Hire Expert WordPress Ecommerce Developers

The popularity of eCommerce continues to grow year on year. With every passing day, more businesses are launching eCommerce websites and apps to sell their products. The reason for this is simple. The current eCommerce market is estimated to be around $5.7 trillion USD because customers are flocking to these apps and websites to buy both digital and physical products.

Companies wishing to cash in by developing an eCommerce solution must explore various technologies to build eCommerce apps and websites. One example is WordPress, the popular open-source content management system. WordPress already enjoys a prominent place in the world of web design and development.

You can get a highly sophisticated website up and running quickly using WordPress. Companies across various industries have built various kinds of websites using it, e.g., blogging sites, membership sites, etc.

WordPress has a rich ecosystem. You can find excellent WordPress themes and plugins, many directly to do with building eCommerce platforms. It’s easy to develop a search engine optimization (SEO)-friendly website with WordPress. You can build a mobile-friendly WordPress website easily too. No wonder companies consider it a prominent choice for eCommerce website development!

Naturally, WordPress eCommerce developers are in demand. However, hiring competent developers with these skills can be hard.

You might be tempted to hire freelancers, however, this approach has high risks. Your best bet is to hire WordPress eCommerce developers from a trustworthy software development company like DevTeam.Space.

Before you initiate the hiring process, you need a good understanding of the skills required for WordPress eCommerce development. These are as follows:

Primary WordPress eCommerce development skills

The primary WordPress eCommerce development skills are as follows:

• Deep knowledge of WordPress;
  
• Thorough understanding of eCommerce including various eCommerce functionalities;
  
• In-depth understanding of how a CMS works;
  
• Proficiency in PHP;
  
• Good understanding of JavaScript;
  
• Understanding of HTML, HTML5, CSS, and CSS3;
  
• Knowledge of databases like MySQL and PostgreSQL;
  
• Experience in designing different websites including eCommerce websites;
  
• Sound knowledge of the ecosystem of WordPress themes and plugins;
  
• Familiarity with important plugins that help to implement a specific functionality;
  
• Good SEO knowledge;
  
• In-depth knowledge of JSON and XML;
  
• The tools and techniques to customize a WordPress theme;
  
• Experience in creating WordPress themes and plugins;
  
• Experience in enhancement and customization of an existing WordPress website;
  
• The knowledge of how to fix bugs in WordPress websites;
  
• Familiarity with debugging tools like Firebug and Chrome Inspector;
  
• Experience in using code versioning tools like Git.

Other software development skills needed by WordPress eCommerce developers

Competent WordPress eCommerce programmers need the following additional skills:

A. Information security skills needed for WordPress eCommerce development

The popularity of WordPress attracts many developers, however, it attracts cyber-criminals too. WordPress has been around for a while. Hackers have keenly studied the various ways to compromise a WordPress site. The good news is that information security professionals and developers have learned valuable lessons too.

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You need developers that know how to secure a WordPress site. They should know the following:

• How to secure the login procedures and credentials;
  
• The importance of secure WordPress hosting;
  
• Using dependable WordPress security plugins;
  
• The importance of choosing WordPress themes and plugins with the latest security patches;
  
• The importance of upgrading to the latest version of PHP;
  
• Using SSL (Secure Sockets Layer)/HTTPS, firewall, and other relevant security tools;
  
• How to manage the backup process;
  
• The importance of running security scans;
  
• Using monitoring solutions;
  
• How to disable file editing in the WordPress dashboard.
  

B. API development and integration skills needed for developing a WordPress website

You might have business processes that you might want to integrate into a new website. The front end of your website needs to connect to the backend to access database information to facilitate this process. You need to develop APIs for this process to work seamlessly. Look for developers that can create APIs.

At times, you might use a few 3rd party APIs. Therefore, the skills to integrate APIs into a WordPress website are also important.

Look for the following skills:

• The knowledge of choosing between GraphQL vs REST APIs;
  
• Experience in developing RESTful APIs;
  
• Familiarity with API development tools like Postman;
  
• The knowledge of API documentation tools like Swagger;
  
• Experience in hosting APIs using a cloud platform;
  
• API testing skills;
  
• The knowledge of securing APIs using encryption, authentication, quotas, and throttling;
  
• Experience in designing API endpoints;
  
• Proficiency in designing rules for API requests and responses;
  
• The knowledge of integrating APIs into a WordPress website by creating plugins and widgets.
  

C. Cloud computing knowledge needed for developing a WordPress eCommerce platform

We can hardly overstate the role of cloud computing in modern software development projects. Cloud hosting services have a key role to play when you develop a WordPress eCommerce website. You need developers with a thorough understanding of cloud computing.

Look for WordPress developers that know the following:

• How to choose a suitable WordPress cloud hosting provider;
  
• Advantages and limitations of different cloud hosting providers like InMotion, Kinsta, etc.;
  
• How to choose between different cloud hosting options like shared hosting, VPS (Virtual Private Server), etc.;
  
• How to use different tools provided by the leading cloud hosting providers.

D. Code review skills needed for developing a WordPress website

You might have very unique eCommerce development requirements. You might not find a 3rd party WordPress theme to support your requirements. The viable solution in such a case is to develop a WordPress theme. Likewise, you might need to develop WordPress plugins too.

Such development efforts can be complex. You need to implement a thorough code review process along with testing. Look for WordPress developers with knowledge and experience in code review. The knowledge of code review strategies helps reviewers too.

E. Software engineering and software development methodologies skills

WordPress eCommerce developers should understand software engineering. They should know about testing, defect prevention, quality management, and coding best practices.

You should look for programmers with knowledge of software development lifecycle (SDLC). They should have familiarity with important software development methodologies like agile and waterfall.

F. Industry domain skills needed for developing a WordPress eCommerce platform

WordPress developers need sufficient industry domain skills. In the case of WordPress eCommerce development projects, they need in-depth knowledge of eCommerce. They should know about aspects like product listing, shopping cart, checkout, etc.

You need developers that routinely study the top eCommerce sites and gain ideas. They should also analyze the errors made by different eCommerce companies. Developers should be able to give you valuable inputs based on their past eCommerce expertise.

G. Competencies that expert WordPress web developers need

You need to look for certain competencies when hiring WordPress eCommerce developers. People often call these “soft skills”. These are as follows:

• Empathy: Developers need to understand your vision for the proposed eCommerce website. They also need to understand what customers need. They need empathy for this.
  
• Communication skills: Developers need to communicate frequently with their peers and existing team members. They need sound communication skills.
  
• Teamwork: You need WordPress developers that support their peers adequately. They need to demonstrate teamwork.
  
• Problem-solving skills: WordPress web development projects can be complex. You need developers with problem-solving skills to resolve project issues.
  
• Passion for excellence: It takes considerable passion for excellence to develop a top-notch WordPress eCommerce website. Look for developers with an eye for details.
  
• Commitment: Complexities can create multiple uncertainties in your project. You still need to meet the schedule, budget, scope, and quality requirements of the project. Look for committed developers.
  

How to find the best WordPress eCommerce web developers?

You now know the skills and competencies needed to develop WordPress eCommerce websites. Execute the hiring process by taking the following steps:

1. Decide the kind of platform to hire WordPress developers

The landscape of eCommerce websites is highly competitive. There are eCommerce websites and mobile apps already catering to customers from all regions, backgrounds, and socio-economic strata. You really need to create an excellent eCommerce platform to attract and retain customers.

You need a highly competent team to create such a high-quality online store. Since you plan to use WordPress, you need top-notch WordPress design and development professionals. Incompetent developers might create a sub-par WordPress eCommerce platform. Far from meeting your business requirements, your project might get derailed in such a case. You can hardly afford that.

You need to choose the right hiring platform to hire the right team. You might think that hiring freelance WordPress eCommerce developers should suffice. After all, you can get freelancers at a low hourly rate.

While this approach might work if you plan to create a very simple site, we don’t recommend it for medium-to-high-complexity projects. Freelancers work only part-time on your project. You will find it hard to manage the work of part-timers, and it will be harder still with remote freelancers.

You don’t get any project management support from freelance platforms and what if freelancers leave your project mid-way? You will need to find replacement developers.

We recommend you hire full-time programmers from a trustworthy software development company like DevTeam.Space. Our dedicated developers help you in developing high-quality digital solutions. Our WordPress eCommerce developers have the required knowledge and experience that you need.

We frequently encourage our developers to upgrade their skills. Therefore, our developers demonstrate a high degree of expertise and motivation. Added to this, our dedicated account managers provide project management support. They work closely with you and provide management oversight to our developers. Hiring from us improves your chances of success and mitigates your business risks.

2. Interview the WordPress eCommerce developers

You have chosen an appropriate hiring platform and posted the job requirements. Now, you need to interview developers. Take help from friends or colleagues if you don’t have sufficient WordPress development skills. Alternatively, pay a professional to help you. You can also consult interview questions found online, e.g., our WordPress interview questions.

Go beyond theoretical questions and ask questions to evaluate the hands-on programming experience. Check how developers solved complex problems in their earlier projects. Expect specific answers and not high-level statements.

Explain the requirements of your proposed WordPress eCommerce project. Ask candidates how they will build your eCommerce platform. You should expect pointed suggestions and not jargon.

3. Onboard WordPress eCommerce development professionals effectively

You have selected the right WordPress web developers for your project requirements. You need them to be productive quickly, and effective onboarding goes a long way toward ensuring that.

Explain your WordPress development project in detail to the new developers. Describe the business requirements. Share the relevant documents, e.g., requirements, technical solutions, etc.

Provide the necessary access to the new WordPress developers. They will need access to the code repository and other relevant tools.

Introduce the new programmers to your existing team, e.g., marketing, operation, etc. Describe their roles and responsibilities.

Set up a communication process with the new team members. Describe the project plan and milestones to them. Explain the processes to review and approve deliverables. You need to establish accountability with the new developers.

Tips for hiring WordPress development professionals

We offer the following tips for hiring WordPress eCommerce developers:

A. Hire sufficiently experienced WordPress eCommerce developers

You might think that WordPress is easy, therefore, you can execute your project with junior developers only. WordPress is indeed easy to use. However, creating a top eCommerce site requires you to provide notable differentiators. That kind of WordPress development project isn’t simple. You need sufficiently experienced developers.

B. Prioritize developers with WordPress theme and plugin development experience

You might be able to execute a simple project by using 3rd party WordPress themes and plugins without any customization. If you have a medium-to-high complexity project, then you need customization. Programmers would either need to create new themes and plugins, or they might need to customize existing themes and plugins considerably. Look for developers with such experience.

C. Look for developers with documentation skills

Complex projects might need your team to create entirely new themes or plugins. Alternatively, your team might need to carry out heavy customization. Developers need to document what they did. This helps with maintenance efforts in the future. Look for programmers with documentation skills.

Examples of questions to ask during the interview when hiring WordPress eCommerce developers

You should ask questions that help you assess the hands-on skills of developers. Check out the following examples:

A. Describe the steps you took to improve the SEO ranking of a WordPress site developed by you

Answer: 

In response to this open-ended question, expect developers to explain how they analyze the initial-stage SEO reports. They should describe the important root causes they noticed for the Google ranking of their website. Subsequently, they might talk about performance tuning, website security, structuring the content, etc.

B. Describe the measures you took to improve the performance of any WordPress eCommerce website

Answer: 

Developers should explain the kind of performance issues they found. They should mention the steps they took to discover the root causes of performance issues. Subsequently, they might describe the steps they took to improve the performance. These steps might cover aspects like hosting, removing unnecessary plugins, implementing Gzip compression, etc.

C. Describe the challenges you faced while developing a WordPress theme catering to eCommerce, furthermore, explain how you resolved those challenges

Answer: 

In reply to this open-ended question, developers might describe issues with unclear requirements. They might describe challenges with designing the landing page. In some cases, developers might talk about the issues they faced while designing the checkout page, for example. Mitigation measures might range from brainstorming with business stakeholders to taking ideas from successful eCommerce websites, etc.

Submit a Project With Zero Risk

Despite being one of the most popular CMSs, a WordPress website development project can be complex. You need skilled and experienced WordPress developers to get it right. Why take the risk of hiring anything but the best WordPress eCommerce developers?

DevTeam.Space is a community of experienced field expert software developers. All of our dedicated WordPress e-Commerce developers have been vetted and trained in our unique agile software development process.

We match only the most suitable developer or development team to your project specifications. If you would like to learn more, simply fill out our DevTeam.Space product specification form and one of our experienced account managers will get in touch to answer any questions you might have.