In this episode, Matt Medeiros interviews Christie Chirinos a partner and business manager at Caldera Forms. Caldera Forms is known for the drag and drop form builder for WordPress. Christie works on marketing products and consulting jobs to grow the business. She and Matt discuss changes that are happening in the WordPress environment and how to remain flexible and stay ready for those. This episode may go down at the number one episode for 2018!
Listen to this episode:
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What you will learn from this Episode:
- “Know thyself and know where your strengths are not“. Josh Pollock had tapped into his local WordPress community when he started Caldera Forms. (5:18)
- The growth of Caldera Forms started on the Florida State University campus while Christie was finishing her Masters of Business Administration. (6:03)
- Christie and Josh got to know each other organically before deciding to partner in a business. (7:03)
- Founder meetings and networking seminars should be approached cautiously. You do not want to appear phony when you are trying to find a good business partner. (8:41)
- The strong parts that each person can deliver must be bigger than one goal. (9:59)
- The best way to grow your business is to be helpful. You can put something out there that can solve a problem for a particular group of people. (12:06)
Sales Growth:
- The approach to getting customers is constantly changing because so many people have multiple options at their fingertips. (13:54)
- What is being taught in business school for sales is getting thrown away. The retail space is changing across the board. (14:22)
- The consumer has more information today and is able to have a two-way conversation with the vendor. (15:40)
- Old patterns die hard. We are seeing a generation now that only grew up with the Internet. (16:31)
- Cultural changes are happening across all industries (ex: food) and across all forms of marketing. The consumer has more options and choice today.(17:42)
- Small businesses are competing on a differentiating strategy rather than just low cost – now you need to find a niche with a product that is unique. (20:56)
The Future of WordPress:
- There is an idea in the WordPress world that there is room for everyone. But the reality is that you need to find the thing that makes your product unique and special. (22:24)
- It has been said that WordPress.com and Automattic are able to get in front of the typical user with an unfair advantage.(25:23)
- WordPress has a very specific problem in the industry, with risks, it’s advantages and disadvantages because of the opensource world. (27:47)
- The risk with any business that ties itself to a platform (like WordPress) is that it can change, which means your business will need to change. (28:23)
- Every business should have a “get hit by a bus plan”. It helps the business if you diversify and keep your skills current if you need to pivot and move quickly. (30:39)
- Research and development are very important. Many plugins are getting Gutenberg ready. (33:05)
The space of easy websites is changing the climate. (34:21)
Tactics used for Business Growth:
- Create conversations everywhere. It is important to talk about what is going on in the industry. (36:33)
- Make sure you know that your customer’s needs are being met. (37:18)
- Encourage people to connect with you on Facebook, your website, Meetups and everywhere your customers are. (39:42)
- Do not try to do everything yourself. It’s always OK to ask for help. (40:34)
- Change does not always feel nice. Always engage to see where the opportunities lie. (44:01)
Episode Resources:
Retail Apocalypse
Caldera Forms
Squarespace
Jetpack
To Stay in Touch with Christie:
Christie on Twitter
Christie’s website
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