The Admin Backend: Building an Experience for the OTHER Users

As we all know, content is King. And as developers, we know how a site should be coded to maximise the impact of content on the site. But what happens when you pass the reins? Are your Admins equipped with the tools (and limitations!) they need to maintain and add to that content in the same, consistent way? Gone should be the days of pasting your HTML elements, classes, ID’s into the editor and hoping the client doesn’t mess with it.

A lot of attention is (rightly) being paid to User Experience and Usability in website Front-End design — but we forget that the Admin is also a user, one who needs an intuitive, organized, fool-proof interface to build the content in a way that supports that end experience.

In this session I will explain the importance of a well-organized WordPress build, and go through steps to get you prepared for it. Then we will go over the specific WordPress concepts, plugins and code to carry out those plans.. that involve NO copy-pasting of HTML code for the Admin!

This session will be taught at a novice level, but the core concepts involved are important for everyone, no matter what stage of learning you are in. Building good habits from the beginning will ensure you have a strong, organized build, and provide you with a solid process that can help in other areas such as quoting hours and avoiding the dreaded “scope-creep”. A general knowledge of WordPress’ templating system is useful for this session.