WPCoffeeTalk

Ben Gabler is one of the coolest cats in WordPress, with arguably the best sense of humor. Oh, and he's pretty good at running an awesome hosting company, too.

Mark Westguard is a developer with a great sense of humor, great business acumen, and a desire to help others in WordPress. He's also one of my WordPress besties - as you'll see in this episode!

Chris Ford is delightful to talk to, knowledgeable about SO MUCH, and a true advocate for underrepresented folks. She's a WordPress gem!

Jill Binder is fiercely invested in diversity and inclusion in tech, but particularly with WordPress. Chatting with her about her passion in this area was a real treat for me, and really informative for all of us.

Chris Lema is a mentor, sure, but he's more than that. He's a cheerleader for each of us in WordPress offering advice and more through his blog, talks, and Twitter - all while being the VP of Product at Nexcess/Liquid Web.

WordFest is a global celebration of WordPress, and an extension of Big Orange Heart. In this episode we break from our usual format to talk to the organizing team, learn about how WordFest came about, and what's in store for the next event!

Robert Jacobi is one of those people who loves the community, helps wherever he can, and does it all with a smile and a great sense of humor!

Lesley Sim is the brilliant and delightful developer behind Newsletter Glue. Getting to know her on this episode was so much fun!

Prem Tiwari is all in when it comes to helping the WordPress community! Not only does he work as a software engineer, but he also contributes across several WordPress teams, as well as in his local meetup and WordCamps. Enjoy this interview!

Wunderkind doesn't even begin to touch the talent that exists in Adrian Tobey. CEO of Groundhogg doing what he loves at a young age, and contributing to the WordPress community all at the same time.

Bet Hannon inspires me. The work that she does for her agency's clientele is top-notch, and her participation and willingness to give back to the community in many ways is admirable. And she's super talented at what she does!

Allie Dye is a dynamic, breath of fresh air in the WordPress space. A real go-getter who doesn't let chronic illness hold her back, I'm in awe of how much she accomplishes.

Drew Griswold specializes in marketing and advertising. I'm fortunate to work with him at GiveWP, and enjoy both his expertise and his awesome sense of humor.

Jeroen Rotty is all in for WordPress, from organizing meetups, contributing to the open source project, freelancing, and working support for Yoast. Get to know him here!

Tom Fanelli is a visionary when it comes to WordPress hosting. He's also fun to talk to, and a great community contributor!

Meg Phillips is a brilliant problem solver, and I love that she uses WordPress to solve so many problems. From creating a charter boat booking plugin to helping school teachers with online management, Meg's goals are always helping others.

Sabrina Zeidan is a ray of sunshine! And she's relentless about site speed. And helping others have faster sites, too.

Joe Simpson has an amazing WordPress story. How he discovered the community - and how his near-death experience formed all of his future involvements is a testimony to both the WordPress community and Joe's dedication to giving back to it. I always count myself fortunate when our paths cross.

Megan Rose exemplifies what it is to be a community-minded WordPresser. She's been an organizer for WordCamp Kent, WordCamp Northeast Ohio, WordCamp US, and Big Orange Heart's WordFest. Her helpfulness extends to all she meets, and her cheerfulness is contagious.

If you've thought about creating online courses, chances are you've come across Chris Badgett. Passionate about education and learning, Chris is the CEO and co-founder of LifterLMS, a learning management system that works really well on WordPress. In this episode we talk about WordPress, online learning, and much more.

Zack Katz is the CEO at GravityView, a plugin that makes displaying the information collected from your Gravity Forms displayable (and searchable) on your website. If that wasn't enough to make you like him, he also collects gifs and videos to make a bad day better, shares music to make you happy, and always finds a way to make others smile.

The first time I met Andrea was at WCUS 2016 to talk about making the Rochester meetup "official." I mentioned doing a WordCamp "someday." She said, "why not this year?" And the rest is history. So happy to have her as a colleague and friend.

You know that Matt Mullenweg is the co-founder of WordPress, and the Founder and CEO at Automattic (and partial to jazz and barbecue), but did you know he plays several instruments, credits his music teachers for much of his success, and geeks out over setting up home networks? He's also a genuine, gracious, and a tea drinker. Learn more about the man at the top of the WordPress community, and how much he's looking forward to what comes next for WordPress.

Malcolm Peralty is the Co-Founder of PressTitan, a Managed WordPress Hosting/Maintenance company and founder of Capeless Heroes, a site dedicated to sharing the stories of people doing good. We think he's doing a lot of good, too, and we're happy to have interviewed him for WPCoffeeTalk!

Some people really are rare finds, and priceless in who they are - in other words, unicorns. Such is Rachel Di Martino. So fun. So creative. So down-to-earth. Meeting her for this interview made my face hurt from smiling so much.

Sometimes you meet a person and your paths begin to cross again and again. Such it is with me and Thomas. I've repped Weglot, done webinars together, and crossed paths digitally many times, and still never stood in the same room. He's delightful to talk to, and his love for his cat and his community shines through it all.

On Ajit Bohra's WordPress profile he wrote “I didn’t choose the WordPress, the WordPress chose me.” Well I'm glad it did! He's a strong supporter of the WordPress community globally, and in India specifically, and a really great guy all around. It was a pleasure to interview him for WPCoffeeTalk.

David Johnson combines wit with know-how, and turns it into gold. Kind of a modern-day alchemist, his brand of business and personality shows how much having solid business acumen and a good sense of humor can do for you.

I've had the pleasure of knowing Amanda Gorman since she was a teenager. She's always been empathetic, capable, and caring, and watching her grow in knowledge and leadership is a true honor. Can't wait to see where her career takes her!

I first met Nick when he tried to start a new meetup in the area. I reached out and invited him to the one we already had, and the rest is history! From there he has become a close friend, amazing colleague, and huge supporter of all things WordPress.

The first time I met Topher DeRosia was watching his talk at WCUS 2016. I was in awe of the ability of WordPress to connect so many people worldwide, and Topher's ability to use WordPress to tell their stories. HeroPress has helped inform how WPCoffeeTalk works. It's my pleasure to tell Topher's story here!

Brad Morrison is one of the kindest, funniest, and most unassuming people to ever build a WordPress empire. And I think it's because he builds community and helps the community all while working hard for GoWP's customers.

Birgit Pauli-Haack is the driving force behind Gutenberg Times, and is a timeless supporter of all things WordPress - from WordCamps to the open source project. Oh, and she's a respected and successful agency owner, too!

Greg Taylor is the Content Strategist/WordPress Developer and Co-founder at Trinity Web Media, and a coffee roaster, too! (His coffee is AMAZING!) This multi-talented WordPresser was a blast to talk to! And he's offering you 15% off when you order coffee online! Use discount code 'wpcoffeetalk' at americanbeancoffee.com.

Caylin is a multi-talented marketer and artist with a heart of gold and an amazing sense of humor. Her work at GoWP puts her in touch with a lot of the WordPress community, and she shines!

Donata and Hans are the Dynamic Duo of WordPress! Their company, Termageddon, powers the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policies of countless websites. Always on the cutting edge of legislation, they've got you covered. Talking to them was so much fun!

If there was a dictionary entry for "WordPress Community Builder" you'd see Mizanur's photo there. Always looking for ways to help, ready with a smile, and he leaves you feeling better about your day after you talk to him. I hope you enjoy our interview as much as I did!

Although I'm old enough to be her mother, Christie is who I want to be when I grow up. She's smart. She's strategic. She's fun. She's also not afraid to speak her voice, stand up for others, and use her influence for good. Add to that her WordPress expertise, and I don't think there's anything that could stand in her way.

Tim Toomey is the quintessential agency owner - works with great devs, develops great plugins and themes, is wonderful to his clients, and still finds ways to give back to the WordPress community.

A self-proclaimed "shouty lady," Francesca Marano is all about getting the work done in WordPress. Both in her work at SiteGround, and all the volunteer hours she logs in the community, she's all heart, multi-talented, and well-respected. When you think of "WordPress Community," Francesca comes to mind.

Not only does Ben Pines know all about page builders and how they can enhance your WordPress sites, but he's a super nice guy who does a spot on Matt Mullenweg impression. (Hint: he does it for us on this episode!)

She's an influential and powerful woman in WordPress, and also one of the kindest, warmest, and friendliest people you'll meet. She's not afraid to make bold decisions. And she's not afraid to keep it real. I hope you enjoy this interview as much as I enjoyed the time together.

Amy Hall is an email marketing wiz. Honestly, she knows more about harnessing the power of MailChimp than I could hope to learn. And she shares that knowledge with others while doing amazing things for her clients email marketing at the same time.

If anyone understands how to create value, it's Jan Koch. A digital mastermind, Jan creates community and content by leveraging both his technical know how, and the wisdom and knowledge of those in the community to create online events worth attending.

Kathy Zant is a WordPress treasure! Full of compassion, creativity, knowledge, and love for the WordPress community, Kathy is one of those people that you are so happy to call friend. Here we talked about WordFence, WordPress, and the film, Open, her passion project and a give to WordPress.

I first met Rene Morozowich at WordCamp Kent, and quickly discovered what a genuis she is at teaching web designers and developers how to manage their business (and personal) finances. She's a pretty badass WordPress developer, too!

David Martin has been using technology since he was a child learning to code on an Apple III. He's used that passion for technology to create his web design business. And he's a pretty rad saxophonist, too!

Wolf Bishop is the founder of WP Top Hat, managed WordPress hosting. He's a big fan of all things WordPress, and a great supporter of the WordPress Community. Say hello to Wolf!

Vito Peleg is a WordPress titan. He has a true talent for envisioning the goal and creating the right team to make it happen. WP Feedback is a prime example!

Nate Maingard is an amazing singer, story-teller, and one of the most kind-hearted people I've met. He uses WordPress for his music and for supporting his musical endeavors by accepting sponsorships online. After you listen to this episode, give his music a listen, too!

Joe Casabona is a podcasting guru! It would have been intimidating if he wasn't such a nice guy, willing to share info, and so easy to talk to. His courses on small business growth and his posts on podcasting help people all over do a better job at managing their businesses.