, and experience in specific aspects of WordPress development.

Most freelance marketplaces display reviews and ratings next to a developer’s details on their profiles. Some even include the number of projects that a WordPress developer has completed.

Communication Skills

Hiring a WordPress developer who is technically proficient in web development is important. However, you should also consider soft skills such as communication and collaboration with team members. 

A reliable WordPress developer should be capable of answering all your questions in detail during the interview phase. They should also be timely in their responses when communicating via email.

WordPress developers who constantly provide status updates on a project are easier to work with, especially for small businesses that need constant monitoring.

A developer with effective communication skills will be able to understand and implement your creative vision in addition to meeting project deadlines. Generally, a prospective developer who communicates with you during the interview process will be able to maintain their effectiveness if hired.

Pay Expectations and Short Trial

The budget you set for the project will be one of the main deciding factors when hiring a WordPress developer. This step should be done at the very end of the hiring process since the rates and pricing structures for developers vary. 

When hiring a WordPress developer, cheap does not always translate to poor quality work as some developers charge less to attract clients and build their portfolios.

Highly skilled and experienced WordPress developers will mostly charge higher rates considering the value that they bring to the project. 

Discussing payment structures with candidates is necessary. Some charge hourly while others charge per project. Determining the best payment structure for a project beforehand ensures a seamless working experience with the developers you hire. 

After agreeing on the payment expectations and structure, the next step is to provide a short trial run for the most promising candidates. A short trial run is effective for assessing the technical skills and soft skills of potential candidates in real-time. To increase the likelihood of candidates completing the hiring process, you might need to make it a paid trial run where candidates are compensated for their time.

Draft a Contract

After finding a reliable and experienced WordPress developer to hire, you should draft a contract. A contract is essential for keeping the project timelines and ensuring that the project is completed as expected.

It is a legal agreement that binds both parties to the success of the project in addition to outlining the terms of payment. Here are some of the key points that a well-drafted contract needs to address:

• Payment method
• Payment structure
• Ownership of the project assets
• Security of data
• Project scope and timeline
• Terms of the contract and termination

Summary

Hiring a reliable WordPress developer involves several key steps to ensure your project is in capable hands. Start by defining your project needs and creating a detailed job post to attract suitable candidates. Screen applicants by reviewing their portfolios and conducting interviews focused on both technical and soft skills. Utilize freelance platforms for short-term projects and read verifiable reviews to gauge a developer’s reputation. Discuss payment expectations and consider a short trial to assess candidates’ skills in real time. Finally, draft a clear contract to outline project scope, payment terms, and other essential details, ensuring a smooth and professional working relationship.