From cleansing hacked WordPress websites to operating a 7-person safety plugin firm, Robert Abela by no means deliberate to develop into an entrepreneur. However when he found a important hole in WordPress safety logging, the whole lot modified.
That led him to construct WP Exercise Log, which grew from a interest venture into Melapress. The corporate has developed a few of WordPress’s most trusted safety plugins, together with WP Exercise Log, WP2FA, and Melapress Login Safety.
On this interview, Robert shares how he constructed his plugin enterprise by way of natural advertising and marketing and group relationships. He additionally reveals the teachings he discovered scaling from solo developer to main a rising crew.
“The distinction between one of the best plugins on the market in every class… is all the time possibly that 10%… we all the time go that further step.”
Robert Abela – CEO & Founding father of Melapress
Hold studying to find out how Robert Abela constructed probably the most profitable WordPress safety plugins available on the market.
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Video Interview with Robert Abela
Should you’d like to take a look at our full video interview with Robert Abela, then you’ll be able to watch it under:
Or you need to use the hyperlinks under to see what we lined within the interview (and extra):
🙋♂️ Meet Robert Abela: Methods Engineer Turned Safety Knowledgeable
Robert Abela didn’t begin as a plugin developer or WordPress entrepreneur.
For over a decade, he labored as a methods engineer at software program corporations, together with his last position at Acunetix, an organization that developed net safety scanning instruments.
“Round 13 years in the past I stop my company job. I all the time labored for software program corporations, startups, most of them.”
Robert Abela
However he didn’t go away as a result of he didn’t just like the job. It was merely time for a change. His background in software program safety and methods engineering would show invaluable for what got here subsequent.
When Acunetix wanted a weblog round 2009, they turned to WordPress. This was Robert’s introduction to the platform that may finally change his profession trajectory.
WordPress safety was very completely different again then, and Robert’s background gave him a singular perspective on the platform’s vulnerabilities.
As a methods engineer, Robert gained publicity to each division inside software program corporations — from advertising and marketing and gross sales to growth and R&D.
This cross-functional expertise gave him insights into how software program companies truly function. This data would develop into essential when constructing his personal firm.
“You get a superb understanding of the internal workings of a software program firm, what needs to be achieved and never.”
After leaving his company position, Robert started freelance work cleansing hacked WordPress web sites, combining his safety experience together with his rising WordPress information.
He didn’t understand it on the time, however this work would assist him expose a niche in WordPress safety. That hole would later outline his entrepreneurial path and lead him to create Melapress.
🔧 Constructing WP Exercise Log: The Drawback That Began Every little thing
Web site cleanup work within the early days of WordPress was difficult. Robert discovered himself continually coping with hacked websites, making an attempt to grasp what went incorrect and learn how to forestall it from occurring once more.
That’s how he obtained the concept for WP Exercise Log.
“There was no form of logging… you’ll want to see what occurred earlier than it obtained hacked. Was the plugin possibly up to date? Perhaps a consumer put in one thing? Perhaps a consumer was created? And yeah, there was nothing like that.”
This wasn’t only a minor inconvenience. It was a elementary hole that made safety work unnecessarily tough and time-consuming.
The enterprise aspect of web site cleanup additionally offered its personal challenges.
“It wasn’t very scalable and it was a really tough job… there have been costs like individuals had been cleansing web sites for $99, and generally it might be a job which takes a few days,” Robert defined.
In these early days, Robert was competing with many different cleanup providers in a race to the underside on pricing. It was clear this wasn’t a sustainable long-term enterprise mannequin.
However Robert noticed a chance to unravel the underlying downside relatively than simply treating the signs.
The logging functionality that WordPress was lacking may assist each professionals and website house owners perceive and forestall safety points.
There was one small downside, although: Robert wasn’t actually a developer.
“I’m not a developer per se. I can learn and write code however one thing that I can do in every week and a correct developer can do it correctly in someday… It took me a number of months enjoying round and breaking issues mainly…”
Regardless of the educational curve, Robert stored making an attempt. He developed the primary model of WP Exercise Log as each an answer to his skilled wants and a option to be taught coding abilities.
“It began as a interest,” Robert mentioned. The primary yr introduced in round $1,000 in income, hardly life-changing cash, however sufficient to counsel there was actual curiosity within the answer.
“However yeah, then it’s like, possibly this may occur truly, you already know?”
That second of realization marked the start of what would develop into a six-year transition from interest venture to full-time enterprise.
💥 Associated Submit: Tobias Bäthge turned a interest venture for his baseball crew into TablePress, a WordPress plugin that now powers greater than 700K websites. Learn the complete interview to see how he did it.
For the primary six years of WP Exercise Log’s existence, Robert spent precisely zero {dollars} on advertising and marketing. As a substitute, he constructed his consumer base by way of genuine group engagement and content material creation.
“I by no means spent a penny on advertising and marketing earlier than six years in the past. It was all natural and simply connections speaking to individuals.”
His advertising and marketing technique was refreshingly easy: write useful weblog posts, construct a e-newsletter for individuals taken with WordPress safety content material, and attend WordPress group occasions.
When the e-newsletter went out with safety ideas and insights, it’d embrace a point out of the plugin on the backside. However the focus was all the time on offering worth first.
The true turning level got here in 2013 when Robert attended the primary WordCamp Europe in Leiden. This resolution would form how he considered constructing relationships within the WordPress house.
“If I ship an e-mail to somebody proper now who I’ve by no means met in individual… they are going to ignore you but when you already know them you’ve met them in individual… it’s completely different.”
WordCamps and native WordPress meetups grew to become Robert’s principal networking technique.
The relationships he constructed at these occasions led to collaborations, cross-promotion alternatives, and real friendships inside the WordPress group.
💡 Seeking to develop your WordPress group? Take a look at the occasions web page on WordPress.org.
Past the enterprise advantages, these occasions offered one thing equally necessary in the course of the difficult transition years: group and assist.
“At meetups and at WordCamps, I met individuals in the identical place as I used to be. So you may share concepts. We may assist one another… It feels a bit much less lonely.”
Constructing a aspect enterprise whereas sustaining full-time work will be isolating.
However seeing different entrepreneurs take care of comparable challenges offered each sensible insights and emotional assist in the course of the lengthy interval earlier than WP Exercise Log may assist Robert full-time.
The natural method labored, nevertheless it required endurance. It took a number of years of constant content material creation, group engagement, and gradual word-of-mouth development earlier than the plugin gained vital traction.
However this gradual construct created a stable basis of customers who genuinely valued the product and have become advocates for it.
Ultimately, WP Exercise Log grew into top-of-the-line WordPress exercise log and monitoring plugins available on the market.
💡 What Makes Plugins Stand Out: Suggestions & Going the Further Mile
After years of learning profitable WordPress plugins, Robert developed a transparent philosophy about what separates the winners from the competitors in every class.
“The distinction between one of the best plugins on the market in every class and people which comply with… is all the time possibly that 10%… As a substitute of stopping at 90%, they went as much as 95, 96%,” he defined.
It’s not about revolutionary options or fully completely different approaches.
The highest plugins in any class are sometimes just like their rivals, however they go that further step in execution, consumer expertise, and assist high quality.
This philosophy extends far past simply the software program itself. Robert believes distinctive assist is usually what transforms a superb plugin right into a market chief.
“Assist is actually necessary as a result of you’ll be able to have one of the best software program on the planet. Should you don’t have assist, slowly, slowly, you begin dropping prospects.”
Even immediately, with a crew of seven individuals, Robert nonetheless handles assist tickets himself.
It’s not as a result of he has to. It’s as a result of staying linked to customers offers invaluable insights into how the plugins are literally getting used.
“Each morning I wish to strive simply assist tickets myself… as a result of I really feel that if I don’t do this, I’d be segregating myself in my very own world,” he mentioned.
This direct connection to customers has revealed use circumstances that Robert by no means anticipated when first constructing WP Exercise Log.
Whereas he designed it largely as a safety software for monitoring potential breaches, customers discovered inventive functions he hadn’t thought of.
“You designed your plugin for use for A, B, and C, however individuals are utilizing it for A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H… So that you get these concepts.”
As an illustration, Robert has discovered that journal web sites use his plugin to watch editor productiveness and observe what number of articles writers full every week.
On-line studying platforms have even used it to see which college students are finishing programs and that are dropping off.
These insights assist with characteristic growth and product positioning. Robert makes use of a easy rule for prioritizing new options based mostly on consumer suggestions.
“If we expect 80% of individuals are going to make use of it, then we’re going to provide it precedence. If it’s one thing that we expect solely 20% or much less… then possibly it will get a lot decrease precedence.”
The mixture of outstanding assist and user-driven growth created robust buyer loyalty that may show crucial as Robert ready to make a serious leap.
He determined to rework his aspect venture into Melapress, which is now a full-time enterprise with a number of plugins and a rising crew.
🚀 Scaling Melapress: A number of Plugins and a Rising Workforce
As soon as WP Exercise Log gained traction, Robert started considering past a single plugin.
Counting on one product for all income felt dangerous — and his safety background gave him loads of concepts for different ache factors he may clear up.
“I by no means preferred the concept of counting on one plugin as an earnings supply,” he defined. “Not less than if one thing occurs… it’s good to have a number of completely different merchandise, a number of completely different earnings streams.”
The following alternative got here from an inner want.
Robert had began working with visitor authors and wanted them to make use of two-factor authentication. However the present 2FA plugins had been constructed by builders, for builders — not on a regular basis WordPress customers.
So, he constructed his personal.
The primary model of WP 2FA did the identical core job as different 2FA plugins. But it surely additionally added a easy setup wizard and sensible enforcement insurance policies that made onboarding a lot simpler for non-technical customers.
Right this moment, WP2FA is likely one of the hottest 2FA plugins within the WordPress plugin repository.
☝ Be aware: We are able to additionally vouch for the way nicely the plugin works. In actual fact, it’s our prime really helpful methodology in our tutorial on learn how to add two-factor authentication in WordPress.
Melapress has since expanded to incorporate different merchandise like Melapress Login Safety and Position Editor, with extra plugins on the best way.
However the method stays the identical: establish an actual want, construct one thing higher, and check it out.
To assist this development, Robert additionally started hiring, and he was intentional concerning the type of individuals he introduced in.
Whether or not it’s advertising and marketing, testing, design, or growth, Robert doesn’t simply need execution. He desires collaboration.
“I would like individuals who truly… with whom I can have very superb discussions… Individuals who are available and say, ‘This might be higher,’ and herald concepts I haven’t considered.”
That philosophy has helped flip Melapress right into a thriving 7-person firm — one which’s persevering with to develop by listening to customers and specializing in high quality above all else.
💥 Enthusiastic about extra classes from profitable WordPress entrepreneurs? Take a look at our full interview with Nicolas Lecocq, the creator of the OceanWP theme and the founding father of DigiHold.
🎯 Classes Discovered: What Robert Would Do Otherwise Right this moment
Robert’s journey from freelancer to founder didn’t comply with a straight line, and that’s precisely what makes it so relatable.
For the primary a number of years, Melapress (initially WP White Safety) advanced by way of experimentation, not long-term technique.
Plugin concepts had been pursued on intuition. Methods had been constructed (and generally rebuilt) because the enterprise grew.
That method labored. But when Robert had been beginning over immediately, he says he’d be extra intentional.
“I’d… plan a bit extra, do a bit extra… be a bit much less impulsive and make extra knowledgeable choices.”
With out clear planning, early choices generally led to technical or enterprise debt that needed to be reversed later.
“You find yourself two, three years later like… now now we have to reverse this.”
Nonetheless, Robert doesn’t remorse the natural path that obtained him right here. In actual fact, he sees it as a crucial a part of studying.
“I by no means deliberate it. Every little thing occurred like… let’s do this, it’s working… It wasn’t deliberate that it might develop to a full-time job, nevertheless it did.”
His expertise is a reminder that whereas planning is necessary, progress usually comes from motion. That is very true when it’s paired with curiosity, consumer suggestions, and constant effort over time.
💭 Ultimate Ideas & The place to Discover Robert’s Work
Right this moment, Robert runs a rising plugin enterprise, however he hasn’t misplaced contact with the customers who made it potential.
He nonetheless checks assist messages personally. He nonetheless replies to plugin emails. And he nonetheless believes that direct contact with prospects is what units nice corporations aside from the remaining.
“Some individuals generally are stunned… they are saying, ‘I by no means thought you’d reply.’ Yeah, we do test the emails.”
That customer-first philosophy has helped Melapress develop from a solo aspect venture right into a trusted model in WordPress safety. It’s utilized by 1000’s of website house owners and supported by a passionate crew.
Should you’d wish to be taught extra about Robert’s work, you’ll be able to take a look at the Melapress web site. Or be happy to achieve out through their contact web page.
🌟 Wish to be taught extra concerning the state of WordPress safety immediately? Take a look at the outcomes of the Melapress annual safety survey — it’s stuffed with attention-grabbing and up-to-date statistics.
📚 Bonus: Knowledgeable Assets for WordPress Safety and Plugin Improvement
Wish to comply with in Robert’s footsteps and construct your personal profitable plugin enterprise?
Whether or not you’re simply beginning out or scaling your subsequent product, listed here are some hand-picked WPBeginner sources that can assist you develop:
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