Roller here.
Hey Duckpin! My name’s Dave, I’m an experienced WordPress developer ( > 10 years in the game), and I see that you’re looking for a multi-disciplined WordPresser to join your team.
If you’re looking for a designer/dev/UX hybrid with a knack for customizing all parts of the WordPress experience, I think we should talk.
Here’s who I am, what I’ve done, and how I can help your business.
About me
A meticulous, capable UXer turned WordPress developer.
I’ve always been fascinated with the potential of the web to communicate ideas, grow businesses, and create value.
For the last ~10 years, I’ve applied that fascination to help write, design, and build WordPress websites for a variety of businesses. As a one-man band, I’ve worn a lot of hats, and have been happy to provide guidance on everything from positioning and strategy to brand aesthetic, typography, logos, and tone.
(From what I see in Duckpin’s portfolio, you’re doing the same thing with a small team, and I’m going to assume that everyone’s well-versed in several disciplines.)
But I’m not just another jack-of-all-trades front-ender; I’m also sensitive to the user experience on all sides of the website process, from making it easier for clients to edit their builds with editing entry-points, to developing plugins that accelerate the dev process.
In other words, I’m very happy to crank out websites and keep them in great shape, but I’m also keen on developing tools that add value beyond the scope of a given project.
Selected Projects
Professional guidance and execution, from kickoff to launch.
Here are a few recent projects that I’m particularly proud of. I handled 100% of the design & development, using my own suite of WordPress tools.
DoorDash: Courageous Conversations
A multilignual microsite celebrating Pride Month, featuring an interactive card game meant to stimulate conversations around Acceptance, Community, Empowerment, and Individuality.
Visit Site
The Avent Agency
Toronto’s premier event planners needed to break free from their old Wix site. I designed and built a snazzier one-pager, channeling my inner Don Draper for some evocative headlines paired with smooth custom entry animations.
Visit Site
Inside San Francisco Real Estate
Eileen Bermingham is one of the most dedicated bloggers (15 years and counting) I’ve ever had the pleasure of working with. I modernized her blog to be more responsive, cleaner, and easier to use.
Visit Site
Live Oak Waldorf School
The Waldorf School in Meadow Vista is a magical place, but their website was confusing visitors and didn’t reflect the beauty of the campus. I redesigned and built the site to encourage visits/inquiries and used a custom megamenu to make it signifcantly easier to access important information.
Visit SiteTools
Professional front end tools for WordPress power users.
Having a strong UX sensibility and using WordPress as my primary platform, I’ve been motivated to create several plugins that accelerate my development processes and help my sites look professional without hours of QA.
Mobius is a heads-up editor for WordPress developers that provides a sleek, agile CSS editing experience while keeping you from having to jump away from your UI to style it. Think the instant feedback of CodePen meets the shortcuts of VS Code and Sublime.
SoulCSS is the Tailwind CSS fork that powers this website (and all of my portfolio pieces). I fell in love with utility CSS a couple years ago and haven’t looked back. SoulCSS is optimized to work without a build process and is decked out with custom color palettes, semantic utility classes, custom type/spacing scales based on geometric sequences, the works.
SoulMagic and Hijinx are my experiments in creating an HTML abstraction for JavaScript, and not just using data-attributes to pass values to JS, but rather custom elements that are readable, editable, and far easier for intermediates to understand than vanilla JS.
Reviews
What people say about me
Just a few kind words from some of the great people I have worked with over the years. Audrey C went all out and I’m half-wondering if she GPT-ed it 🙂
Working with Dave has been a joy and an excellent experience. One of my friends that is a veteran of numerous national political campaigns said that my website “is the best local campaign site I have ever seen.” Thanks to Dave, I have exceeded my funding goals and my campaign is off to a tremendous start.
Gabe Albornoz, Montgomery County Councilmember
I can personally recommend Dave as a phenomenal UX guy, plus a great all-around marketing brain.
Tom Carless, https://sitespot.dev
Working with Dave is always such a pleasure and a great learning experience! His Beaver Builder module, in particular, has helped me edit our website with ease – and with no knowledge of coding! Dave takes the time to empower you with the tools and confidence you need to edit and update your own website efficiently and conveniently.
Sarah Dressel, Leaderfit
I use Beaver Builder extensively on my client sites, and have always thought the built-in animations were not as sophisticated as I’d like. I’ve been really impressed with SoulMagic’s capabilities and how much fine-tuning is possible. Dave has been super responsive and helpful for any questions that I’ve had. And my websites have that high-end look that my clients love!
Erica Neubauer, https://ericasneubauer.com
The email newsletter update was a game changer for me. I'm seeing people signing up, and Mailchimp is easy to use. Really appreciated your help with that transition.
Eileen Bermingham, https://insidesfre.com
I wholeheartedly recommend Dave Bloom to anyone seeking to enhance their online presence. His exceptional capabilities, extensive knowledge, and ability to generate innovative ideas will undoubtedly propel your website to new heights.
Rita Borges, Project Manager
Thanks to your amazing plugin and help, my team is gonna freak after the summer holiday 🙂 I'll be treated like a god LOL
Nikoline Nielsen, Art Director
Dave's approach to his work is truly remarkable, reflecting a holistic mindset that resonates with the vision and goals of his clients. He skillfully takes in their vision, their end goal, and proactively asks the necessary questions to fill in any gaps, ensuring a thorough understanding of their needs. This attention to detail sets Dave apart and guarantees a skillfully crafted, well-developed final product. Working with him feels like collaborating with a close friend who happens to be a seasoned professional. He effortlessly combines his expertise with a personal touch, making the entire experience enjoyable and stress-free. Dave's dedication and expertise make him a true master of his craft. I wholeheartedly recommend his services without any hesitation. With a flawless rating of 10/10, I am confident that others will find his work as exceptional as I did.
Audrey Colannino, Project Manager
Principles
A few of my web commandments.
I’ve gathered more than a few best practices that I’m ready to share.
Here are my favorites:
Construct modestly first, then embellish.
I’ve found that most of the problems with website designs stem from a lack of user research and an urge to over-decorate a design with color, animation, and imagery.
I understand when it’s appropriate to add garnish to a build, but that it’s really about presenting a clear, credible narrative that’s easy for visitors to understand and act upon.
Accessibility starts with the mockups.
Even in 2023, it feels like accessibility is an afterthought to most designers and developers as it’s a discipline in itself (and clients want their pop, right?). But all HTML documents start as accessible and are only rendered inaccessible with poor (or uninformed) decisions.
I know how to show/trap focus, I actually enjoy writing alt text, and I see it as my responsibility to educate all creatives on how to make better, more compliant a11y decisions up front.
Empowering > Criticizing.
I’m an opinionated professional and I have strong thoughts about my craft, but I’m far more interested in leveling others up than tearing them down with ‘nerd wisdom.’ I’m good at boiling complex, dorky web concepts down for less techy folks and play nicely on teams.
I’m perfectly content taking an approved mockup and building it out to the pixel, even if I might have issues with the design choices. After years as a solo designer making all the decisions, I’m actually looking forward to deferring to teammates to help their ideas shine.
Always growing, always learning.
As someone who has built his own suite of front-end tools from the ground up, I understand that Duckpin may have a different workflow / toolset for building and maintaining sites. I’m excited to incorporate new tools into my workflow: it’s what I’ve been doing for years as a self-taught independent.
Let’s have a conversation.
I gotta be honest: Duckpin looks like a great place to work. There’s a chillness to the copy, the case studies, and your bios, that give me the impression that you’re not just another marketing agency and that you actually have a pulse to pair with the professionalism. That matters.
I think that I’d make a great addition to your dev team, and I’m available to speak during US business hours and can provide references upon request.
Send me an email