175 James Laws of Ninja Forms on Growing a WP Product Company

We talk with James Laws, founder of WP Ninjas, and co-creator of Ninja Forms. In this episode James share his insights on building a WordPress product company, managing internal growth, and advice for podcasters in the WordPress space.   WP Ninjas https://wpninjas.com/   Mastermind.FM http://mastermind.fm/   Adventures in Businessing http://aib.fm   ==================   Our episode this week is sponsored by LiquidWeb. Liquid Web is offering a 33% discount for your first 6 months of managed WordPress hosting. Head over to https://LiquidWeb.com/wordpress and use the code WPTONIC33 at checkout for your discount.   ==================   Table of Contents for Episode 175   0:00 Podcast intros. 2:53 James' origin story, and getting into web development. 3:59 Where the idea for WP Ninjas originally came from. 6:35 Did the market saturation of contact form plugins dissuade James from creating another plugin? 10:50 Why sharing information helps everyone's business grow. Advice for joining a mastermind, and what James looks for in a mastermind. 13:03 How a business changes as it grows. How choosing a business model can have a significant impact on your business. 19:53 How internal process must change and adapt as your web development company grows. 25:30 How important is service and support to growth for a WordPress product? 30:39 Thoughts on marketing in the WordPress ecosystem in 2017. 39:32 Some tips for people looking to market a plugin to the WordPress ecosystem. 44:26 The importance of UX design in a WordPress plugin. 54:00 Thoughts on e-commerce with Ninja Forms. 59:00 What advice does James have for people looking to start their own podcast? 1:04:21 Podcast outros   ===================   Links mentioned during the show:   WP Candy:NinjaForms plugin chops its way into WordPress Dashboards (2011) http://wpcandy.com/reports/ninjaforms-launches-competes-with-gravityforms/   Andon (manufacturing) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andon_(manufacturing)   The Value of Sponsoring a WordCamp from a Business’ Perspective https://wptavern.com/the-value-of-sponsoring-a-wordcamp-from-a-business-perspective   Focus Lab http://focuslabllc.com/   ===================   Find bonus content for this episode on the WP-Tonic website: https://www.wp-tonic.com/podcast-episodes/   ===================   Subscribe to WP-Tonic on iTunes   https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/wp-tonic-wordpress-podcast/id893083124?mt=2   ===================   WP-Tonic is both a WordPress maintenance and support service, and the publisher of a twice-weekly WordPress podcast.