Hiring a WordPress Developer: Do’s and Dont’s

Let’s not rehash that WordPress empowers over 43% of the websites on the World Wide Web and its rising prominence among the digital community. Would it be wrong to assume that you are probably fantasised by the portrayal of WordPress, which is why you have landed on this blog.

Whether you are a SaaS company, a startup, or a large enterprise owner, this content piece is all that you need if you are considering hiring WordPress developers. Whether choosing to hire these professionals from India or locally you must be well grounded with the do’s and dont’s. WordPress developers are regarded for creating high-performance, scalable, and secure websites. However, not all the developers have the same expertise; while some might specialize in custom theme development, others might be expert at plugin creation or site optimization.

To hire WordPress developers from India, you must be aware of the do’s and dont’s. Afterall, you can’t afford to make a bad hire as it can be hefty, costing you up to 30% of the employee’s first-year salary. In this guide we will walk you through the best practices to hire WordPress developers globally and where to find the top talent. So let’s cut to the chase!

Understanding Your Needs: Define Before You Hire

Before you commence with the hiring process you must clearly define your project requirements and have an understanding of the type of WordPress developers you need for your project. For instance, if you need to amplify your digital interface then you will need a front-end WordPress developer, but for handling the technical infrastructure supplementing the front-end you will need a back-end WordPress developer.

Therefore, define your project requirements clearly,

Are you building a website from scratch or revamping an existing one?
Do you need custom WordPress plugins or theme development?
Does your website require advanced features like eCommerce (WooCommerce) or membership functionalities?
What level of customization will you need in terms of design, SEO, and site performance?

A detailed project road map like this helps ensure that you hire developers with the right expertise for your specific project needs. There are 3 main types of WordPress developers and you need to identify which one best suits your project nature:

Front-end WordPress developers that specialize in design, UI/UX, and theme customization.
Back-end WordPress developers focused on server-side programming, database management, and security.
Full-stack WordPress developers that handle front-end as well as back-end development.

A word of advice: If you are a small business, hiring WordPress developers for small business with full-stack expertise might be a cost-effective option.

The Do’s of Hiring a WordPress Developer

Before you get on a ride you get the do’s and dont’s manual right? Likewise, you must know the do’s of hiring a WordPress developer from India to ensure you find the perfect fit.

Do: Clearly Define Your Project Scope

A well-defined project scope is the key to eliminating miscommunication down the hierarchy. It helps ensure that the developers have a clear understanding of the end goals, timeline, deliverables, and the budget. Consider this as the roadmap that lays the foundation for a successful WordPress development.

Do: Look for Relevant Experience and Expertise

You must ensure that the developer you choose has experience in the following areas:

Custom WordPress development that includes themes, plugins, and APIs.
Performance optimization in terms of speed, security, and SEO.
Mobile responsive designing to render a seamless user experience.

Do: Check Portfolios and Past Work

The best way to verify the truthfulness of the resume claims in real-time is by conducting a portfolio evaluation. It works as a reflection of their previous work samples giving you insight into their work quality, professionalism, reliability, dedication, work ethics and culture. You could either ask for their previous work samples or dig through the GitHub repository or live websites that they have developed.

Do: Assess Communication Skills

Clear and prompt communication is one of the vital remote WordPress developer hiring tips. Communication is the part and parcel of every team and project, and it’s even more vital when your team is geographically dispersed across borders. WordPress developers need to be able to articulate their ideas clearly to stakeholders and other team members to keep everyone on the same page with seamless collaboration.

Do: Consider Long-Term Support and Maintenance

Your website when in the real use case will demand support and maintenance. You will need to ensure regular updates so that it’s aligned with the evolving industry norms. At the same time it needs to be secured against potential vulnerabilities by implementing security patches and troubleshooting. Therefore, it’s best to hire WordPress developers from India full-time instead of freelancers to leverage ongoing post-development support.

Do: Verify Technical Skills

When in the WordPress developer skills evaluation phase, mandate their proficiency in:

PHP and MySQL for core WordPress functionalities.
JavaScript and jQuery for enhancing UI/UX.
HTML & CSS for custom layouts.

Do: Set a Realistic Budget

When you are in the driver’s seat of the hiring game you need to make a wise pick between quality and quantity. Quality comes for a price and expecting it to be cheap is equal to compromising quality. A skilled WordPress developer will always prioritize quality and will therefore charge based on their experience, competence, and skillset. Don’t go by the first lowest rate hire that you come across, always remember ‘quality>quantity’. Set a realistic project budget, one that can fit in the salary of an experienced WordPress developer for hire.

The Don’ts of Hiring a WordPress Developer

It’s time to consider the flip side and evaluate the don’ts of hiring WordPress developers from India:

Don’t: Hire Based Solely on Price

Ask yourself, when you go to shop do you check only the product price and compromise with the quality to save a few pennies? Most likely not!

Then how can you attach a price tag to the expertise of WordPress professionals?

Always know that nothing comes for free and that a budget-friendly developer might not essentially always be the right pick. They may lack the expertise needed to handle complex projects resulting in project delays, poor website performance, and increased costs.

Don’t: Overlook Reviews and Testimonials

Verify client testimonials and previous employer recommendations on trusted and reputed platforms. This includes Clutch, Trustpilot, Upwork, and other such platforms where you can see ratings and reviews based on real-time application of the developer’s knowledge.

Don’t: Ignore Red Flags in Communication

When you hire WordPress developers from India or locally, you must never ignore the red flags in communication. Always look for developers that have an exceptional communication command, as delayed responses and unclear expectations can result in project failure.

Don’t: Skip the Interview or Technical Assessment

Even though you are hiring for a virtual work setting, interviews and technical assessments are indispensable aspects of the hiring cycle. Asking the right questions and presenting coding challenges can help you gauge their coding and problem-solving approach.

Don’t: Assume All Developers Are the Same

Not all fingers are the same, similarly not all developers are the same. That’s the biggest misconception that can result in hiring blunders. Some might specialize in WooCommerce while others might be experts in custom plugin development. So hire according to your project needs.

Don’t: Neglect to Sign a Contract or Agreement

Never go blindsided with verbal assurance, always have written agreement as a proof to back up the claims. When everything is penned down in black and white it protects your project’s confidentiality, timeline, and deliverables.

Where to Find a Reliable WordPress Developer

The next call in question as a hiring manager is where to find and hire qualified WordPress experts. To find candidates with competent skills can become even more challenging, especially when you are hiring WordPress developers from India.

Here are a few of the best platforms that majority of the global brands rely on:

Remote platforms

There are several remote platforms in the industry such as Toptal, Arc.dev, Uplers, and many more. Uplers can be your best choice because it’s not a hiring platform like any other. It’s an end-to-end AI-powered hiring platform with a 1.5M+ talent network. You can get top 3.5% talent from India with zero hassle within 48 hours from the comfort of your work desk. To know more about us, read the subsequent sections.

WordPress-specific job boards

WP Hired – A dedicated job board for WordPress professionals
WordPress Jobs – Official job listing by WordPress.org.

Referrals and recommendations

This has been the best, economic, and trusted candidate sourcing means for decades. Your colleagues in the industry, present and previous employees, clients, and those in your professional network can act as trusted referrals. Ask them if they know of any active job seekers in the WordPress niche or you could also leverage professional social networks like LinkedIn to find trusted developers.

WordPress development agencies

You could also opt for IT staffing agencies but it requires your pockets to be heavy if you need high-quality candidates.

What if I told you that you could culminate all this talent sourcing hassle and onboard top talent with one hiring platform at up to 40% cost-savings? See for yourself if you think I am kidding or exaggerating!

Why Uplers? A Smarter Way to Hire WordPress Developers

At Uplers, we understand the significance of hiring the right WordPress talent. Bid goodbye to the age-old and cumbersome hiring approach and switch to the contemporary remote hiring approach with us.

We take pride in our largest talent network of over 1.5M+ professionals catering to the needs of SaaS companies with top product and engineering talent from India. Hire among the top 3.5% WordPress developers for small business with our hassle-free 4-step vetting process. Prepare and pass a detailed job description to our team and we will take care of everything from there.

Based on aptitude evaluation, technical assessment, language proficiency, and cultural competency we shortlist the top 3.5% profiles. This is done via AI and human evaluation to ensure precision in our talent sourcing results. Based on the interview you get to make your final pick and we then take care of the onboarding formalities. Don’t worry we don’t take a separate cut in the process unlike other competitors in the market.

Choosing us in your hiring journey will not streamline the process but also save you up to 40% on hiring costs while ensuring top-notch quality. We also understand that at times you might not be satisfied with the candidate’s performance post-hiring. Don’t worry we can fix this as well! Without any additional costs we offer a lifetime talent replacement policy, after all who doesn’t love free perks?

What more?

Take our salary benchmarking tool as a complementary add-on to further make hiring effortless. This tool helps you derive real-time salary insights for tech and digital roles between your location and the USA. As a result, you can adjust your compensation offer accordingly to remain competitive in attracting top talent.

Key Questions to Ask Before Hiring

Whether you hire WordPress developers from India or locally, whether you choose Uplers as your hiring platform or apply the DIY approach, there’s one thing that stays constant in the search. The questions that you ask in an interview are the deciding factor in making the right pick.

Here are a few questions that you must not miss to ask the WordPress applicants:

Questions About Experience and Expertise

Surround questions around what type of projects they have worked on, do they have experience in custom theme or plugin development, can they give a walk through of the results of their previous projects, etc. This offers you a holistic view of their professional work journey and get an idea of whether it aligns with what your project entails.

Questions About Work Process and Timelines

Inquire about their usual development workflow and how they deal with project deadlines? This will give you an insight into their ability to abide by the project timeline and their commitment to time.

Questions About Pricing and Payment Terms

Ask whether they charge hourly or a fixed salary and do they offer post-launch support or maintenance? These are vital attributes that you must factor in when you are planning your hiring budget.

Final Thoughts: Ensuring a Smart WordPress Hiring Decision

As WordPress development trends evolve and will continue to do so in the years to come, hiring the right developer is the key to a successful and scalable website development. Based on the above-discussed do’s and don’ts and with the help of hiring platforms like Uplers, hiring WordPress developers from India can be plain sailing and rewarding.

Make an informed hiring choice and build a high-performing website set to support your SaaS business growth.