Episode Details

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On May 27, 2023, WordPress will celebrate its 20th birthday. It’s hard to fathom that the software has been around for so long. Yet some of us may struggle to remember what the web was like without it.

Just think of the designers, developers, and users that have come along during these past two decades. A whole generation has had easy access to content management and nearly-endless customization. Lucky them!

As a more experienced (ahem, old) freelancer, I can recall the challenge of building advanced websites pre-WordPress. Thus, I believe the software has been transformative. It has impacted virtually every aspect of a web designer’s job.

To celebrate this incredible milestone, let’s take a look at what WordPress means to freelancers. We’ll explore how its features and philosophy have empowered web professionals the world over.

A Reliable Foundation for Any Project

A typical WordPress project starts like this:

1. Install WordPress.
2. Add a theme and any necessary plugins.
3. Optionally add custom code as needed.
4. Add content.
5. Launch!

There’s more to it – but you get the idea. The amazing part of this process is that it doesn’t matter what type of website you are building. WordPress and its ecosystem make it possible.

This wasn’t always the case. Previously, content management systems (CMS) had been either built for niche usage or were severely limited in capability.

Themes existed for some systems, but nowhere near the breadth of what we see today. And the same goes for plugins.

For freelancers, this often meant scouring the web for a suitable solution. If you were a particularly gifted coder, you could build a tool from scratch. But either way, there were obstacles at every turn.

WordPress brought a new level of flexibility to the masses. We may spend time picking out the perfect plugins. But the foundations of what we need are already there.

This doesn’t mean WordPress is the perfect fit for every project. But we can be confident that what we want to build is at least possible. That’s a big deal.

Plenty of Opportunities for Monetization

When you think about it, the concept behind WordPress is revolutionary. It’s free, open-source software that can be used for any purpose.

To put this into perspective: there’s no separate license for commercial use. You don’t need to buy anything. You don’t even have to send co-founders Mike Little or Matt Mullenweg a “thank you” note.

When I first started using WordPress, I was taken aback by this ethos. I was even a bit suspicious of it. Surely, they would pull the rug out from under us at some point? The software will inevitably cost money, right?

Well, that hasn’t happened. Quite the opposite. As people around the world have discovered, WordPress is a vehicle for making money.

Freelancers can use it to build websites for clients – and charge whatever the market will allow. Developers can sell their creations as well. The past 20 years have seen the rise of a strong commercial plugin and theme market. And web hosts have tailored their services around it.

This also means that starting a freelance web design business is incredibly affordable. Anyone willing to learn WordPress can begin serving clients with minimal (or even zero) monetary investment.

It provides us with the opportunity to start small and evolve as needs change. How many other industries can say that?

Advanced Features That Are Within Everyone’s Reach