Terms

     The Code Company founder Ben May talks at an industrial gathering (c) thecode.co    

The Code Company, a specialization agency that concentrates on publishing digitally It is one of the most preferred partner. They're WordPress experts , and they are involved in large-scale development, migrations, and integrations, creating hundreds of tech stacks that support many publishers.

The company has just replatformed Substack massive The Dispatch, a publication which provides information and analysis about politics, policy, and culture worth $1.9 million and with hundreds of thousands of people reading. I had a chat with Stacey Clark, in the partnerships and communications team on the business and its services:

"Our Director Ben May has been using technology in the resolution of problems since grade 10" begins Stacey. "He developed his first site for a local company at the age of 12 and earned the sum of $400." Ben realized that there was a growing business opportunity in addition to a possibility of a career from all this, and so launched his first business at 22.

The Code Company didn't deliberately get into publishing, however it did gain a few publishing clients in the beginning. Stacey says: "We've carved out a segment in the field of building technology to assist digital publishers as well as switching from different platforms to WordPress creating membership capabilities and ad tech. Our initial strategy was to be platform-neutral but we soon realized that a majority of them did not work! We now work solely with WordPress We also had a few rescue operations' that resulted from the use of different platforms."

"The critically important engineering stuff which is involved with publishing websites, is what we do," Stacey continues. We assist publishers in solving complicated problems by using WordPress and devise ways to use technologies to "increase the revenue of their company, gain greater efficiency in their business and minimize tech-related business risk".

Stacey and I agree that technology is becoming less technical', which is really important for publishing. "Sometimes there are writers, editors and marketing professionals who are using technology, and must use technology without calling developers every five minutes.These are "words people" that aren't "technical people"."

Code Company helps people create or migrate to technology stacks. Code Company helps these people build or move to technology stacks that can enable them to be self-sufficient "They need something that's going allow them to complete the same functions as before however in a more streamlined way. The Code Company frequently works with publishing firms that own websites that are the debt of technology. The majority of plugins do not provide all the functionality they require, and we've found it is better to create an integrated system that is specifically created, ensuring that they have all they need, and no items that they don't."

Customers

The Code Company works with content companies of all sorts including independent publishing to giant entertainment firms. Recently , they completed the high-profile announcement of Wondermind the mental health content site that is supported by famous personalities like Selena Gomez and Newsette CEO Daniella Pierson. It was well-received by Bhavik Trivedi, the Chief Operation Officer of Wondermind, commented "I've not had a perfect launch. Until now. The site went live, scaled up with the increase in traffic . Our integrations worked perfect."

FuqQ9UfLAmNAKjVpzFCV The new Wondermind Content Hub (c) thecode.co

They also work together with Nine The biggest entertainment company in Australia. "We built their corporate site as well as publications drive.com.au which is the nation's top auto site, and Future Women A website for women who are professional." Code Company also launched the Code Company also launched eBay's local ads website. "That was an enormous event because they never had regional leads before this and then began receiving Australian leads because of the site," Stacey confirms. "We recently launched a new website named Science Alert, which is a leading science publication within the US. It is owned by Australia but the vast majority of customers are located within the US. It was a project we worked on for one year and half year!" She remembers.

The company's most lucrative area of work is with publishers that are tiny bit smaller and seeking to expand. "We ask, 'How do demonstrate that you are able to publish? What are we able to do to help you get your company and your tech stack to be in the best form to help you grow your enterprise?" Stacey states. This is probably where most of the clients of The Code Company could be in. These include non-traditional media organisations including news websites Crikey and Her Campus, the female-led college students' media organization within The US (that The Code Company has moved to Drupal in order to switch to WordPress).

PT0CpapgDKohJvS2XTfd The HerCampus.com Content hub that spans multiple devices (c) thecode.co

"We aid talented and imaginative creators who are unhappy or dissatisfied with their preferred platform in addition to CMS (content managing software)," Stacey adds. "They're reaching out to us seeking alternatives as they realize their existing platform is limiting to the things they are capable of doing. The platform isn't flexible enough, and they take a massive amount of revenue." In addition, it's becoming more important and vital for creators at any level to obtain first-party data. "They're only able access that data from platforms like Substack. We're currently developing custom creator stacks that will allow them to own their own marketplace," she elaborates.

Solutions and services

The clients of Code Company could be the ones who built their site on their own, or had someone else create the site for them. In either case, they're using multiple plugins. "As the website has expanded it's becoming apparent that the problems are starting to appear and they're not able to repair the problem on their own. This leads to problems and complaints from the readers who aren't able to perform the things they'd like to. It's not always that are the same as simply adding an item to their menus." she says.

Mike McPhate at the California Sun affirms: "The biggest problem with my site for members in the past was the fact that it was plagued with bugs and confusing prompts regarding how to navigate the site. I would receive emails nearly every day from angry users. When I created the website in conjunction with The Code Company and , I no longer get these mails from users. So this is just fantastic!"

The California Sun (c)thecode.co

It's widely known that the performance of websites is vital for publishing companies "If they don't perform well, the publisher could lose millions of dollars" Stacey continues. "And they're always hacking away at the same plugin and then re-installing the next. The performance is deteriorating until the business isn't successful anymore. In the future, they'll join us with this enormous technology stack that's slowing, and they're aware of the possibility of their website going slow because of the speed of performance."

Publishers are looking to diversify their income sources and are therefore contemplating subscriptions and memberships. "We need to find a solution that is both safe and efficient. A large portion of our job is looking into methods that will transform the publishing industry," she says. The Code Company works specifically with subscription services to circumvent the so-called Stacey refers to as "leaky wall of payment". Stacey explains: "We've worked with other membership solutions before and we've found it very easy to get around the paywall. If your business model as a publisher is reliant on the content you pay to publish, it can be a huge issue."

Future events and projects in the in the near future

"The market for creators has increased dramatically," Stacey notes. "Creators have realized that SaaS platforms aren't without limitations, and they're looking at other options. The need for diversification isn't going away for the publishers. However, it's important to kind of keep seeking out new methods to get connected and closer to audiences by providing more targeted and personalized content. Subscriptions do more than just bring in revenue, they also provide an an opportunity to get closer to the public and improve engagement."

"There are still print publications in the world that aren't fully digital, and we're still getting interest from those who are realizing that, in order to continue, it will be necessary to make the transition towards digital, and subscriptions might be one way to do that."

With regard to recent events "Ben is an extremely well-known name on the stage at events," adds Stacey. Recently, Ben was a speaker at the Mumbrella Publisher Conference in Australia in Sydney, as well as WordCamp US in San Diego. The talks covered the creator economy, and focused on the simple publisher's and the ways in which publishers can do more using little. There is also the possibility to take lessons from the authors of larger publishing firms and, often by using membership programs.

     Ben May is the founder. Ben May is a familiar person on the conference circuit (c) thecode.co

It seems the company founder is an expert in the area. "Ben's been doing this for the entirety of his life; there's no question he's unable to answer," says Stacey. "The feedback I get when I speak to my clients is that if they experience a difficulty and need help, they may have to shell out another agency for two weeks of investigation. Cod Company's technology will solve the issue within 20 minutes on the phone, because they've encountered every one of the above. That's gold for a business with that kind of expertise."

To conclude, Stacey says: "Publishing or running a website doesn't need to be as complicated as people make it. Our focus is on simplicity." She and I are both convinced that it's easy to get obsessed with the latest gadget or theme or plugins - "these flashing lights don't make the needle move at all," she smiles.

The Code Company revels in "smart easy" it appears. Stacey declares: "We offer the chance to locate a technology partner to help you achieve your desired business outcomes using the most basic approach that is effective, and without the latest buzzword."

Additional details

For further information about The Code Company, to look at case studies of earlier integrations and migrations as well as to learn more about working with them, go to the website thecode.co.

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