15 Nov WP 101: What is a WordPress Developer (& Do I Need One)?

These days, WordPress Sites are everywhere, but it is very challenging to find and hire a good developer or a development team.

When you are setting up a WP site, you can buy a theme online, for example from themeforest.net, or you may work with a developer and create a custom WP theme.

Themes bought online are great for users who want to go live with a simple website for a small business without much overhead. You can find free and premium pre – build themes. They are fast and easy to set up if you have minimal requirements and needs. These pre – build themes are great for small businesses that just need to showcase their work on the web without much customization.

Despite all these positives, there are some downsides if you choose a pre – built theme. They are not too easy to customize as the codebase is tightly controlled by the developer. Other downside of pre – built themes is that not all plugins or any other tools will be compatible with all themes. A WordPress developer will not be able to fix issues or debug a pre – built theme, and they don’t support the customization and scale that are required for lager businesses.

If a pre – built theme seems too limiting for you, then you need a custom WP theme. When you are setting up a website with a custom built theme, you are actually creating a site built for your specific use cases and needs. Once your website is completed, you will have a CMS (Content Management System), which will make easy for you to manage your content. This also includes the flexibility to expand your website with additional content and landing pages without needing to modify the theme code and a custom design tailored specifically for your business.

Custom themes are custom built code, which will make your website look awesome and work exactly as you need it to. No coding will be required in order to update your site. You may simply add content and use the custom built theme easily. Custom themes equip websites with various functions, widgets, page layouts and many other visual presentations. You can easily expand and customize features as per your needs, using core WP functionality.

You have various options when it comes to a custom WP theme. You may hire a freelance WP developer, a contracted WP development team, or an in house WP developer, depending on your need and requirements.

• Freelancers are an excellent option for users who are looking to keep costs down. You have to manage the freelancer directly, and the work success will depend mainly on the person selecting the freelancer. It is difficult to determine the skill level of the freelancer, except if you previously worked with the same, or he has excellent recommendations from previous employers.
• Contracted WP development teams are a great option for users that want a more managed process and need a team on which they can relay for long – term support and updates for their website. This option is great for businesses looking to support their IT or Marketing teams with a high quality CMS, but they don’t want to hire a full – time WP developer. An excellent contracted development team will build your WP website in a way that will allow you to easily manage all the content on your site.
• In house developers are an excellent option for teams which have a lot of WP sites to manage and are making constant updates to the codebase.

In case you decide that a pre – built WP theme is too limiting for you, and you choose to hire a developer, you must carefully evaluate the same, as your website will depend on the developer.

You may choose to build up your website with a pre – built theme that you may get online on sites like themeforest.net, or you can hire a developer or a team to build up a custom theme specifically for your site.

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Thank you for reading this article. If you need any additional help, or have any additional questions regarding this theme, please do not hesitate to ask below in comments, and we will do our best to help you in any way we can.