Website design and development
Websites that bring in business.
I design and build them on WordPress, so your team can update text and images without calling a developer every time.
Seven years of it, for clients in the US, UK, Canada, Italy and Saudi Arabia. I work across US and UK time zones and reply within 12 hours.
+ Full backup before any change is made.
+ Written findings and a fixed price before work starts.
How a project runs
We agree the scope
What the site needs to do, who it is for, and what success looks like. Fixed price in writing.
I design it in Elementor
A working page on a live URL you can click through on your own phone before I go further.
You review it
Two rounds of revisions included, made directly on the page rather than marked up on a screenshot.
I build, test and hand over
Speed tuned, schema in place, and built so your team can edit text without calling me.
Fixed price agreed in writing before anything starts.
What expert means here
Most Elementor sites are built one page at a time.
Every element styled by hand, and a plugin reached for whenever the builder stops short. It works until the site grows, and then every change means touching every page. Here is what I do instead.
Built on a system
Global Colors, Global Fonts and a defined spacing scale set once, then used everywhere. Change a brand color later and it updates across every page, because nothing was hardcoded into individual widgets.
- Global design system: color, type scale, spacing
- Theme Builder for header, footer, archives, single posts
- Flexbox and grid containers, not nested section stacks
- Designed at every breakpoint, not scaled down from desktop
Code where the builder stops
Elementor covers layout well. For the rest I write custom hooks and filters rather than installing another plugin, because every plugin you add is a future conflict and another thing slowing the site down.
- Custom PHP for behavior Elementor has no widget for
- WooCommerce flows wired to forms and user accounts
- Structured data written by hand and validated
- Caching, images and queries handled before handover
Fast, and stays fast
Elementor gets blamed for slow sites. Usually the cause is bloated global CSS, unused widgets loading everywhere, and no caching layer. All three are fixable, and I fix them before handover.
- Improved asset loading and CSS print method configured
- Unused global widgets and default fonts disabled
- Caching, CDN and image optimization set up properly
- Core Web Vitals checked before I call it done
Common faults
Most WordPress emergencies come from a short list.
After enough sites you stop being surprised. These account for the majority of what I get called in for.
Plugin conflicts
Two plugins hooking the same filter at the same priority, or one overwriting the other’s output. Usually appears straight after an update and the error log points nowhere useful.
PHP fatal errors after an update
A plugin or theme calling a function that no longer exists, or a PHP version bump the code was never tested against. Site goes white, admin included.
Autoloaded options bloat
Every uninstalled plugin that left its settings behind is still loaded from wp_options on every single request. On older sites this alone can add seconds.
Unindexed database queries
Plugins written for small sites running heavy queries straight against the database. Fine at 500 posts, crippling at 50,000, and it degrades gradually so nobody catches it.
WooCommerce checkout and payment failures
Gateway misconfiguration, orders not completing, mobile layouts breaking at the payment step. The most expensive category, because every hour is lost revenue.
Multipurpose theme overhead
A premium theme loading sliders, shortcodes and scripts for features the site never uses. You inherit the full technical debt for a fraction of the functionality.
Failed migrations
Host moves that break serialized data, hardcoded URLs left in the database, permalinks and media pointing at a server that no longer exists.
Malware and unauthorised access
Injected redirects, spam pages indexed under your domain, admin users nobody created. Cleanup is the easy half. Finding the entry point is the real job.
Selected work
What I built and fixed.
Legal directories, medical supply, luxury e-commerce, broadcast, agriculture, non-profit and news platforms.
Legal directory
- Built a programmatic city SEO system generating location pages from a single template
- Wrote custom Attorney and LegalService JSON-LD schema, deployed sitewide through WPCode
- Built a claim listing system and featured listing monetisation through WooCommerce
- Custom star review display and AdSense placement logic
Medical supply
- Built a Gravity Forms patient registration flow that auto populates WooCommerce billing and shipping fields
- Synced submitted form data to user meta so it persists across orders
- Replaced the default WooCommerce account panel with a custom accordion dashboard
E-commerce, checkout
- Full WooCommerce checkout audit
- Reduced and reordered checkout fields to cut friction in the order path
- Repaired mobile layout failures on the payment step
Non-profit, performance
Dementia charity website
- Built the site from scratch on a custom child theme
- Configured WP Rocket caching and Cloudflare CDN
- Image optimization and database cleanup for PageSpeed
- Wordfence security configuration
Luxury e-commerce
- Payment gateway configuration and repair
- Fixed responsive breakpoints and mobile layout failures
- Checkout flow and styling corrections to match premium positioning
Broadcast, custom PHP
- Wrote a custom PHP function hooked into the post template that calculates and displays estimated reading time per article
- Delivered without adding a plugin
News, automation
- Built custom PHP automation that pulls RSS feed items and converts them into WordPress posts with attribution links
- Runs on schedule, removing manual publishing
Agriculture, content platform
- Designed and built the site in Elementor Pro, from the homepage through to the article layouts
- Structured the content around three livestock categories so readers reach the right guide in one click
- Reusable templates for guides and blog posts, so new articles are published without a developer
Lead generation, demo build
- Built a lead generation site for an emergency service business
- Click to call CTAs, service area landing pages, LocalBusiness structured data
Client feedback
What clients said afterwards.
Every review below was left on Freelancer.com, where the work was contracted and paid, so none of it is a quote I typed myself. Read them on my profile.
“If you want someone who does work with more heart and soul, this is your guy. Never once was I left wondering if my project would be done. The best part of working with James is he is honest and humble and extremely true to his word. He has continued to help even after the project was completed.”
“In the months we have been hiring freelancers none have been as skilled as James. We are so impressed with his work… he completed on time and also was very knowledgeable, suggesting areas we had not considered.”
“Very professional. He did everything I asked and more. Very happy to work with him and will hire again for sure.”
“Good experience working with James over a number of months.”
Pricing
Fixed prices, so there is no meter running while your site is down.
The price covers the problem being gone, not the hours it takes me. If it turns out to be a forty minute job, that is the point of hiring someone who has seen it before.
These three prices cover emergency work and do not change. For builds, redesigns and stores, use the estimate tool below.
Start here
$150
Diagnosis
I find the cause and send written findings with the repair quoted at a fixed price. Credited toward the repair if you go ahead.
- Fault reproduced and traced
- Written cause report
- Fixed quote, not an estimate
- No charge if I cannot find it
Repair
$300 to $600
Fix and handover
Quoted after diagnosis, based on actual scope. Covers the fault categories listed above.
- Fixed price agreed upfront
- Backup before any change
- Tested on staging first
- Documented handover
Urgent
+50% surcharge
Same day and weekend
Store offline, leads not arriving, site down during business hours. Work starts on confirmation.
- Immediate start
- Weekends and holidays
- Progress updates throughout
- Malware cleanup from $800
Risk free diagnosis
If I cannot identify what is causing the problem, you do not pay the $150. You have lost nothing except the time it took to send me the URL.
Instant estimate
Price up a build before you contact me.
For new builds, redesigns, stores and optimization work. Emergency diagnosis and repair is fixed at the prices above and is not estimated here.
Select as many as apply.
Custom work means forms wired to other systems, member areas, bespoke layouts or integrations.
Services
Other work I take on.
Quoted flat wherever the scope is clear, hourly where it genuinely is not.
Speed optimization
Caching, CDN, image compression, database cleanup, autoloaded options audit. Measured before and after.
WooCommerce support
Checkout repair, payment gateway configuration, order problems, product and inventory issues.
Security and hardening
Malware removal, Wordfence configuration, login protection, SSL, written security audit.
Custom PHP and JavaScript
Hooks, filters, shortcodes and small features that do not justify a plugin or a rebuild.
Theme and CSS repair
Layout and styling fixes, in Elementor or directly in code. Cross browser and mobile tested.
Elementor Pro builds
New sites and rebuilds, built so the client can maintain them without calling a developer for text changes.
Ongoing care
Most of what I get called for was preventable.
Sites rarely break without warning. They break because an update ran unsupervised, a plugin was abandoned by its author, or the database quietly grew past what the queries were written for. Monthly care means I find it before your customers do.
Retainers from $300 per month, priority response included
- Core, theme and plugin updates run on staging first
- Offsite backups, verified rather than just scheduled
- Uptime and PHP error monitoring
- Quarterly database and autoload audit
- Priority response ahead of one off jobs
- Monthly report in plain language
Technical
What I use on client sites.
Diagnosis
- Query Monitor
- WP_DEBUG and error logs
- Plugin conflict isolation
- Staging reproduction
- Chrome DevTools
- phpMyAdmin and database repair
WordPress core
- Hooks, actions and filters
- Child theme development
- Custom post types and taxonomies
- Elementor and Elementor Pro
- Gutenberg block editor
- ACF
Languages
- PHP, hooks, filters, custom functions
- JavaScript and jQuery
- HTML5 and CSS3
- MySQL and database queries
Performance and security
- WP Rocket
- Cloudflare CDN and DNS
- Wordfence
- Core Web Vitals
- Rank Math SEO
E-commerce and forms
- WooCommerce
- Gravity Forms
- Payment gateway configuration
- Directorist
Workflow
- Git and version control
- cPanel and hosting management
- WPCode snippet management
- JSON-LD schema
- Google Analytics and Search Console
About
I am James Kiarie.
WordPress developer with seven years building and maintaining sites for clients in the US, UK, Canada, Italy and Saudi Arabia.
Most of my work starts with something broken. The pattern I keep running into is that writing the fix is rarely the hard part. Finding the cause is. A white screen has a long list of possible sources and the error log usually points at the last thing to fail rather than the first. Working that backwards is the skill, and it is why I will take on a live production site that other people would rather not touch.
My degree is a B.Sc. in Telecommunications and IT. I have worked across legal directories, non-profits, broadcast, medical supply, luxury e-commerce and news platforms, which covers most of what tends to go wrong.
I work with clients across US and UK time zones and reply within 12 hours as standard, faster on anything urgent.
Before you ask
The questions I get every time.
If yours is not here, ask it in the form below and I will answer it directly.
How quickly will you reply?
Within 12 hours as standard, and faster on anything urgent. I work across US and UK time zones, so a message sent during your working day is usually answered inside it.
How do I know what it will cost before I commit?
For a fault, the $150 diagnosis ends in written findings and a fixed repair price. You can stop there and take that report elsewhere if you want to. For a build, the estimate tool above gives you a range in a couple of clicks, and I confirm a fixed price in writing once we have spoken. That price does not move unless the scope does.
Who owns the site and the code when we are done?
You do, in full, on final payment. That includes any custom PHP I write for you. Nothing is licensed back to me, nothing stops working if we part ways, and I do not hold hosting, domains or logins hostage.
Will my team be able to edit it without calling you?
Yes, and that is deliberate. Sites are built on Global Colors, Global Fonts and Theme Builder templates, so text and images are editable by anyone comfortable in WordPress. I hand over documentation for anything less obvious.
What happens if something breaks after handover?
If it is a fault in work I did, I fix it at no charge. If it is something else that has since gone wrong on the site, it is quoted like any other job, or covered outright if you are on a monthly care plan.
Do you need admin access to my site?
For repair work, yes, along with hosting or cPanel access in most cases, since the cause is often outside WordPress. I take a full backup before touching anything and work on staging wherever the host allows it. Create a fresh admin account for me and delete it when we are finished.
Get in touch
Tell me what you need.
Building something new or fixing something broken, send the details below and I will come back with a plan and a fixed price. On repairs, if I cannot find the cause there is no charge.
Prefer your own mail client? james@jameskiarie.site
If something is broken, include these
- The site URL
- What is wrong, in your own words
- When it started
- Anything that changed just before, an update, a new plugin, a host migration
- Who your host is
- Whether you still have admin access
- How urgent it is