Sooner or later, you might have to hire some WordPress development experts to take your site or project to the next level, or even just to get things off your plate. Every now and again, things get to be too much or we realize that maybe we’re not experienced or specialized in some areas. This is true even with WordPress even though WordPress prides itself on being very user friendly. What can get some people into trouble is doing a mad rush to hire someone without at least considering what you might get into. This week’s article focuses on five things you should consider before hiring someone to help with your WordPress site.
Finding your WordPress expert …
We live in a very fast paced world where we often react first and ask questions later. This often plays out on the Internet quite frequently especially when hiring someone to work on your WordPress site. We see someone with cheap rates and a decent resume and think – why not? Its only after hiring them and paying them that we see that their work wasn’t up to par.
What went wrong? Their resume looked good. They even communicated well. So, what went wrong? You should know that there are bad apples in the freelancing world. Oftentimes those individuals are desperate for work and they exaggerate their credentials so they get noticed. Naturally this is the wrong way to go. Freelancers have to be honest with their clients. If they have limits, then they should say so. If they have certain strengths, then they should make them abundantly clear. Your time is wasted if they’re not honest with you and it gives the really good freelancers out there a bad reputation.
So, how do we solve this problem? Viewing a resume isn’t enough in this day in age. You have to know if the resume you’re reading is truly legitimate. There are organizations out there that put a lot of time and effort in pairing freelancers with clients. What do I mean by that? Well, they make sure that the resume you read has something to it by testing freelancers and showing what other clients have to say about that particular freelancer.
The best organization I can recommend to you is our own. We have recently rolled out our own suite of website services to help customers and web agencies alike focus on growing their businesses while leaving the website stuff to us. Our services include building websites, Search Engine Optimization, graphic design, and other digital marketing services as well.
Spell out what you want…
A big problem that many freelancers often face is not completely understanding the scope of the work that needs to be done. Why is this a problem? From a freelancer’s standpoint, their willingness to put in a proposal comes from how well the scope of the work is presented. Look at an example.
Looking for someone to modify an existing WordPress plugin.
Overall, the example I’ve provided is basic and it doesn’t say much. This might bring in freelancers who think they can do the work but might not be able to do so. It might scare off WordPress experts thinking that your job description might show a lack of communicative skills.
A simple solution to all of this is to spell out everything you want done along with your expectations as well as any other important information you want to be known. Let’s look at another example.
I’m using the WordPress plugin X and it helps with office functionality for my staff (note keeping, date planning, etc.) and I would like to have it modified so that it can collect all the work done for a day and store it in a database for easy viewing. Time is not an issue for this job but I would like to see weekly progress reports. Must have experience with SQL and PHP.
The above example lays out everything and that will help freelancers decide if they want to send you a proposal or not. Another reason why this is important is that it cuts down on time. The less time the WordPress expert asks questions about the job itself the more time they spend on the task at hand. So make sure that when you start your search that you have everything spelled out so they can get to work quickly.
Communication …
This is a no brainer but it should always be stressed. We often think that communicating is a back and forth between two people, but there is a little bit more to that than just that foundation alone. Communicating also deals with ensuring that you and your WordPress expert are on the same page. This can be hard since you’ll be communicating a lot through text and emails and it’s very easy to take what is said there out of context.
Don’t be afraid to ask plenty of questions and encourage your freelancer to do the same. Don’t be afraid to speak up either as what you have to say could mean the difference between a successful project or a major failure. There is also such a thing as communicating too much. If you communicate too much then your WordPress expert might not think you have that much faith in their abilities. If the WordPress expert communicates too much then you might think that they want, you to hold their hand.
In short, you’re going to have to “feel your way around” pretty much like how any boss would if they had a face to face interview with a potential hire, but you’re going to have to be more aware of that fact given how easy it is to relax our guard online.
Be prepared to accept that working with a freelancer online is a challenge …
I’m going to be completely honest with you. If you’ve never worked with someone online before then you’re going to find out that it is a challenge, and I say that because the person you hire probably won’t be in the same area as you. That person could be in another state or quite possibly in another country. So, there is a time element that you must be aware of. The WordPress expert you hire might not get your message until later in the evening or until the very next day. The same could be said for the person you hire as you might not get their messages until the next day. That’s why you need to be patient.
How the freelancer works might be another issue that you should consider. Freelancers do work very hard but many of them don’t put on a suit and tie either. Therefore, choosing the company you’ll hire your WordPress expert from is so important because some of them offer ways of tracking your hire’s movements. UpWork is another example of this as they offer software that tracks your hire’s actions whenever they clock in.
Know if you really need to consider hiring WordPress experts someone or not …
This is probably by far the biggest topic that needs to be explored if you’re looking to hire a WordPress expert. Do you actually need to hire one? I ask this question simply due to the fact that WordPress is very user-friendly. You can create a website in a matter of minutes. You can upload and install and use a plugin with very little effort at all. It is true that WordPress has aspects that can make anyone yank out their hair but it and its users have created a community that is there to help you. So, ask yourself, do I need to hire someone because I’m not that skilled? If that is the case, then consider asking the community for help on whatever it is you need help on. That alone will help you to increase your skill level but it will also save you money. On the other hand, do you need to hire someone because your site has grown and you want to focus on business instead of web administration, or because you have a lot of updates that you cannot apply on your own, or something along those lines. Ask yourself, do I really need to hire someone? If you’re sure, then go for it.
In Conclusion
It may seem a bit weird to put emphasis on hiring someone who will work on your WordPress site, but let’s face it, there are moments that will demand that you hire a WordPress expert, and you should at least know what you’re getting yourself into if you go that route. Research where you can hire freelancers from and how it can benefit you. If you’re a good communicator, then be sure to put that to the test as communicating with your WordPress expert can be a challenge. Make sure you have your needs and wants laid out clearly and that you can grant your freelancer access to your WordPress site immediately.
By the way, we also offer WordPress services delivered by some of the top developers and designers out there. If you want to consider hiring WordPress experts from Pixel, you should read more about our WordPress services here!
