BUILDING A CAREER WITH WORDPRESS

WordCamp Raleigh 2012presented by Jayvie Canono | http://jayvie.com | @onefinejay

WordCamp Raleigh 2012 | Jayvie Canono | http://jayvie.com | @onefinejay

O HAI!

• Used WordPress since it was b2.

• Background in print design (family biz!)

• Branching into development

WordCamp Raleigh 2012 | Jayvie Canono | http://jayvie.com | @onefinejay

WHAT BRINGS US HERE?

• You’re interested in making a living out of WordPress (duh!)

• You’re want to meet people with complimentary skills

• You already have a career. (congrats!)

WordCamp Raleigh 2012 | Jayvie Canono | http://jayvie.com | @onefinejay

WHAT IS WORDPRESS?

• A content management system

• A means to an end

• Makes design easier

• Makes development easier

• My livelihood

WordCamp Raleigh 2012 | Jayvie Canono | http://jayvie.com | @onefinejay

AREAS OF SPECIALIZATION

• Front-end design (HTML, CSS, Javascript)

• Development (Programming with Data)

• Graphic design & illustration• User Experience & interaction design• Management (content and community)

and consulting

• Education and training• Can’t do it all! (But you don’t have to choose just 1.)

WordCamp Raleigh 2012 | Jayvie Canono | http://jayvie.com | @onefinejay

USE WHAT YOU’VE LEARNED SO FAR

• Build on your educational foundation

• No college? NO PROBLEM!

• Learn from the best, though.• Learn by doing, but start with a great

foundation.

WordCamp Raleigh 2012 | Jayvie Canono | http://jayvie.com | @onefinejay

ADVICE FOR BUDDING ENTREPRENEURS

• Work might be hard to find

• When you find it, you’ll have to do most of the work

• Services (design and dev) or products (themes, plugins, or service products)

WordCamp Raleigh 2012 | Jayvie Canono | http://jayvie.com | @onefinejay

GET KNOWN FOR WHAT YOU DO

• Attend and speak at local WP Meetups

• Go to WordCamps, talk to people, offer a presentation

• Contribute to core or in the support forums

WordCamp Raleigh 2012 | Jayvie Canono | http://jayvie.com | @onefinejay

TOOLS OF THE TRADE

• Designers: Photoshop, Illustrator.

• Creative Cloud

WordCamp Raleigh 2012 | Jayvie Canono | http://jayvie.com | @onefinejay

TOOLS OF THE TRADE

• Coders use different editors (free and paid) to their liking. Try them out to find what works for you.

WordCamp Raleigh 2012 | Jayvie Canono | http://jayvie.com | @onefinejay

DON’T REPEAT YOURSELF

• Designers and developers collect and build on a library of resources.

• (no one will know you’re recycling stuff. you don’t have to tell anyone!)

WordCamp Raleigh 2012 | Jayvie Canono | http://jayvie.com | @onefinejay

MORE SOUND ADVICE

• Set boundaries for yourself and clients

• Professionalism is key. High risk of blurring the lines when you’re under deadline or work for yourself

• Maintain a solid network colleagues.