Best Developer of WordPress: What Does It Take to Become a WordPress Developer? (In 6 Steps)
What does it mean to be a WordPress developer?
A WordPress developer is a specialist who specializes in the WordPress platform’s infrastructure and environment. They might concentrate on enhancing the WordPress platform or developing new goods, such as plugins and themes. They may also assist clients in the creation, customization, and management of WordPress sites.
Because WordPress development is such a vast subject, this is a broad definition. We’ll look at the duties and job descriptions of WordPress developers in more detail below so you can have a better understanding of what they do on a daily basis.
Opportunities for advancement abound thanks to WordPress’s enormous popularity. With a little time and work, you can break into the area of WordPress development, whether you want to make useful plugins, weave beautiful themes, or improve the fundamental mechanics of the platform. Naturally, merely Googling “how to become a WordPress developer” will yield a dizzying number of options.
You should take a logical approach to become a WordPress developer to make the process easier. This entails refining your focus, defining your talents, establishing a niche, and learning everything you can about the platform ahead of time. Fortunately, there is a vast community ready and eager to assist you in your endeavor.
We’ll go through exactly what a WordPress developer performs in this post. Then we’ll go through six crucial actions you’ll need to follow to become a WordPress expert as well as a capable developer for the platform. Let’s get started!
What Does a WordPress Developer Do?
A WordPress developer is a person who works with the WordPress platform’s fundamental code and architecture, either to improve it or to build totally new products. WordPress developers are often responsible for one or more of the following tasks:
• Plugins and themes creation and customization
• WordPress core code development and debugging (that is, the actual software of WordPress).
• Assisting customers with the design and development of their WordPress websites.
• Ensuring that client websites are well-maintained.
• Improving the WordPress platform’s accessibility.
The competent developer must also be a WordPress specialist in order to perform these things properly. That is, they should be familiar with every aspect of the platform, as well as the numerous programming languages that are utilized to operate it (which we will discuss in greater detail further on).
Let’s talk about why you would want to become a WordPress developer before we go into how to become a WordPress developer.
Why Should You Become Involved in WordPress Development?
Aside from the fact that WordPress developers are in great demand, there are several reasons to pursue a career in this field:
• If you become a skilled developer and find the proper niche, you can make a lot of money.
• You may work as a freelance WordPress developer. As a result, you may be your own employer, work from home, and establish your own hours.
• WordPress offers a large community of users that are ready to assist, making it simple to get the help you need.
• The skills you learn (particularly in relation to WordPress’s primary languages) will be transferable to a wide range of businesses and specializations.
Learning how to become a WordPress developer is worthwhile if you have a creative bent, an interest in code, and a willingness to immerse yourself in the mechanics of the world’s most popular Content Management System (CMS). It’s also worth thinking about if you’re searching for a ‘future-proof’ career.
Of course, deciding to pursue a career in this sector is quite simple. Learning how to become a WordPress developer is the actual key. Let’s have a look at what’s required.
What Does It Take to Become a WordPress Developer? (In 6 Steps)
The first step in becoming a WordPress developer is to figure out what you already know and what you’ll need to learn. Then you’ll need to choose a field or specialty that best fits your ambitions and skill set, and follow best practices to break into it. Let’s get started!
1. Recognize the Primary Skill Sets Needed
“Knowing what you don’t know is more valuable than being brilliant,” renowned philanthropist Charlie Munger famously stated. This adage is especially true when it comes to WordPress development. It’s critical to discover any prior information you may have that might help you along your growth path, as well as any gaps in your knowledge.
The languages used by WordPress are the most important thing for every developer to grasp. Let’s take a look at each one separately:
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• HTML (Hypertext Markup Language): This basic language is both strong and simple to learn. It’s made up of markup codes (elements) that control how various components of a page are presented. Page titles, headers, paragraph content, data tables, and so on are examples of these components. Using the HTML code title>Learning HTML/title> as an example, the title of a page would be set to “Learning HTML.”
• CSS (Cascading Style Sheets): Whereas HTML is used to define the structure of web pages, CSS is used to define how components appear. Font kinds and colors, page layouts, click effects, and other aesthetic features are all controlled by CSS. For example, the HTML element for any body text could additionally have CSS code specifying the text’s color (for example, background-color: darkgreen;).
• PHP (Personal Home Page): The term PHP is a little deceptive. Since it’s relevant to all sections of a site, not simply your home page, it’s become more properly known as Hypertext Preprocessor. It may do a variety of tasks, including creating files automatically, accessing databases, encrypting data, and much more. Fortunately, there are many online resources for learning PHP, which will be useful while learning how to become a WordPress developer.
• MySQL (My Sequel): Finally, MySQL is a relational database management system that is free source. WordPress, in a nutshell, uses PHP to fetch and save information from MySQL databases. MySQL is used by WordPress to enable important site administration capabilities such as user roles. As a result, a developer should have at least a fundamental understanding of its capabilities.
You are not need to be fluent in any of these languages. Before studying how to become a WordPress developer, it is important to be proficient in at least a few. This will allow you to effectively promote yourself in the field and respond to customer requirements more quickly.
After you’ve verified that you know the fundamentals, you’ll need to learn how to apply them to the WordPress platform. You’ll need to be a WordPress specialist to accomplish this (at least when it comes to the fundamentals).
2. Learn everything there is to know about WordPress.
Before you can answer the question of how to become a WordPress developer, you must first understand everything there is to know about the platform. After all, the more knowledge you have, the more you can do. The good news is that there are several tools available to help you progress from total beginner to WordPress expert.
The very first thing you should do is create a WordPress sandbox. This will allow you to quickly acquire a feel for the dashboard and experiment with the platform’s features in a safe setting. You’ll be able to follow along with the instructions in many online WordPress courses if you use a sandbox.
Completing a WordPress course will certainly entail a financial commitment, but it will help you accelerate your learning. Most WordPress courses are well-structured and beginner-friendly, with content that can be readily accessed at a later time. WordPress 101 (which includes tutorials for important plugins), WP Apprentice, and Udemy’s WordPress for Beginners course are all popular examples.
Without mentioning the WordPress Codex — the official WordPress wiki — no list of WordPress learning tools would be complete. This is a fantastic tool for looking up words and obtaining official explanations and tutorials. When developing or contributing to the platform, it may also be a valuable reference.
Finally, it’s a good idea to follow a variety of WordPress blogs and YouTube channels. These are a great way to stay on top of WordPress trends and learn new methods to make the platform work better for you. You’ll be in a lot better position to tackle the subject of how to become a WordPress developer after you’ve mastered the basics of WordPress.
3. Decide the area of development you’ll concentrate on.
WordPress is known for being a flexible, open-source, and ever-evolving content management system. This is excellent news for aspiring developers since it means there are a variety of entry points available to suit a wide range of interests and skill levels. Although significant technical expertise is required, niches like as theme and plugin development offer creative options. When you’ve decided to learn how to become a WordPress developer, you should begin by concentrating on one of the platform’s three primary components.
WordPress’s foundation
WordPress core development (the default files that make up the platform’s back-end functionality) entails a lot of activities. Identifying and fixing problems, responding to user inquiry tickets, updating translations, and sending enhancement recommendations to WordPress trac are all examples of these tasks.
Despite the fact that core development is mainly optional (because WordPress is open-source), it is a fantastic method to get experience that can be used to other areas. This is a great opportunity to learn whether you’re new to programming or don’t know much about the major WordPress languages. The Core Contributor Handbook is a great resource for learning more.
Themes
Developing themes is a wonderful method to attract customers (providing that you adhere to best practices). Prospective developers with a history or interest in graphic design may find this area attractive, as themes serve as the graphical front-end styling for a WordPress site.
Understanding HTML and CSS is essential for theme creation since these languages control the look of a theme’s components. If you’re interested in this field, the Theme Developer Handbook may provide you with the majority of the information you’ll need.
Plugins
WordPress would not have achieved its present prominence without plugins (software that extends the functionality of the CMS without changing core files). This is the section for you if you have a strong interest in altering WordPress to achieve a specific objective and a basic understanding of PHP and HTML.
Plugin development isn’t always as lucrative as theme development, but the market isn’t as crowded. Once you’ve mastered the fundamentals and created a plugin that you believe has a market, you may explore selling it on sites like CodeCanyon. Reading the Plugin Developer Handbook will be your first step in learning how to become a WordPress plugin developer.
And There’s More!
Of course, you may try your hand as a developer in other areas of WordPress. If you want to make WordPress applications, for example, REST API development could be your thing. However, this necessitates the use of very sophisticated coding techniques. Unless you have a lot of development expertise already, focusing on one of the three primary areas we’ve described above is a better approach to start.
4. Be Prepared For Potential Obstacles
You’ll almost certainly run across issues as a WordPress developer, no matter what field you choose to specialize on. This isn’t rare at all. Failure to resolve these issues, on the other hand, might result in hours of costly downtime and possibly the loss of business.
One of the most common issues is system glitches. They’re capable of causing everything from minor formatting difficulties to complete system failure. It’s critical to learn some good WordPress debugging techniques in order to avoid even more difficulties down the road. WordPress plugins like DebugThis can also assist you in detecting and resolving issues quickly.
You’ll need to pay special attention to potential security problems in addition to bugs. Although the WordPress core is highly secure by default, it’s a good idea to make sure the development installation is as secure as possible. If you aren’t cautious, what you’ve created might be exposed to a number of assaults after you release it into the wild. You may proceed with greater confidence if you are familiar with proven WordPress developer security procedures.
Finally, you should create a practice of routinely backing up your WordPress development projects to prevent losing hours of effort (or, even worse, putting client data at danger). Sites like GitHub can help you keep track of your projects and save them safely. You’ll be ready to get your feet wet with actual development once you’ve armed yourself with the information needed to address possible difficulties.
5. Create a conducive environment for local development
It’s better to work locally if you’re concentrating on theme or plugin development. This is to guarantee that any testing or troubleshooting you do while creating stays within your system. Working in a live environment, especially when working with a client’s site, may be disastrous. Fortunately, WordPress makes creating a local development environment pretty simple.
A server stack is the first thing you’ll need. This is the software that will serve as the foundation for your computer’s growth. This may appear to be a difficult task. Fortunately, you can acquire and utilize well-documented packaged server stacks with minimum expertise. MAMP (just for Mac users) and XAMPP are two of them (for both Windows and Mac users). There are several resources available to assist you in setting up MAMP and XAMPP on your PC.
You’ll need a place to work on your code once you’ve installed a stack that allows for local development. The text editor comes into play at this point. Although you may use almost any basic editor (such as Notepad), a more sophisticated system is suggested. Atom, for instance, allows you to share your workspace with other developers to make collaboration easier. Additionally, it allows you to divide your work into numerous viewing windows.
You may start working on projects on your WordPress installation after these two pieces are in place. There are a number of WordPress tools and plugins that may assist you with development chores such as troubleshooting and theme data testing if you want to get a head start.
6. Become part of the WordPress community
It’s easy to slip into the habit of working on your projects alone when learning how to become a WordPress developer. However, it’s critical to interact with the larger WordPress community in order to make significant progress in your chosen field of development. This allows you to broaden your skill set, have access to more development assistance, and better predict WordPress trends. Even better, by becoming a member of the WordPress community, you may improve your chances of creating profitable connections.
Furthermore, launching a new development project when you’re just getting started isn’t always the greatest option. By participating in a pre-existing project, you can get firsthand knowledge about other people’s development methods. You may use this information to improve your own strategy. Consider adopting an abandoned plugin or theme and utilizing it as a foundation for further development (rather than spending time and energy starting from scratch).
Whether or whether you join a well-established project, it’s a good idea to check WordPress forums on a regular basis. You may further demonstrate your credibility as a professional developer by sharing your ideas and replying to questions. Furthermore, by participating in and exploring these communities, you might gain inspiration for plugins and themes that solve unmet demands.
Finally, you might want to try establishing a WordPress development blog from scratch. A blog is an excellent way to interact with the larger WordPress community and share your experiences with others. You may build reputation and get your name out there by writing SEO-rich content and connecting to other popular WordPress sites.
How to Get Started with WordPress Development
If you’ve completed all of the stages above, you’ll have all of the tools and knowledge you’ll need to succeed as a WordPress developer. Of course, after learning how to become a WordPress developer, you’ll naturally wonder, “What’s next?” Although there are several ways to promote oneself as a developer, we’ve selected a few tried-and-true approaches to get you started. Which path you choose will be determined by the development area you selected to focus on previously.
WordPress’s foundation
Developing for the core is a far more disciplined and organized process than working on a plugin or theme. Reading the Core Contributor Handbook is a good place to start. Then you may use the processes in it to contribute code, fix bugs, test new features, report possible security issues, or provide any other service you’re interested in.
Themes
After you’ve done a lot of research and played with your local development environment enough, you should come up with a theme that you’d like to make public. It might be something basic to begin with, however you should not be afraid to be innovative and creative. Once you’ve built (and properly tested) your theme and submitted it to a website that accepts it, you can utilize the feedback to make adjustments and enhancements until it’s ready to monetize.
Plugins
We advocate devoting considerable effort to discovering the suitable niche for your plugin before you start using your PHP and HTML skills to create it. Clients aren’t likely to pick your plugin if there are already numerous well-known alternatives. We recommend submitting an early version of a plugin you believe will be profitable to WordPress and developing it further based on the feedback you receive after you’ve identified an idea for a plugin you believe will be profitable and created an early version of it (ensuring that it’s copyrighted and secure).
Conclusion
While studying how to become a WordPress developer is pretty simple, becoming one is a different story. It requires a lot of dedication, time spent reading blogs and manuals, and a lot of trial and error. You may rest easy, though, knowing that you’re gaining abilities that can be applied to large clients in a variety of sectors.
Let’s go through the six actions you’ll need to do to become a WordPress developer again:
1. Recognize the most important skill sets. You’ll need to know CSS, HTML, PHP, and MySQL, which are all fundamental WordPress languages.
2. Become as knowledgeable as possible about WordPress. We recommend taking an online course to build a strong foundation.
3. Decide which area of growth you’ll concentrate on. Themes, plugins, or the WordPress core platform may all fall under this category.
4. Be on the lookout for possible snares. By mastering basic debugging abilities, you may avoid potential difficulties.
5. Create a development environment in your local area. This will allow you to test your projects safely.
6. Become a member of the WordPress community. You may build a reputation for yourself, master new talents, connect with others, and predict trends.
Do you want to learn how to become a WordPress developer but aren’t sure where to start? If that’s the case, please let us know in the comments area below!
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