I'm Ben, and I build custom plugins, bespoke extensions and WooCommerce solutions – directly for companies, and behind the scenes as a partner for agencies.
The focus is on custom code – from a small feature to a complete solution.
Custom plugins
Custom features as a dedicated plugin: cleanly encapsulated, update-safe and independent of the theme – instead of a growing pile of third-party plugins.
Custom code & extensions
Custom post types, fields, blocks, shortcodes and adjustments to existing themes and plugins – through hooks and filters, without bending someone else's code out of shape.
Integrations & automation
Connections to external services and systems, imports and exports, cron jobs and workflows that make recurring manual work unnecessary.
WooCommerce
Shop setup, custom checkout and order logic, automation and extensions – based on years of hands-on e-commerce experience.
Themes & design implementation
I implement designs from Figma or agency mockups however you prefer: as a lean custom theme or with the page builder of your choice (e.g. Elementor, Divi or Bricks).
Troubleshooting
An update went wrong, or custom code is throwing a critical error? I track down the cause and get your website running again quickly and reliably.
Maintenance & updates
Ongoing updates for WordPress core, themes and plugins – including backups, a security check and a look at load times.
Server migration & takeover
Switching hosts, or taking over an existing project? I handle the entire move, including mailboxes and domains, and get up to speed on the existing setup.
Web development without WordPress
I'm also the right person to talk to for projects that deliberately don't run on WordPress.
Behind the scenes for agencies, right alongside companies.
For agencies & freelancers
You bring the concept and the client – I build the technology. On request, I work white-label under your name and directly in your workflow.
Extra capacity: from a single building block to a whole project
Specialist knowledge for custom code, plugins and integrations
Documented handover, so your team can pick up the work at any time
For companies & shop owners
Need a feature that simply doesn't exist as a plugin, or a shop that grows along with your business? I'll build the solution that fits.
Honest advice up front: what makes sense – and what doesn't
Features that fit your workflows, instead of compromises with off-the-shelf plugins
Ongoing development and maintenance after launch, from a single source
References
From custom themes to page builders – I build what fits the project and your needs.
Case study
isis-institut-koeln.de
Custom plugin extending WooCommerce
ISIS Institut Köln offers systemic continuing education – seminar series with multiple sessions, both in person and online. Everything is sold as digital products through WooCommerce.
WooCommerce sells products – but not seminar series with multiple sessions, limited seats and different booking options.
One order, one session
Order management needs to stay clear: even when booking an entire series, each order should relate to exactly one session.
Organisation without manual work
Attendee lists, certificates, reminders and payment notices should be created automatically, instead of being maintained by hand.
02
Solution
A custom-built plugin extends WooCommerce with a complete seminar management system – in the shop and in the backend.
Manage sessions directly on the product
Every seminar product gets its own fields in the backend – instead of hiding session dates inside the description.
Single seminar or seminar series, in person or online (with an access link)
Any number of sessions per product in a session list
Reschedule or cancel individual sessions with one click
Remaining seats per session are tracked and shown in the shop
Flexible booking, clean billing
In the shop, participants can choose the whole series, all upcoming sessions, or a single session. Even so, each order relates to just one session – the system takes care of the rest.
A seminar series with 5 sessions – try out the booking options:
1Order
2automatic
3automatic
4automatic
5automatic
Order for session 1. The system automatically creates orders for sessions 2 to 5 – each one 28 days before the respective session.
Follow-up orders are created automatically 28 days before each session – with attendee and billing details, and a voucher on request
Payment per session or as a single lump sum; sessions already paid for are created as paid
Full control in the backend: stop the automation per order, mark the next session as free of charge – duplicate orders are prevented
All participants per session at a glance
Attendee management is generated automatically from the orders – no separate tool needed.
Attendee list per session, right in the backend
Record attendance with a single click
Export the list as CSV
Attendee and billing address recorded separately
Documents at the push of a button
What used to be manual work, the plugin now generates from the existing data.
Certificates of attendance as a PDF from a template – with a preview
Sent individually or in bulk to participants
Attendee list as a PDF for instructors
Automated communication
Scheduled emails keep everyone in the loop – without anyone having to remember.
Seminar invitation 7 days before the session, or 1 day before for online sessions, with the access link
Payment reminder with a direct payment link 10 days before the session, for open orders
Instructors receive the attendee list as a PDF the day before
Reminders can be turned off or resent per order
03
Benefit
Less manual work
Follow-up orders, reminders, certificates and attendee lists are all created automatically, without anyone having to keep track.
Flexible for participants
The whole series, starting from a chosen session, or just a single session – with individual or lump-sum payment.
Clarity in the backend
One session per order, all participants per session at a glance, attendance recorded with a click.
One system instead of many tools
Everything runs inside WooCommerce and is tailored exactly to the institute's workflows.
Case study
canisroad.de
Ongoing support & custom plugins
Canis Road is a travel guide for motorhome trips with a dog. I provide ongoing support for the site and keep developing it further – with custom plugins for, among other things, travel reports, the checkout and the route planner.
Built:Plan a routeSites along the routeFilters & favouritesStopoversExport & sharing
01
Requirement
From destination to route
People travelling by motorhome aren't just looking for a place – they're planning an entire route, and want to find suitable spots directly along the way.
Filtering by what matters
Not every spot suits every trip: site type, amenities, surroundings and terrain all need to be filterable, as does the distance to the route.
Fast and usable on the road
Search needs to stay fast even with a large number of sites, and the planned route should be easy to share, export and print.
02
Solution
A custom plugin combines a mapping service, route calculation and the site's existing content into a route planner built specifically for Canis Road.
From here to there – in just a few clicks
The route planner starts from your own location and calculates the route via Google's mapping services.
Starting point via location detection, with a fallback position if location access is denied
Destination via place search with suggestions
The route and turn-by-turn directions appear directly on the map
Works on desktop, tablet and smartphone
Only sites that actually lie along the way
From the full inventory, the system finds exactly the sites that lie within a freely adjustable distance of the route.
Schematic: drag the slider to see which points lie within the chosen distance of the route.
A rough pre-filter using a bounding box around the route first, followed by an exact distance calculation to the route line
Distance to the route is freely adjustable
Results are cached – in the browser and on the server – so repeated searches stay fast
The map automatically adjusts its viewport and marker sizes
Exactly the sites that fit the trip
The filters are generated from the sites' existing data fields – new options simply appear on their own.
Filter by site type, amenities, surroundings and terrain, with multi-select
Amenity icons on every site for a quick overview
Favourites from the existing favourites system are highlighted separately on the map
Add sites straight into the route
Any site you find can be added as a stopover with a single click.
The route is automatically recalculated with the new stop
Turn-by-turn directions and search results are updated
Multiple stops are possible – turning a simple search into a complete trip plan
Take the route with you
The finished plan can be used further in several formats.
PDF with distance, travel time, start and destination, plus the selected sites with photo, contact details and coordinates
GPX file for navigation devices and apps
Share the route via link or the device's own share function
The PDF export is secured and rate-limited against abuse
03
Benefit
Trip planning in a single step
From the route straight to the matching sites, without detours through lists, maps and notes.
Fast despite large amounts of data
Pre-filtering and caching keep response times short, even with a large number of sites in the database.
Usable on the road, too
Printouts, GPX files and links make the route available at any time.
Tailored exactly to Canis Road
The route planner uses the site's existing data fields and favourites system – no off-the-shelf solution forced to fit.
Case study
klimawiese.de
Custom plugin extending WooCommerce
Klimawiese uses sponsorships to plant traditional orchard meadows on unused land, protecting the climate and biodiversity. Tree, flower and other sponsorships are sold through WooCommerce – each one comes with a personal certificate.
Built:Customer accountPersonal designQuantities under controlPDF & deliveryBackend
01
Requirement
Keep it or give it away
Anyone taking on a sponsorship wants something tangible: a personal certificate – for themselves, or as a gift bearing the recipient's name.
One order, many sponsorships
A single order can contain several sponsorships. Certificates need to be creatable for all or individual sponsorships, in the right quantity, and even later on – without duplicates.
No extra work for the team
Customers should be able to design their own certificate and receive it instantly as a PDF, without the team having to fill in templates by hand.
02
Solution
A custom plugin adds a certificate generator to WooCommerce – in the customer account for customers, and in the backend for the team.
Certificates right in "My account"
The order overview has its own "Sponsorship certificates" column, plus a dedicated area for creating and downloading them.
The button adapts itself: Create, Create / Download, or Download
Only available for completed orders
Certificates already created remain available for re-download at any time
Design the certificate personally
A form guides customers through the design. Their input lands exactly where it belongs on the certificate.
Example: enter names and switch the certificate type – the preview updates instantly.
Sponsorship certificate
for Maria Example
covering
1 x tree sponsorship 2 x flower sponsorship
By taking on the sponsorship(s) named above, you have supported a Klimawiese project and made a lasting commitment to protecting our climate and preserving biodiversity.
Certificate type: sponsorship or gift certificate, with the giver's name for gifts
Choice of all sponsorships in the order or a single one – with quantity
A custom text of up to 450 characters, otherwise a matching default text is used
Illustrations show exactly where each name will appear on the certificate
Never more certificates than sponsorships
For every order line, the plugin keeps count of how many certificates have already been created.
Certificates can be created in stages, for example individual gift certificates at a later date
Deleting a certificate frees up the quantity again
Dedicated database tables keep certificates and their sponsorships cleanly separated
PDF from the design template
The finished certificate, in Klimawiese's own design, is generated automatically from the input.
Title, name, sponsorships with quantity and the personal text are placed into Klimawiese's PDF template
The certificate is emailed to the customer automatically, with a descriptive file name
An order note documents when each certificate was created
Stored PDFs have randomised file names and can't be guessed
Everything in view for the team
A dedicated box on every order shows all certificates created for it.
Sponsorships, names and text for every certificate at a glance
Correct details afterwards – the PDF is regenerated
Delete individual certificates or all certificates of an order
03
Benefit
Personal instead of generic
Every certificate carries the customer's name and text, even as a gift – the sponsorship becomes tangible.
No extra work for the team
Creation and delivery happen automatically and without manual work, right after purchase.
Fully traceable
Quantity tracking and the backend overview make sure nothing is duplicated or forgotten.
On-brand
The certificate is generated from Klimawiese's own template – not a generic document, but a piece of the brand experience.
Born in 1984, husband, world traveller, animal lover, cake enthusiast and WordPress developer.
After training at an advertising agency, I spent nine years working as a media designer and web developer for a mid-sized online mail-order company. I looked after the online shop and the in-house, web-based ERP system, and – through close contact with every department – optimised and automated a lot of processes together with my colleagues. I was basically the go-between for staff and technology – these days I turn what clients and agencies need into technical solutions that actually work.
In August 2017, my wife Lisa and I broke out of everyday life: we sold most of our belongings, quit our jobs and gave up our flat, and set off on a trip around the world – definitely the best decision of our lives!
To balance out all the time at the laptop, I love spending my free time running or at the gym – which comes in handy given my other passions: good coffee, and cake above all! And of course, playing and cuddling with our two cats, Chandler and Onik.
Want to know more about me? Feel free to write to me, and I'll get back to you shortly.
Got a project, an idea for a custom feature, or are you looking for a reliable WordPress partner for your agency? Just drop me a line about what it's about.
