Please share a brief history of your company (or your work with WordPress):
My first computer experiences back in early 90’s spurred an interest that led to a position teaching computer and search skills. That was a far cry from my path as an artist. My interest with the web technology and teaching has never stopped. Web light years ago (1999), I presented on CSS and XML. I moved to Chicago in early 2000 and attended any conferences that came into town – SEO, Flash, HTML, CSS, Web Standards, Content Strategies, UX (user experience) and IA (information architecture). As a technology learning junkie, it was alphabet nirvana.
I don’t have a clear recollection of the first time I learned about WordPress. It may have been around the time I was assisting at Adaptive Path conferences and my interactions with Peter Merholz who coined the word “blog.” My first blog post ever was in 2005 for a Chicago user group site. It was on “Web 2.0” shortly after that term was coined. My personal WP timeline started in 2006 by reading “WordPress 2”by Maria Langer followed by creating the first blog for a client in 2007. Yes I hacked away, hard coded navigation and had no child theme!
What is your favorite plugin?
At the moment I love the CMS Tree Page View for large site redesign. But I have been a fan of Fast Secure Contact Form since the very early version. My sincere gratitude to plugin developers – they make our lives easier.
Tell us about your latest WP project:
I am working on moving a very large table based static site over to WordPress. The content is extensive hence my love affair with CMS Tree Page. Mostly I consult and train professionals on using WordPress, Social Media, SEO and web technologies. I work on projects mostly for the hands on experience and workflow strategies for my consulting clients.
Share one WP tip:
Here is one I learned the hard way a few years ago, don’t pick a theme/framework just on how it looks. I paid for a premium framework for a client that was highly recommended by one of the top online magazine for web designers and developers. It was listed with the great frameworks – Hybrid, Thematic, Carrington, etc. Big mistake! It looked great, back end code suck and I think I was the 3rd person to use it. Call me beta tester. I think the creator was more of a graphic designer starting to be a developer and had another day job. My advice is to choose a theme/framework that has a “well developed learning channel” and/or has been around the block a few times.
What inspires you?
Learning technology inspires me. “My name is Gloria and I am a learnaholic.” I always want to learn about the next new shinny object and how it can be of benefit hence the handle as an “Emerging Technology Strategist” fits me.
Any tips for people just getting started with Blogging or using WP?
Spend some time learning about WordPress before you jump in with both feet. There are so many good books, tutorials and information out there. I just spend some time reading the Twenty Eleven theme forum and so many new users have no clue where to start. One kind soul has repeated “don’t hack the code – create a child theme” about a million times so far. My advice is to find a good instructor! Did I mention I was available?
Do you have a WP hero?
It would be a dynamic duo! It is Justin Tadlock and Ian Steward not only for their amazing frameworks but the way they write learning experiences and their thought leadership. What to call the duo? WP Warriors, Guardians of the Frameworks, WP Champions, WP-XMen? I am up for suggestions. WP-Transformers has a nice ring.
What is the funniest or most informative tweet you ever wrote or read?
The world of tweeting has come a very long way since I was told by Chiara Fox, an IA guru from Adaptive Path that I should be tweeting. This was just a few months after Twitter launched at SXSW. I checked it out the very next day and thought what is up with this. Yes, I was one of those who said “Why do I want to be tweeting what I am having for lunch?” The Twitter landscape has exploded since that time and now I use Twitter as a learning channel – too many informative tweets to just pick one. Just dropping in for a 5 minute read leads to create knowledge. Then again it depends on who you follow. I read more that tweet as I claim to be spelling disabled and a bit shy online (but not in person).
What is the funniest thing that ever happened to you at a conference?
I was assisting at Eric Meyers CSS workshop in 2006. It was Ryan Carson of Carsonified first US workshop. Over drinks and networking I chatted with a young man, John Zeratsky. “What company are you with?” “Feedburner.” “And what does Feedburner do?” I don’t remember the exact words but they were fine tuning their strategy and still pivoting a game plan. I guess they figured it out. John is now a UX designer at Google.
Who is the most interesting person you have met through social media?
Hands down I would say Gary Vaynerchuk. Not only have I met him, I sat next to him at a small dinner party. (He picked the wine.) This was before he wrote Crush It! Later that evening at a private party his conversation mirrored what he wrote in his book. I had received a live Gary “Vee” pre-release presentation. Priceless.
What is your favorite restaurant or club in Chicago?
My favorite Chicago club is usually the place the conference planner has chosen for the evening social. Hanging with Tony Heish of Zappos and the “Delivering Happiness” bus crew last summer at the Underground on Illinois Street was very cool. Only to be topped by dancing in the happiness bus to Tony’s iphone music. Even more exciting was interviewing him three days later for TechCocktail.com sandwiched between his stops at 37 Signals and Groupon.
What is your idea of success?
That is an interesting question. For the past ten years I have heard “I am almost 30 and I haven’t made it yet” from the under 30 tech crowd (clarification: only from the males but then again there were few women 10 years ago). Is there a magic age for success? I think success is cumulative. It is a milestone in a journey. I hope to be on my journey for many years.
Why did you choose your topic for WC Chicago?
This one is easy to answer. My topic is to address strategies to make the learning curve for themes and plugins easier for users. I see this being a huge stumbling block for many WP users not to mention a big time suck. I would classify myself as quite knowledgeable and I have been frustrated many times over the lack of good documentation. I’ve been exercising usability before I knew who Jakob Nielsen was and I think we as a community can create better learning paths for users.
What do you hope the attendees will get out of going to your session?
My target audience is the developers of themes and plugins. I hope they walk away with a focus on user experience and instructional information. Many times there is a rush to launch before an effective learning channel is in place. It is like getting a shiny new unassembled toy without the instructions. Then on a tiny piece of paper the manufacture says to go search the web and figure it out from the other people who bought the same toy. When the dev community can craft a more effective learning/instructional path for users we will all be happier.
Contact Info:
Gloria Antonelli
Twitter @gloriaantonelli
LinkedIn gloriaantonelli
Facebook gloriaantonelli
