Welcome to the Jukebox Podcast from WP Tavern. Nathan Wrigley hosts this episode with Elliott Richmond, a WordPress developer and content creator with more than 20 years’ experience—dating back to the b2 days before WordPress was forked. Elliott has freelanced, worked with multiple CMSs, contributed to the community (including a 2013 WordPress advent calendar), and now balances development, YouTube content, and an unexpected pizza business powered by WordPress.
Background and WordPress History
Elliott taught himself web development after working at a design agency that didn’t embrace web work. He used CMS platforms like Joomla and Drupal before settling on b2 and WordPress. He got involved with meetups and the community early on, inviting contributions for an advent calendar of code snippets in 2013. Today he remains an active developer who enjoys solving complex problems with WordPress.
The Pizza Business Powered by WordPress
During the COVID lockdown, Elliott and his wife launched a neighborhood pizza delivery operation. What began as a temporary response to closed businesses turned into a thriving micro-business employing staff and licensing its model to others. Crucially, the business runs on WordPress technologies: WooCommerce, Jetpack, and custom plugins.
Elliott built a plugin—the freemium Pizza Pilot with a Pro version bundled for licensees—that handles order workflows tailored to local food businesses. Features include:
– Slot-based ordering with time windows
– Radius-based delivery restrictions (postcode-driven)
– Options to switch between delivery and collection
The plugin suits bakeries, pop-ups, and other local food services that need restricted delivery zones and controlled pickup/delivery times. People have contacted him internationally asking to adapt it for different food businesses.
Collaboration with Automattic and wordpress.com
Automattic (wordpress.com) reached out to Elliott via Michelle Frechette and Stacey Carlson, inviting him to create sponsored content explaining wordpress.com features and workflows. The collaboration grew after pitching several content ideas; Elliott now has an arrangement to produce videos throughout the year that align with wordpress.com priorities.
He also connected with Brit Solata and Jamie Marsland (head of the wordpress.com YouTube channel), who inspired and guided his approach. Jamie created the “speed challenge” series and has been a model of how to simplify complex WordPress topics for a broad audience.
Content Goals and Format
Elliott will produce both long-form educational videos and short-form spinoffs for social platforms. His aim is educational: to explain what new features do, how to use them, and how to implement them—particularly as WordPress undergoes rapid change (including new major releases and AI-driven features). He sees an opportunity for content creators to bridge gaps in documentation and to reach diverse audiences via video.
Automattic’s role is supportive rather than prescriptive. Elliott posts content on his own channel, elliottrichmondwp, with freedom to choose topics. The collaboration includes occasional briefs describing target audiences and goals, but Elliott retains creative control and can critique features openly. He values the two-way feedback loop that community comments provide—positive or negative feedback informs future content and product improvement.
Topics Elliott Plans to Cover
– How wordpress.com and the standalone WordPress software relate (including using the Studio app)
– Developer-focused features and tooling (e.g., enabling Xdebug in local environments)
– Making complex topics—templating, patterns, template parts, and AI concepts—accessible with graphics and analogies
– Practical workflows and demos based on real-world use cases (including his pizza business)
Approach to Content Creation
Elliott explained his process evolves with each video but generally includes:
– Brain dumping ideas via voice-to-text (Notes app) to capture raw thoughts
– Using AI to polish drafts to ~60–70% of a working script
– Loosely scripting with flashcard-style prompts rather than strict word-for-word recitation
– Iterative recording and editing, relying on community feedback to refine future content
He values scripting for clarity but allows improvisation on camera. Elliott also enjoys editing and refining videos, treating it as a creative stage akin to composing music.
Gear and Software
Elliott’s setup is intentionally low-tech and accessible:
– Primary camera: iPhone
– DIY lighting: simple diffusers (e.g., a small box and tissue paper over an LED) for soft lighting
– Audio and monitoring: home studio monitors (from music production gear)
– Editing and motion graphics: DaVinci Resolve (paid license for extras, but the free version is very capable)
He emphasizes that effective teaching and clear scripting matter more than expensive equipment—an iPhone, good audio, simple lighting, and a solid editing tool are enough to produce professional content.
Community, Feedback, and Motivation
YouTube serves as a powerful feedback loop—comment threads spark ideas for subsequent videos and provide direct, actionable feedback. Elliott values community interactions and finds them essential for improving both content and product features. He also enjoys teaching and learning; explaining concepts often leads to new insights and improvements in his own work.
Business Model and Future Plans
The pizza venture is a license-based model rather than a franchise—licensees buy the business model and receive support and the Pro version of Elliott’s plugin. Elliott is fine-tuning the plugin and packaging it for licensees so he can continue developing while scaling the pizza business. His Automattic collaboration runs through the year with flexibility to create his own content alongside it. Expect videos about wordpress.com features, developer tooling, AI topics, and possibly pizza-related content that ties back to WordPress workflows (e.g., a dough calculator or ordering integration).
Where to Find Elliott
– YouTube: elliottrichmondwp
– Website/blog: elliottrichmond.co.uk (double L, double T)
The episode highlights how WordPress can be the glue for unexpected ventures, from powering local food businesses to enabling educational content at scale. Elliott’s mix of long WordPress experience, practical product development, community involvement, and an approachable content creation process makes his work valuable to developers, site owners, and creators alike.
