Takeaways and Lessons We’ve Learned from Our WordPress Journey

We definitely had a busy 2016. Considering that one of our main focuses in 2016 was getting involved in the WordPress community, we thought it could be a great year to look back on and share some stories and lessons we’ve learned from our WordPress journey.

Join us as Alexandra Draghici, Product Owner of CaptainForm and Romi Catauta, PR specialist talk about their experiences, their contributions to WordPress and share some useful tips for newbies.

Getting involved with the WordPress community. How to get started.

Tell us about your first contact with WordPress and the WordPress community. Do you have any tips for those who are just starting their WordPress journey on how to get involved as a developer, a business owner or just a WordPress user?

A.D.: My first contact with WordPress was about ten years ago. It was with WordPress.com. Several years later, I switched to WordPress.org and then I started to understand how powerful WordPress was. About five years ago, I was using WordPress to build presentation websites. Finally, about two years ago, 123ContactForm – our mother company – decided to launch CaptainForm, a plugin that would take our services to the WordPress world. I loved the idea of working with WordPress again, this time from a different perspective.

And in what the WordPress community is concerned, we started getting engaged with it early in 2016, in various ways, online and offline. I would encourage anybody who is using WordPress (or is thinking about doing it) to get engaged with the community. It helps you learn a lot in a short amount of time and in a relaxed environment.

R.C.:  First of all, relax: you’ll find many friendly people, eager to socialize, share ideas and experience.

Those who plan to get involved should start reading info about past WordCamps such as: schedule, other events that take place and try to discover more about speakers, sponsors and attendees. Thus, they can figure out to whom they wanna chat or maybe start potential partnerships with. Or, they can read comments, opinions about the previous editions to have a general idea about what will happen there, what they can learn and how they can contribute.

Whether you’re a developer, a business owner, a WP user or anything else, don’t be afraid to start a conversation. If you’re a bit shy, it might seem awkward in the beginning, but after a while, when you’ll see how nice and open to discussions people are, you’ll feel better and will be much more confident.

What to expect from your first WordCamp

How was your first WordCamp? Do you have any tips for first time WordCamp attendees?

A.D.: Our first WordCamp was WordCamp Bratislava 2016. It was something new for us. It was a type of conference that we had never attended before. My suggestion to new attendees is to go there without any assumptions. You will be impressed by the friendly environment.

R.C.: The first WordCamp I went to was in 2016 in Bratislava, Slovakia. I was there as a participant, trying to see how things are going, what is happening. I had the opportunity to be at the Speakers’ dinner by going there with my colleague, Alexandra, who was a speaker at the event back then. It was a great evening, I met a lot of nice and interesting people and we had a great time. Organizers were also nice people and I remember that during the first day of the event, I asked several pieces of advice in case we would want to be involve CaptainForm in the future.

To sum up, I would recommend to ask questions or pieces of advice. There would definitely be someone to help you. And you may also offer help to someone with a different area of expertise than yours. So, I would say it’s a beautiful and friendly mutual collaboration.

Making connections

How was meeting and learning from other WordPress users, enthusiasts, experts?

A.D.: In the beginning, I used to be a bit worried about how everybody described WordCamps as being places where you can meet awesome people. I was having trouble with the awesome part. I was thinking wow!, these guys must be really great at everything WordPress related. They’re probably all in Mensa too 😉

After several WordCamps, I understood what that awesomeness was all about. WordCamps are not about how smart, experienced or outgoing you are. They are about sharing and learning in a comfortable space. There will always be a lot of people curious about how your life is connected to WordPress. You’ll tell them your story and they will tell you theirs. During this conversation, beautiful things will emerge – from everyday tips to joint projects.

That’s what makes WordCampers awesome.

That being said, it’s difficult to list the most fruitful types of relationships that we’ve established. The people that you meet at WordCamps are so different (yet so much alike) and the growth opportunities (personal or professional) are so diverse that you can literally learn something from every interaction. Just attend a WordCamp and you’ll see what I mean.

R.C.: What I like about WordCamps is that you learn small things, details that maybe you wouldn’t have thought about but you’ll also get to see the big picture. One of the many things I’ve learned is how to organize a meetup and even a WordCamp.

In addition, it gave me the chance to find out more about potential and actual users – what their needs are and how we can accommodate their needs by improving our plugin.

Finding mentors

Tell us about the connections you’ve made and the people who helped you with advice along the way.

A.D.: We launched CaptainForm towards the end of 2015 and started attending WordCamps in 2016. We were definitely newbies in the WordPress community and, from a product and marketing perspective, it was essential for us to talk to experienced members of the community and ask for their opinion on how we’re doing things. Everyone we approached at WordCamps took the time to chat with us, from seasoned WordCamp organizers and speakers to competitor products.

R.C.: The list is very long, so I’m sorry if I’ve forgotten to add someone. I would start with Peter Nemcok, who helped me when I participated in my first WordCamp. Then, my list would continue with Mike Little, Mark Smallman, Emanuel Blagonic, Milan Ivanovic, Sara Rosso, Jenny Wong, Tarei King and many others.

Giving back to WordPress

How can you give back to the community and contribute to WordPress?

A.D.: There are various ways in which you can give back to WordPress and anybody can do it, in one way or another. In terms of WordCamps, you can volunteer, speak, train or sponsor. You can get involved in your local WordCamp (or start it, if there isn’t one already). Apart from WordCamps, you can contribute to the WordPress project in different areas: development, design, translation, accessibility, support and others. And you can always contribute as a user by giving feedback on community channels or by teaching others how to use WordPress.

Until now, we gave back to the community as sponsors, speakers, volunteers and translators. And we are constantly assisting our users with WordPress advice that goes beyond the scope of our plugin.

R.C.: There are several opportunities: you can be a contributor in different areas, so don’t miss the Contributor’s Day when you attend a WordCamp. You can also be a volunteer, a speaker or a sponsor. I would say that even encouraging a newcomer at a WordCamp is also a nice way to contribute.

Overcoming stage fright and becoming a good speaker

Alexandra, can you share some tips on conquering stage fright and how to become a better speaker?

A.D.: There are times when I can’t wait for my talk to start and times when I would rather jump off a cliff than start giving it. When I get scared, I think about the size of the Universe and about how my talk fits into the big picture. And then I laugh a bit and think about how I will return home in a day or two, and things are not that frightening anymore

I think that a good knowledge of the subject matter and the right dosage of information (not too little, not too much) are the foundation of a good talk. Then, it is about structure and delivery. And finally about practice.

The future of WordPress

Where do you see the future of WordPress in a few years? Do you believe that its great community is one of the reasons for its success?

A.D.: The WordPress community, online and offline, is definitely a major reason for the success of WordPress. On the one hand, because the community helps improve the product in an ongoing manner. On the other hand, because new members can always find quick and pertinent answers to their questions.

I can’t know what the future holds, but I think that the WordPress market share will only keep growing and that the product will keep adapting to its users’ needs. It depends on how you look at things, but I don’t think that WordPress has any valid competition at this point.

We hope that our stories and tips prove to be useful to you and give you a deeper look into the WordPress community. Got any story of your own? We’d love to hear about it in the comments section!