In January 2019, at a Joomla Users Group presentation in Melbourne, Australia, I made a very bold statement. “If a prospect or client tells us they want a WordPress website, we are not going to tell them Joomla is better… we are going to design & develop a WordPress Website”
Without a doubt, one of the most significant forks in our business journey came during this era, as we began offering WordPress websites with YOOtheme Builder while continuing to design custom Joomla websites for clients and prospects.
Both CMS platforms were excellent, and Joomla had played a major role in helping us build our business. A big influence on Bear Web Design moving towards WordPress was the health of the WordPress Plugins market and the size of the WordPress user base, which to us meant more licensing fees would go into WordPress plugins for future sustainability and growth.
Though we continued building Joomla & WordPress websites, by the end of this era, Bear Web Design had fully evolved into a WordPress Design & Development Agency.
Team Bear – (left to right) – Jennifer Folsom, Dana Bryson, Brad Dawson, and Peter Beare meeting at our office (Circa 2018-2020) at Center 615 in East Nashville.
Led by designer and developer Jennifer Folsom, Bear Web Design made a significant strategic shift in 2017 by adopting WordPress as its primary web development platform. Over the following four years, as our expertise and confidence grew with new WordPress projects, we migrated more than 125 existing client websites from Joomla to WordPress using YOOtheme Builder.
During this period, we fully embraced WordPress, with YOOtheme Builder becoming our primary website development platform. We migrated our clients from a dedicated server to Rochen’s cloud hosting environment, improving performance, security, and reliability. We also introduced Moqups to collaborate on wireframes, website mockups, and logo concepts, while Watchful allowed us to monitor every hosted website 24/7 and automatically update WordPress, themes, and plugins overnight to keep client websites secure and up to date. We also transitioned to Google Analytics 4 (GA4) while continuing to rely on Google Workspace, Zendesk, GoDaddy, and QuickBooks Online, with outstanding bookkeeping support from my sister, Rosemary Goodman, in Melbourne, Australia.
Team Bear in 2018 at our Main Street Office in East Nashville – Left to Right, Dana Bryson, Jennifer Folsom & Peter Beare
This period in Bear Web Design’s history identified one of our greatest strengths—our ability to adapt quickly as technology evolved. Rather than chasing every new trend, we embraced tools that genuinely improved the way we served our clients. Nothing demonstrated that better than the rapid adoption of Zoom during the COVID-19 pandemic. When in-person meetings suddenly stopped, Zoom allowed us to stay connected, continue collaborating, and provide the same high level of service our clients had come to expect. Today, it remains an essential part of how we do business.
WordPress
WordPress became our core website development platform for Bear Web Design during this era. Attending multiple National WordCamps allowed our team members to establish the latest direction and trends of the platform and as well as attend many expert sessions.
Between 2017 and 2021, WordPress underwent a massive transformation from a traditional blogging script into a modern, visual page builder. The defining feature was the launch and rapid evolution of the Gutenberg block editor, shifting the platform toward Full Site Editing (FSE).
Yootheme Builder
A key technology change for us was using Yootheme Builder for WordPress Projects. Yootheme, out of Hamburg, Germany was not a stranger to Bear Web Design and just about all the Joomla websites we had designed since 2013 had used a core Yootheme template (built on their proprietory Warp framework) which we would customize. We also used Youtheme’s Widgetkit on most client project as it allowed us to create and display dynamic content throughout a website without custom coding. It seems logical that this ultimately evolved into Yootheme Builder. To our good fortune Jennifer selected the builder for our entry into the WordPress market!
What an amazingly good choice Jennifer made! YOOtheme Builder is a premium visual website builder and theme framework for WordPress and Joomla. Initially we were still considering designing both WordPress and Joomla so this was the perfect builder. The visual editing was easy to use and offered clean developer-friendly code. The themes were lightweight but powerful and it was the perfect for an Agency that wanted to continue teaching clients how to update their content and manage their CMS.
Jennifer Folsom designed our first official WordPress in early 2017 with Anne Martin For Judge. In what appears to a be sign of good things to come Ann won her election!
Google Analytics 4 (GA4) officially launched in October 2020. It was announced as the new default analytics property and the replacement for Universal Analytics (UA) at that time, introducing a new event-based data model.
On January 27, 2012, Bear Web Design purchased its first domain through GoDaddy—JMInsuranceAgency.com—for $10.17. Prior to this, we had been using Aplus.net as our primary domain registrar. While the exact reason for exploring GoDaddy at the time is unclear, it quickly became evident that GoDaddy’s user-friendly portal and management tools were a strong fit for our needs.
Over the following years, we purchased more than 100 domains for both our company and our clients, as GoDaddy became our primary platform for domain registration, management, and renewals. In 2016, we officially closed our Aplus.net account and fully transitioned to GoDaddy.
To this day, GoDaddy remains our primary domain registrar, continuing to support our operations and client services.
Rochen
As with many Joomla legacy companies in this era Rochen most likely started offering professional WordPress hosting. As the market for WordPress website exploded in this period we needed a hosting partner that could allows us to continue to professionally manage our clients website in the same manner we had with our Joomla Websites and our existing partner Rochen was the perfect host (again).
Around 2021 in an ever evolving industy we live in Rochen started offering Cloud Based Servers which improved server uptime, redundancy, operational flexiblity, recovery speed and scalability. In a nut shell for our agency we could apply more resources to a single account on a cloud server allowing us to provide a more custom hosting experience pending the clients needs, traffic and activity. In a period of tremendous change for us we also migrated around 150 client websites to our cloud based server (with the excellent support of Rochen) as professional account management and hosting continued to be the backbone of our business.
Prior to 2018, Bear Web Design presented web design samples to clients as a series of individual HTML pages. While effective, this process was time-consuming to set up and made it easy for clients to miss links between design concepts and sample pages.
In March 2018, Bear Web Design subscribed to Moqups, providing our team with a collaborative platform for creating and sharing wireframes, website mockups, and logo concepts with clients. This significantly streamlined our design presentation process and improved communication throughout project development.
Moqups is a streamlined and intuitive web application that enables teams to create and collaborate on wireframes, mockups, diagrams, and interactive prototypes. Its cloud-based platform makes it easy to gather feedback, iterate on designs, and keep projects organized in a single location.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, companies around the world rapidly migrated to using Zoom as remote work became the new standard. With offices closed and employees working from home, businesses needed a reliable way to communicate, collaborate, and hold meetings virtually. Zoom quickly became one of the most popular platforms because of its ease of use, video conferencing capabilities, and ability to host large meetings and webinars. From small businesses to major corporations, organizations relied on Zoom to maintain productivity, conduct team meetings, train employees, and stay connected with clients during an unprecedented shift in workplace operations.
In 2014, Bear Web Design launched a Help Desk system using Zendesk to better support our growing client base. As we expanded to serve well over 100 clients, managing design and development projects—as well as ongoing client needs—through standard email alone became increasingly inefficient.
To address this, we introduced HelpDesk.BearWebDesign.com, a custom client portal that streamlined communication and centralized support requests.
Since implementing the Zendesk Help Desk in 2014, Bear Web Design has consistently handled an average of approximately 1,000 client project and support tickets per year, significantly improving our organization, response times, and overall client experience.
Bear Web Design started using Harvest in 2014 providing a time tracking system that allowed for full integration with Zendesk. Harvest quickly become the primary time tracking system for team members and the primary invoicing initiater for our billing.
Bear Web Design began using Harvest in 2014, implementing a streamlined time-tracking system that fully integrated with Zendesk. Harvest quickly became the company’s primary platform for employee time tracking and the foundation for client invoicing and billing operations.
At the time, Harvest was already emerging as one of the leading platforms for creative agencies, web studios, consultants, and other service-based businesses that billed by the hour. Its appeal centered on simplicity and efficiency — allowing teams to track time, generate invoices, and monitor project profitability without the complexity of enterprise-level software.
Over the years, Harvest helped Bear Web Design improve workflow organization, strengthen billing accuracy, and create a more seamless connection between project support and financial management.
Bear Web Design signed up for a Google Apps for Business account on January 1, 2012, and Google’s suite of products has been a foundational part of our operations ever since. During that time, we onboarded all team members to @bearwebdesign.com Google accounts, giving us access to essential collaboration tools such as Gmail, Calendar, Drive, and Docs—tools we continue to rely on every day.
In 2014, Google Business Profile was introduced, and we quickly adopted it as a key part of our client strategy. We ensured that every client we managed established a presence on the platform, which has since become a cornerstone of local marketing and visibility for the businesses we serve.
In 2017, my Joomla associate, Nicky Vetch from Melbourne, Australia, told me she was managing all of her client websites using a platform called Watchful. At the time, we were maintaining more than 125 Joomla websites—and a handful of WordPress sites—completely manually. Every core update, plugin update, and theme update had to be performed one website at a time. Looking back, I’m not entirely sure how we managed it all!
The updates themselves were time-consuming, but the biggest concern was the possibility of a website going down. While outages were rare, there was always the risk that a client would be the first to tell us their website was offline. That prospect never sat well with me.
Following Nicky’s recommendation, we subscribed to Watchful on June 1, 2017, and have managed all of our clients’ websites through the platform ever since. Nearly a decade later, Watchful remains an essential part of our website maintenance process.
Today, we receive continuous monitoring and status updates across all client websites, including alerts for website changes—a valuable security feature that helps us identify potential issues quickly. Automatic updates are scheduled to run overnight for most of our North American clients, ensuring websites remain secure and up to date with minimal disruption. We also provide uptime reports to clients, which we know they greatly appreciate.
Watchful is a powerful remote management platform that allows agencies and website professionals to administer portfolios of Joomla and WordPress websites from a single, customizable dashboard. Key features include automated maintenance, security monitoring, website performance tracking, analytics, SEO insights, and centralized management tools that save countless hours of administrative work.
Fun Fact: If you visit the Watchful website today, you’ll still find Nicky’s photo featured in their testimonials section. Watchful couldn’t ask for a better ambassador than that!
In 2011, Bear Web Design transitioned from a manual billing and accounting system to QuickBooks Online. This initiative was led by my sister, Rosemary Goodman, based in Melbourne, Australia, who serves as our Accountant and Bookkeeper. The move to an online platform made remote collaboration seamless and reinforced the value and efficiency of cloud-based systems.
Since then, Rosemary has meticulously maintained Bear Web Design’s financial records. Her consistent attention to detail, timely invoicing, and monthly oversight have ensured that our books remain accurate and up to date at all times—providing a strong financial foundation that has supported our growth.
It is also worth noting that QuickBooks underwent a major rebuild in 2013, evolving into the modern, fully cloud-based platform that businesses rely on today.
Peter Beare at the Melbourne Joomla Users Group Christmas Party in 2017 – besides being great Joomla Developers they were also “Great Mates!”
Featured Designer
Jennifer’s introduction of WordPress and YOOtheme Builder represented a significant shift from the company’s previous reliance on custom Joomla templates. This transition modernized the way websites were designed and developed, streamlining workflows while expanding creative flexibility and scalability for clients.
The move toward builder-based development ultimately positioned Bear Web Design at the forefront of the next generation of content management systems, laying the foundation for the modern web solutions the company continues to provide today.
Expanding Our Digital Strategy Services
Jennifer has helped shape Bear Web Design’s approach to WordPress development, WooCommerce, accessibility, and digital strategy. By combining thoughtful design with technical expertise, she has worked with clients to build websites that are easier to manage, more visible in search, and aligned with their long-term business objectives.
Continuing to Shape Our Future
Since joining Bear Web Design in 2016, Jennifer has designed and developed more than 150 websites for businesses, nonprofits, educational institutions, and professional organizations. Today, Jennifer combines website design and development with digital strategy, working with clients to develop effective digital strategies, guide website projects from concept to launch, and identify solutions that support long-term growth.
WooCommerce becomes our primary e-Commerce Store
Between 2017 and 2021, WooCommerce transformed from a popular WordPress plugin into a dominant e-commerce powerhouse, ultimately powering nearly 40% of all online stores. Driven by the pandemic-fueled shift to digital retail, the platform surpassed $20 billion in sales while modernizing its core technology through an integrated REST API, a more stable monthly release cadence, and new native services like WooCommerce Payments and WooCommerce Shipping. Under Automattic’s stewardship, WooCommerce matured into the premier open-source alternative to closed ecosystems such as Shopify.
By combining WordPress and WooCommerce, Bear Web Design could now build enterprise-level online stores capable of managing thousands of products. We custom-designed each website within WordPress to create a compelling brand experience that attracted customers, while leveraging the power of WooCommerce to provide secure, scalable e-commerce functionality that drove online sales.
By the end of this period, WooCommerce powered nearly 39% of all online stores worldwide. Its dominance also fueled the growth of an unmatched ecosystem of third-party extensions and plugins, giving businesses a level of flexibility and customization that walled-garden platforms like Shopify could not match. This allowed Bear Web Design to deliver highly customized e-commerce solutions that could continue to grow alongside our clients’ businesses.
WordCamp US 2017
WordCamp US 2017 & 2018 were held at Music City Center, in the heart of downtown Nashville. Music City Center is home to a covered parking garage and is directly on several Nashville MTA bus routes.
For our team members, this was our first WordCamp US, and being in our backyard was a huge boost for us as we were now starting to use WordPress on many new projects. This was the start of Bear Web Design actively attending WordCamps in the United States and Europe and becoming heavily vested in the WordPress Community, including local WordPress Meetup sessions.
WordCamp US 2019 – 2020
WordCamp US called St. Louis home for 2019. This beautiful city – the “Gateway to the West” – offered excellent talks, as well as opportunities for relaxation and networking after hours at the City Museum!
WordCamp programming reflected the growing importance of digital accessibility. Multiple sessions focused on inclusive design, usability, and accessibility, while the conference itself demonstrated accessibility best practices through live captioning, accessible facilities, and dedicated accessibility contributors. These conversations reinforced principles that would later become a central part of Bear Web Design’s approach to creating websites that are usable by everyone.
Bear Web Design team members Jennifer Folsom and Brad Dawson attended WordCamp St. Louis in 2019. In 2020, they also participated in WordCamp US, which was held virtually due to the COVID-19 pandemic after the in-person event was canceled.
WordCamp Atlanta 2019 was a vibrant, community-driven WordPress conference held from May 3–5, 2019, at the Loudermilk Center in downtown Atlanta. The three-day event featured beginner workshops, design and development sessions, and networking opportunities.
Bear Web Design Team Member Jennifer Folsom & Brad Dawson attended WordCamp 2019 in Atlanta and attended a talk about the inherent challenges of using accessibility tools and understanding how to make user experiences better regardless of ability.
Peter Beare
Sales & Support
Dana Bryson
Web Designer
Jennifer Folsom
Designer/Developer
Brad Dawson
Programmer/Developer
Matt Hearn
Designer/Developer
Rosemary Goodman
Bookkeeper
Girls Who Code Club Visits Bear Web Design!
In this 2018 blog, we look back on the wonderful time we shared when Girls That Code visited Bear Web Design in Nashville. Jennifer Folsom had been teaching coding classes for girls in Wilson County who were eager to learn more about web development and programming. As part of the experience, the students explored the many opportunities available to programmers and developers in the 21st century.
The group toured Bear Web Design and gained firsthand insight into the creative and technical side of the industry. We wrapped up the visit with a pizza lunch to celebrate the students’ hard work and enthusiasm. Jennifer’s passion for community engagement and education was a tremendous asset to Bear Web Design’s outreach efforts.
WordPress, Gutenberg, & The Classic Editor
Written by Jennifer Folsom in late 2019, this blog introduced WordPress’s new Block Editor, Gutenberg, which fundamentally changed the way users create and manage website content. Jennifer explained the transition from the Classic Editor, previously used for tasks like writing blog posts, to the new block-based editing experience that made it easier to build rich page layouts, add buttons, adjust styling, change background colors, and create more engaging content without writing code.
Using the native WordPress Block Editor instead of a third-party page builder such as Elementor offered several long-term advantages. Because Gutenberg is built directly into WordPress core, websites typically load faster, generate cleaner code, and rely on fewer plugins. These benefits contribute to improved Core Web Vitals, stronger SEO, better mobile performance, enhanced accessibility, and easier long-term maintenance.
Helping clients transition from the Classic Editor to Gutenberg became an important part of Bear Web Design’s training and support services. By teaching clients how to use WordPress’s evolving content management tools, we empower them to confidently update their own websites while taking full advantage of the flexibility and performance offered by their new CMS.
Bear Web Design Finds Strength in a World Wide Pandemic
As businesses across the country began to close and the world entered lockdown, I remember telling our team how much I hoped we could continue supporting our clients through such an uncertain time. The client update below captured both our concerns and our commitment to helping businesses navigate an unprecedented situation.
What happened next surprised us. Within a matter of weeks, Bear Web Design became busier than ever as organizations turned their attention to their websites and digital presence. Businesses quickly realized that their websites were no longer just online brochures. They had become essential tools for communicating with customers, selling products, sharing timely information, and keeping their organizations operating during a period when many physical locations were closed.
Above Jennifer Folsom is leading one of the classrooms for the National Girls Who Code Summer Immersion Program via Zoom during COVID-19 – learn more…
Brad Dawson joined Bear Web Design in 2018, and we certainly kept him busy with Joomla! to WordPress migrations.
Migrating All Those Joomla Websites!
During this era, Bear Web Design successfully migrated more than 125 websites from Joomla to WordPress. Each project was unique and often involved far more than simply moving content. Many websites were redesigned or modernized, new plugins and functionality were implemented, forms were rebuilt, and content was carefully migrated to ensure a seamless transition.
Brad Dawson’s programming and development expertise was essential to the success of these complex projects. He remained exceptionally busy helping clients modernize their sites while ensuring migrations were reliable, secure, and tailored to clients’ needs. Great job, Brad!
