A Full-Stack WordPress Web Developer Who Gets It.
Hello, I’m Neal Chester. I want to help your growing web agency deliver high-performing, custom WordPress websites without the headaches.
- Duration: 1 mos, 160 hrs
- Address: Website URL
Goal Achieved: A website supporting Coca Cola, Pepsi, and Dr Pepper.
Feb 2022 – Mar 2022. Mindgrub hired me to convert several Figma design mockups into a complete WordPress website. The theme supports Customizer, widgets, and custom menus. The site is responsive and utilizes ACF to customize the backend.
Skills: Front-End Development · Back-End Development · WordPress Development
- Duration: 1.5 mos, 95 hrs
- Website: Website URL
Goal Achieved: A multilingual website for Circinus’ worldwide clients.
Dec 2019 – Jan 2020. Ray Parrish, Creative Direction (Durham, NC), hired me to convert several mockups into a complete multilingual website. I used WP Multisite to handle each language. The site was translated into Spanish, French, German, and Arabic. The Arabic language required that the entire site be read and shifted from right to left. The theme supports the Customizer, custom menus, and the Gutenberg editor.
Skills: Front-End Development · Back-End Development · WordPress Development
- Duration: 4 mos, 214 hrs
- Website: Website URL
Goal Achieved: A custom WordPress Theme for Verizon resellers.
Oct 2020 – Jan 2021. The ad agency EP+Co (New York, NY) hired me to convert a mockup into a WordPress theme for Verizon’s nationwide resellers. The goal was to keep the partner sites consistent and on-brand. The theme featured a heavily restricted customized backend using ACF. Other features included a search, product filtering, and a dynamic homepage to showcase featured products.
Skills: Front-End Development · Back-End Development · WordPress Development
- Duration: 1 mos, 87 hrs
- Website: Website URL
Goal Achieved: A custom WordPress intranet site for a division in Sony’s music department.
May 2016 – June 2016. The ad agency Gupta Media (Boston, MA) hired me to convert a mockup into a WordPress theme for Sony Music’s intranet. The theme featured a customized backend using ACF, a universal dashboard, search, a place for artists to add and update their profiles, a company directory, and more. I built the shell, and Gupta handled the rest.
Skills: Front-End Development · Back-End Development · WordPress Development
Click a company to view a case study. Scroll down to see more experience.
Experience
Much of my experience involves developing large WordPress websites for agency clients. These relationships were typically long-term remote engagements, varying from three months to over five years.
10+
Yrs Experience
120+
Sites Launched
80%
Built on WP
2002-2025Self-Employed/ Atlanta, GA
Since 2002, I have continued to help agencies and business owners with high-performing websites.
Skills: Front-End Development ◦ Back-End Development ◦ WordPress Development ◦ Conversion Rate Optimization ◦ Website Design
2024-2024UL Solutions/ Chicago, IL
- 6 months
- Apr 2024 – Sep 2024
While at Underwriters Laboratories (UL), a global safety science company, I maintained several websites within a WordPress multisite and converted two design mockups into live WordPress themes.
Skills: Front-End Development ◦ Back-End Development ◦ WordPress Development
2023-2024Point B Communications/ Chicago, IL
- 8 months
- Sep 2023 – Apr 2024
Point B, an ad agency, primarily supported the health care and social assistance sector. I audited and improved existing websites for speed, ADA compliance, and conversions. I was also tasked with email coding and developing three WordPress websites and their launches.
Skills: Front-End Development ◦ Back-End Development ◦ WordPress Development ◦ Conversion Rate Optimization ◦ Website Design
2021-2022Digital Citizen/ New York, NY
- 1 year, 5 months
- Apr 2021 – Aug 2022
Digital Citizen (DC) is a marketing agency. I developed responsive static landing pages and WordPress themes for various DC clients (media, food, and science). One site required multilingual functionality.
Skills: Front-End Development ◦ Back-End Development ◦ WordPress Development
2015-2021ClikTru/ Nassau, DE
- 5 years, 5 months
- December 2015 – April 2021
ClikTru is an internet marketing company specializing in design and SEO for lawyers. My primary responsibility was to design and develop WordPress websites for their clients and enhance the speed of their existing websites.
Skills: Front-End Development ◦ Back-End Development ◦ WordPress Development ◦ Conversion Rate Optimization ◦ Website Design
2013-2015Spaulding for Children/ Southfield, MI
- 2 years, 7 months
- June 2013 – December 2015
Spaulding for Children is a child welfare agency. I was tasked with designing, redesigning, and developing several large departmental websites and intranets.
Skills: Front-End Development ◦ Back-End Development ◦ WordPress Development ◦ Website Design
2011-2015Studio 7/ Ferndale, MI
- 3 years, 11 months
- June 2011 – April 2015
Studio 7 was a digital marketing agency. My primary job was to convert website concepts into working PHP websites or WordPress themes.
Skills: Front-End Development ◦ Back-End Development ◦ WordPress Development
To explore my design and development portfolio, please visit me on Adobe’s Behance.
100% happy with the output from Neal. We brought him in halfway through a project vetted by a different developer and he slid in and got to work right away. His communication was reliable and prompt. We pulled Neal in for his expertise in WordPress theme development and it was the right choice. I wouldn’t hesitate to bring him on for a similar project again.
★★★★★
Ron Gaulden, with EP+ Co
for Verizon Wireless
My coding languages and proficiency levels:
Skill Level and
Capabilities
Renaissance men exist. I’m part developer, designer, problem-solver, and often part consultant—especially in agency environments. Click a skill to learn more.
Front-End Development
From Design to Code:
- Reading design files
- Using Figma and Photoshop
- Attention to detail
- Image export decisions: WebP & SVG
Coding & Workflow:
- HTML5, CSS3, JS w/ jQuery
- Modern CSS (flexbox, grid, custom properties and simple animations)
- Semantic HTML w/ support for technical SEO + Schema
- BEM coding methodology w/ HTML+CSS
- Version control (Git) w/ Github
Accessible + QA:
- Responsive development and mobile friendliness
- Accessibility, WCAG compliance
- Cross-browser testing
Related Skills:
- Problem solving
- Customer service
- Written and video instructions
- Project management
Back-End Development
Coding:
- PHP: Core language for WordPress logic, theme, and plugin development
- The use of JSON, and XML
- Version control (Git) w/ Github
Hosting + Server Admin:
- Server and database management w/ MySQL + MyPhpAdmin
- Familiarity with popular web hosts like WP Engine, Site Ground and GoDaddy
Related Skills:
- Problem Solving
- Leverage of AI
- Customer service
- Project management
- Written and video instructions
Security Best Practices:
- Protecting from common vulnerabilities (SQL injection, XSS, etc.)
- Use of standard security plugins to protect WordPress
- Using SSL (secure socket layer) = HTTPS
WordPress Development
Custom Theming:
- Themes from scratch both traditional, child, and block themes
- WordPress standard coding practices including: enqueueing assets
- Custom post types setup
- WordPress Hooks (actions & filters), the Loop, template hierarchy, etc.
- Advanced Custom Fields Pro (ACF) plugin
- Use of the WordPress Query class when necessary
- Simple plugin development
WP Feature Support:
- Gutenberg Blocks and Full Site Editing
- Custom menus and widgets
- Multi-language
- Customizer
Integration Support:
- API integration using Zapier and dedicated plugins
- CRM, email marketing tools, payment processors, etc (Stripe, Hubspot, Mail Chimp, Sales Force).
- WooCommerce integration and store development
Security:
- Backups, restoration, and migration
- Staging to production environment setup
Related Skills:
- Attention to detail
- Project management
- Problem solving
- Customer service
- Written and video instructions
Page Speed Optimization
Front-end:
- Image optimization, lazy loading, next-gen file formats
- Image and font preloading
- Javascript management w/ Async and Defer
- Use of Content Delivery Networks (CDN) like Cloudflare
Back-end:
- Memory caching
- Browser caching
- GZIP compression (Apache server)
WordPress:
- Caching
- CSS and JS aggregation
- Alternative font delivery
Conversion Rate Optimization
- User testing w/ apps like Lyssna
- Monitoring user traffic and onsite interactions
- A/B testing w/ Nelio
- Attention to detail
- Problem solving
- Project management
- Sales copy development w/ the help of AI
UX Website Design
- User Experience design (UX)
- Color choices and color psychology
- Font choice and pairing
- Image and icons choices
- Attention to detail
- Problem solving
- Project management
- Customer service
- User testing w/ apps like Lyssna
To explore my design and development portfolio, please visit me on Adobe’s Behance.
How I Stay Informed
- Nielsen Norman Group
- WP Mail & WP Weekly
- Kevin Powell (CSS)
- Lyssna (UX, CRO Testing)
Interested? Let’s Talk
I am available remotely for short-term projects and 3, 6, or 12+ month contracts (W2 or 1099). My rates range from 2k to 4k (USD) weekly.
Accomplishments
I’m proud of what I’ve accomplished since I attended the College for Creative Studies in Detroit, Michigan.
★ 120+ Websites Launched
I’ve planed, designed, tested, developed, launched and maintained websites across various industries.
★ Custom WordPress Assets
I created a WordPress starter theme framework, 10+ custom Gutenberg blocks, icon library and plugins.
★ Website Marketing eBook
I published a book titled “The Foundation of Website Success: Five Core Pieces of the Website Puzzle.”
★ Over 80 Articles Published
I’ve written over 80 articles on the subject on website marketing, design, conversions and custom code.