Terms

     The Code Company founder Ben May talks at an industrial gathering (c) thecode.co    

The Code Company, a specialization agency that concentrates on publishing through digital media, and is a top suppliers. They're WordPress specialists, and are involved in large-scale overhauls along with the integration of migrations and other features. They're developing hundreds of tech stacks for numerous publishing businesses.

The company recently launched a relaunch of Substack which is the largest The Dispatch, a publication to provide news and comment on policy, politics and culture, valued at $1.9 million and boasting many thousands of subscribers. I talked to Stacey Astley Clark who is part of the communication and partnerships department, regarding Substack and its offerings:

"Our CEO Ben May has been using technology to solve problems since the age of 10," says Stacey. "He developed his first site for a local business in the year 12 and made 400 dollars." Ben saw an increasing possibility of the future within this field so he launched his very first business when he was 22 years old.

The Code Company didn't deliberately get into publishing, but it was able to win some publishing clients at the start. Stacey says: "We've carved out a specialization in the development of technology for publishers on digital platforms as well as migrating from various platforms to WordPress and building membership capabilities and advertising technology. The initial plan was to work with a platform that we were not familiar with however we discovered that the vast majority of platforms didn't work! The only platform we use is WordPress; there were too many 'rescue operations using various platforms."

"The crucial engineering aspect which are involved in the creation of websites is exactly the work we do" Stacey continues. The team assists publishers with complicated problems by using WordPress and find ways to utilize technology to "increase the amount of money they earn, generate better efficiencies in the company and reduce the risk of dealing with technology".

Stacey and I are both of the opinion that  technology is getting less technical'. This is essential for publishing. "Sometimes you will have writers, editors and marketing specialists who use technologyand need the capability to use the latest technology, without needing the engineer call them at every 5 minutes.These can be described as "wordspeople", not 'tech people'."

The Code Company helps these people build or transition to technological platforms that allow them to become self-sufficient "They need a platform that is able be able to complete the same task like before, but in a easier way. It is the Code Company often works with webmasters who have sites that are creaking with tech debt. The majority of plugins do not provide what they want and we believe it's best to develop an integrated system that is unique in order to make sure that the users receive the features they need, and none of the things they do not."

Clients

The Code Company works with content companies of all sorts including independent publishing to large entertainment groups. They have recently made a splash with the launch of Wondermind the mental health content hub supported by famous Selena Gomez and Newsette CEO Daniella Pierson. The launch was praised by Bhavik Trivedi, the Chief Operating Officer of Wondermind stated: "I've never had a smooth launch. Until now. It was first launched during the middle of the day, and it gradually grew with the increasing traffic increased. Our integrations also performed flawlessly."

The

     The new Wondermind multimedia hub (c) thecode.co    

They also collaborate with Nine which is the largest entertainment business in Australia. "We created their corporate site as well as publications drive.com.au one of the most popular automotive websites and Future Women, a membership club for women who have become professional." Code Company also launched a membership group for women who are professionals. Code Company also launched eBay's local ads site. "That was an important event because they had never local leads prior to that and began to receive Australian leads due to the launch of the site," Stacey confirms. "We just launched a brand-new site called Science Alert, which is an important magazine for science in the US. It is operated by Australia, but most users reside in the US. It was a project we worked on for about a year , and a quarter of a year!" She remembers.

However, it appears that the firm's most lucrative area of work is with small established publishers who seek to increase their reach. "We ask"how do you demonstrate you're able to create content? What are we able to do to get your company and the tech stack to be in good shape so that you can increase your revenue?" Stacey adds. It is likely that this is where the majority of the clients of The Co might be. It includes smaller media businesses like news sites Crikey and Her Campus, which is a female-led university students' media firm based in America. US (that The Code Company has moved to Drupal for the purpose of switching over to WordPress).

PCPgDKohJvS2XTfd The HerCampus.com content hub across many devices (c) thecode.co

"We help creative and ingenuous creators who feel frustrated or stymied by their existing platform as also CMS (content management systems for managing content)," Stacey adds. "They're reaching out to us to find alternatives since they're feeling their current platform is restricted in their capabilities. It's not very adaptable, and also they earn a huge chunk of the revenues." Furthermore the need is increasing for creators at all levels to gather first-party information. "They're only able to access that data via platforms like Substack. We're currently developing custom creator stacks that let creators have their own market" she explains.

Solutions and Services

The clients from The Code Company may be those who designed their site themselves or may have asked for help from someone to create it. Whatever the case, they're using numerous plugins. "As they've advanced, issues are beginning to show and they're unable to fix them on their own. As a result, there are problems and frustrations from readers and the fact that they're unable to accomplish what they would wish to do. It's not uncommon for them to be unable to do something that is as easy as adding something on your menu." The woman confirms.

Mike McPhate at the California Sun confirms: "The biggest problem with my previous membership website was the fact that it was rife by errors, as well as confusing instructions about how to navigate the site. I received emails nearly every single day from frustrated users. The moment I launched the website jointly with The Code Company and , I stopped receiving those mails from visitors and that's great!"

The California Sun (c)thecode.co

It is well-known that performance is essential for publishers "If the performance drops the company could lose hundreds of thousands of dollars" Stacey continues. "And they continue to hack off an application before sticking with another. They're losing efficiency until their business just isn't succeeding anymore. We'll be there, with this massive technological stack creaking behind the scenes, aware of the risk of their website slowing because of its performance."

Publishers are increasingly looking to diversify their revenues, which is why they're more and more exploring subscriptions and memberships. "We need to find an option that's efficient and secure. The majority of our task is to research strategies that can be life-changing for publishers," she says. The Code Company works specifically with subscription solutions to get around the what Stacey calls "leaky paywalls". Stacey says: "We've worked with other membership solutions before and found it simple to bypass the paywall. If your model of business relies on publishing and is dependent on content that is paid for, this presents a large problem."

New projects and events coming on

"The creation economy is booming," Stacey notes. "Creators are beginning to realize that SaaS platforms come with limits, and they're looking for other ways to make their mark. The trend of diversification won't go away for publishers, but it's equally important to continue seeking out new ways to connect and connect to their customers by offering specific and targeted information. Subscribers aren't just a source of income, they provide opportunities to be closer to audiences as well and increase participation."

"There are still print magazines that aren't on digital and we are receiving interest from magazines that are aware that in order to achieve success, it is essential to move into digital and subscriptions will be an integral part of that."

On the note of recent occasions "Ben is well-known in the field of conference," adds Stacey. Recently Ben presented a presentation at the Mumbrella publisher conference in Australia and also at WordCamp US in San Diego. The talk was about the creator economy and focused on 'the minimalist publisher' and how publishers can get more out of little. The talks also discussed taking the lessons of the creators of larger publishing companies that often use subscription-based services.

     The company's founder Ben May is a familiar name at the conferences. (c) thecode.co

It seems the company founder is an expert in the field. "Ben's been in this position throughout his entire existence and there's no problem he's not capable of answering," says Stacey. "The facts I get whenever I talk to clients is that, in the case of a problem, they might need to shell out another agency for two weeks so that they can visit and look into the issue. The technical staff of Code Company Code Company can literally solve problems in just twenty minutes by telephone, since he's experienced the entire spectrum of. It's great for companies to have that type problem-solving capabilities."

In conclusion, Stacey says: "Publishing or running a website doesn't need to be as complicated as some people imagine it to be. Our entire goal as a business is to minimize complexity." Both of us are convinced that it's very easy to become distracted by the latest gadget or theme or plugins "these flashing lights aren't going to move the needle at all," she smiles.

The Code Company revels in "smart simple" it appears. Stacey declares: "We offer the chance to connect with a tech company that can help you get the results you're hoping to achieve by using the most straightforward method which is efficient, and not dropping the latest trending word."

More details

For more information on The Code Company, to look at case studies of previous migration and integrations, and for more information about collaboration with them, visit their site thecode.co.

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