Topic: Bringing a WordPress Product into the Market
Chris Lema has been building online web applications since 1995. He started working with WordPress in 2005, and today he’s the VP of Products & Innovation at Liquid Web, a 100M hosting company. He’s known in the WordPress community as a blogger, public speaker, and the creator of CaboPress, the best business conference for WordPress in Cabo.
How did you get involved in WordPress?
I was tired of making changes every time a customer wanted to tweak their website. So I initially started using DotNetNuke (DNN) but eventually found WordPress (in 2005). I then spent the next couple years creating a hundred WordPress websites that never used posts, just pages. I didn't really go further than using WordPress until I visited two WordCamps in 2010, and I was hooked.
What do you do with WordPress?
Today I'm the VP of Products at Liquid Web where I'm focused on our Managed WordPress offering and getting a new product rolled out, Managed WooCommerce. I lead the teams that have built these products. I also blog and occasionally help friends run online businesses using membership plugins or eCommerce ones, like WooCommerce.
What has your experience with the WordPress community been like?
I love the community and have invested in them for years. It's now been 6.5 years where I've actively participated in meetups, WordCamps, spoken at events and even created my own event for the community, called CaboPress.
Why did you want to speak at WordCamp DFW?
I love the DFW crowd. Also, I am on dad duty that weekend and decided it would be fun to bring my son (10) to a WordCamp for his first time.
Why did you decide to speak on bringing a WordPress product into the market?
I have coached tons of product companies that have launched products in the WordPress ecosystem. And now, with our new Managed WooCommerce, I'm doing it too. So I thought it would be a good topic.
What do you hope the audience gets from your talk?
I hope people are inspired, challenged, and encouraged to try building their own products for the WordPress world.
Tickets are now on sale for this year’s WordCamp DFW held on Nov. 11-12. There are also plenty of opportunities to sponsor the event or help run it. We hope to see you there!