It can be really hectic to find the right WordPress development partner for your business. If you are a single person looking over the business, choosing the right development partner can be a multi-step process. And, it involves careful research, review, audit, shortlisting, and budgeting. With this much on your plate, your actual business can suffer.
That’s why we have created a five-step process to help you find, shortlist, and hire the right technical resource for your WordPress website.
Let’s discuss what are the right steps to find your WordPress development partner.
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Create Budget Plan & Requirements
First thing first. Create a budget and list down your total requirements for hiring the right development partner.
If your annual budget for the development partner is $50k, then list it down. You will be looking for WordPress development retainers that can work on $5k per month on your WordPress website.
Similarly, create a list of requirements for your WordPress website. These can be: Revamping the whole website from scratch, customizing the whole theme, adding relevant plugins and activating them on the website, funnel customization, lead generation channel setup, and management, etc.
You can add as many requirements as you can think of to your list. This will help you find only WordPress development experts that can get these requirements fulfilled.
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Start Looking for Suitable Candidates & Shortlist
Not that you have a list of requirements and your budget estimates ready, it is time to start searching for the right development partner. You should search within your current network to find the right development partner.
If you are unable to find them, search on b2b ratings and reviews websites. There are many great ratings and reviews platforms where you can find the right development agency for your WordPress development project.
Freelancing websites like Freelancer, Fiverr, and Upwork also offer some great opportunities for users to find the right development partner for the business.
When you have a few leads available, ask for their portfolio or the website samples they have previously designed.
Most agencies would want to offer testimonials and references of their previous clients. You can even ask them for case studies of their clients just to ensure that they have the right skill set available to become your WordPress development partner.
You can even get help from freelance hiring experts if you don’t have any technical expertise onboard. These hiring experts will interview the candidates on your behalf and will provide you a list of the shortlisted ones. This way, you will only interact with agencies that are perfectly suitable for the job. Now it is time for the first meeting.
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Communication, Collaboration, and Responsiveness
In your first meeting, you should discuss your brief with the agency. It will help you understand the following:
- What their process is for working with their clients
- The total price they quote to their clients
- The project manager they will assign to you
- Their responsiveness and communication
- If they suggest any better ideas
After your first meeting, the agency should follow up with you in a few days with their documentation and proposal for your project. The proposal will include a complete plan telling them how they will work on your project, including a timeline, schedule, and communication channels.
They will also list a project manager that will coordinate with you and conduct weekly or bi-weekly meetings (whatever is discussed earlier with you).
Next, you have to start with a trial project so that you can understand the working process of the agencies or the development partners that you have shortlisted. It will also show the responsiveness of the agencies that are willing to work on your projects. Because the way they will work on your trial is exactly the way they will be working on your project in the long term.
You don’t want an agency that is slow in responses and doesn’t come up with new and creative ideas to work for you as a WordPress development partner.
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Ask for References, Reviews, and Testimonials
Make sure to ask for references and testimonials from agencies and development experts that you have shortlisted.
To find their reviews, you will again have to visit b2b ratings and reviews platforms like Clutch, Goodfirms, and various others. You can also find their reviews on Google business listings and Yelp.
Most agencies already have profiles on all listing platforms so that their clients can easily rate them. This increases their trust and improves their reputation in the market.
Therefore, don’t forget to ask them for references and reviews. You can then cross-check these references through LinkedIn or by directly engaging with their clients.
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Hire the Best Fit
Once you have the right match, get them onboard for completing your development needs on time. It is better to have an onboarding plan available for the agency you have shortlisted.
When hiring a development partner, you have two options available. Either to hire the development partner on a project basis or to hire the development partner on a monthly retainer. Discuss this with the development agency and see what they have to offer.
In most cases, you can get a huge discount if you hire the development partner on a monthly retainer. However, if you believe that the work doesn’t require a whole year to complete, you can hire the WordPress development partner on a project basis.
Ready to Launch Your WordPress Website?
Choosing the right WordPress development firm is definitely intimidating. We hope that our step-based process has made it easier for you to find the right WordPress development partner.
Now, go through the whole step-by-step process practically to find a suitable WordPress partner for your digital business.
If you still find the whole process daunting, you can get in touch with our WordPress development experts for your website customization and maintenance needs.
>>> Get Your WordPress Site Ready for Launch. Talk to Our Experts Today