WordPress Development Strategy for Your Agency
Written By: Shane Clark on May 25, 2020
Certainly, web development has become highly competitive. Moreover, with the introduction of premium WordPress themes, it is now possible to create a monetized website for clients with less development experience. The caveat to the ease of development is the sacrifice in overall quality. I will examine some of the strategies for deciding what to factor in when determining what development strategy works best for your web design agency.
Premium Themes vs. Frameworks
It is critical to pick a development methodology as part of your agency’s overall strategy. For example, it is my opinion that it’s more advantageous to build your WordPress site on a lightweight framework/starter theme. A framework will allow for flexibility to be able to support any design as well as added functionality going forward. Above all, whatever strategy you decide on, it should be consistent throughout your company.
Approved Design Model
I am a big believer in the “approved design model” for web development. The websites I see developed without a client approved design end up with the following issues:
- Additional hours due to changes in development.
- Reduced conversion rates due to lack of solidified vision.
- Shorter website life-span due to design changes not supported by the build methodology.
A WordPress site built on a premium theme should still have a design presented that the theme supports. The approved design can act as an additional “scope of work” document.
Weighing ADA / Accessibility in Your Build Strategy
Regardless of whether you have decided to go with a premium theme or a framework as your build strategy, you should factor in being able to produce a website that is ADA friendly for your clients. Your agency’s ADA strategy should factor in your decision when developing your build methodology. How you build the site will be a determining factor on the ease of building an ADA compliance statement for your client’s website.
Many premium WordPress themes claim at least an initial level of ADA compliance. A well-known premium WordPress theme that has made an extensive effort to conform to the latest ADA standards in the Avada theme. The WordPress default themes included in the install are tagged as ADA compliant. If you are building a WooCommerce shopping cart, Storefront is a great option.
Building with a WordPress Framework/Starter Theme (Custom Build)
For your agency to be able to choose to build on the starter theme/framework, they must have access to experienced WordPress development resources. The primary skillsets will include CSS/HTML, jQuery, and the understanding of how the WordPress framework works. I find this solution to be the significant attraction of why the “end client” chose an agency vs. doing the website themselves on WIX.
WordPress Framework/Starter Theme – Advantages
The main advantage of using a WordPress framework (custom build) vs. an out-of-the-box theme will be not being boxed in by any of the theme’s limitations. There will not be the design limitations when building a WordPress website on a starter theme, as you will find developing with a premium theme. This means that there is a minimal constraint on the creativity of the designer. As a general rule, the following are advantages of a custom build:
- The minimal “code” of a custom build presents fewer opportunities for theme/plugin conflicts.
- Custom builds allow for more significant manipulation of the website to meet the specific needs of your client.
- I find that a well-built custom WordPress website to be easier to maintain.
- The smaller code “footprint” of a custom build, allows for faster load times.
- Custom builds make the “end client” feel they are getting a more significant product.
WordPress Framework/Starter Theme – Disadvantages
The primary disadvantage of building your client’s websites on the lightweight theme/framework(custom build) will be that it does require an experienced WordPress developer available to the agency. If the agency does not have an experienced developer on staff, this build method will not be practical. Not having an experienced developer on the team could be a symptom of a bigger problem. I would NOT recommend an agency that did not have the ability to at least call on an experienced WordPress developer as needed.
The other disadvantage of doing a custom build is the overall time can be higher. I find the straightforward “Avada” theme setup can take, in some cases, half the time that a comparable custom build using the same design would take. I do feel the added time in initial development is rewarded by less maintenance, higher conversion rates, and a client that is more satisfied with a unique website.
Building with WordPress Premium Themes
I have seen many web design & marketing agencies successfully employ premium themes as part of their WordPress build methodologies. Premium themes can have the advantage of rapid deployment with robust functionality at a minimal cost of development hours.
Premium Theme – Advantages
The primary advantage of developing using a premium theme vs. custom will be the ease of development. A premium theme will need a less experienced/expensive developer when compared to a custom developed WordPress site. The additional advantage is, theoretically, the theme is supported by the theme developer. The level/quality of support will vary by the theme developer. Picking a well-supported theme will be crucial for the longevity of your client’s website.
Premium Theme – Disadvantages
By default, I am not a big fan of most premium themes. I find the “page builders” developed to save time could be more efficiently done within natural WordPress / ACF(Advanced Custom Fields). Where I see more problems is when the agency is picking a unique theme per client website. This will create a learning curve every time a website needs to be updated.
Disadvantages of premium themes include:
- Risk of the theme becoming no longer supported by the developer.
- More code from features not being utilized adds to website load time.
- The appearance of a “budget” solution to an end client.
- Using multiple themes creates added hours from learning curves per theme.
- Difficulty implementing designs not natively supported within the theme’s inherent functionality.
- The added risk of theme/plugin conflicts.
No Points for the Most WordPress Plugins Installed
While mentally preparing to write this blog, I had just submitted a ticket to Envato Elements (parent company of “Theme Forest”) for an autoresponder issue related to a WooCommerce theme purchased from there (I did not develop the website). Upon investigation, I discovered that there were 45 plugins installed/active on the site.
A developer that understands the WordPress Codex should be able to build an amazing informational website with Gravity Forms / ACF (Advanced Custom Fields). Overloading a WordPress website with too many plugins can cause a host of problems. These problems include enhanced maintenance, higher probability the websites will break, and slower site loading times.
Conclusion
If you ask 100 agencies, you might get 100 answers on their preferred build strategy. There is no one size fits all model. The agencies and their client base will have varying needs that will need to be accounted for. Available resources, client budgets, and client expectations all need to be factored in when building an agency development strategy. Feel free to contact me with any questions, comments, and concerns.
