Custom WordPress sites, hand-coded for businesses that mean business.
No Elementor. No Divi. No purchased themes with your logo swapped in. Every site we build is custom-coded for the client — leaner, faster, more SEO-friendly, and easier to maintain than anything off the shelf.
(Salterra Heritage)
Themes
Used · Ever
Before Launch
Custom isn't a feature. It's a different category of site altogether.
Most "custom WordPress" isn't actually custom.
The phrase gets used loosely. A theme purchased from ThemeForest and lightly tweaked isn't custom. A site built in Elementor or Divi isn't custom. A site that has its theme files written from scratch — for your business, your content, your conversion goals — is custom.
The difference shows up everywhere it matters. Page weight: a custom theme can ship 10% of the front-end size of a page-builder build. Core Web Vitals: measurably better. SEO: structured data, schema, and clean URLs without plugin overhead. Long-term: a site you can update for the next decade, not the next quarter.
If you've shopped for a site recently and heard three different agencies say "we build custom" while sending you Elementor demos — this is what they're not telling you.
Every custom WordPress build ships with all of this.
No upsells, no add-ons, no "this feature costs extra" surprises. The base price covers the full scope below.
Custom-coded theme
Hand-written PHP, HTML, CSS, JavaScript. Built from scratch for your business — no purchased themes, no builders.
Brand-matched design system
Typography, colors, components — designed in real software, on a real grid, approved before code is written.
Performance optimization
Lean front-end, lazy-loading, image optimization, CDN-ready. Target: top quartile Core Web Vitals at launch.
On-page SEO + schema
JSON-LD schema appropriate to each page type, optimized meta, breadcrumbs, sitemap, robots.txt, canonical tags.
Accessibility (WCAG 2.1 AA)
Color contrast, alt text, semantic markup, keyboard navigation, ARIA where needed. Built right, not retrofit.
Gutenberg block library
Custom Gutenberg blocks so you can update content from the WP admin without breaking the design.
Forms + lead capture
Custom forms wired to your CRM, email, or Slack. Spam-protected. Mobile-tested.
Hosting setup + DNS
We'll set up hosting, migrate DNS, configure SSL, and handle the launch. You don't have to touch a thing.
Analytics + Search Console
GA4 + GSC connected and verified at launch. Conversion events wired (consult clicks, form submits, click-to-call).
Training + documentation
A walkthrough video + written docs covering how to update every part of your site. So you're never stuck.
Custom WordPress for your industry.
The base build is the same craftsmanship across every vertical. The pages, schema, and conversion patterns are tuned per industry.
Dental Practices
HIPAA-aware forms, treatment-page silos, insurance widgets, online booking, new-patient funnels.
→Medical Spas
Treatment finders, financing widgets, before/after galleries, silo'd procedure pages.
→Home Services
HVAC, plumbing, roofing, electrical. Emergency-call CTAs, service-area pages, schema-heavy.
→Insurance Agencies
Multi-line quote flows (auto, home, business), carrier logo strips, agent bio pages.
→Law Firms
Practice-area silos, attorney bio long-forms, 24-hour intake, results disclaimers, bar admissions.
→Restaurants
Menu-visible-without-clicking, reservation widgets, catering pages, online ordering integrations.
→Construction / GCs
Portfolio-led architecture, sector breakdowns, RFP-friendly bio pages, project case studies.
→Professional Services
Consultancies, accountants, engineering firms. Authority-led design that demonstrates depth.
→The Tucson Web Design Co. Method.
Every custom WordPress build follows the same four-phase lifecycle. You'll always know what phase you're in and what happens next.
See the full Method →Designed.
Strategy + visual design, walked through with you in real software.
Approved.
Nothing gets built until you sign off — every page, every word.
Built.
Custom-coded WordPress, weekly progress sent, no surprises.
Maintained.
We stick around — optimization, updates, growth partnership.
Custom WordPress, shipped.
The questions we get most.
What does "custom WordPress" actually mean?
Custom WordPress means a hand-coded theme built specifically for your business — not a purchased theme reskinned, not a page builder (Elementor, Divi, WPBakery) dragged around, not a template generator's output. The site ships with only the code it needs.
Can I still edit my own site if it's custom-coded?
Yes. Every site we build exposes content fields (Gutenberg blocks or ACF) so you can update copy, photos, services, blog posts, and meta tags from the WordPress admin without touching code. You can't drag rectangles around to redesign the layout — that's the trade-off, and it's a feature, not a bug.
How much does a custom WordPress site cost?
Most custom builds we ship fall between $4,000 and $15,000 depending on scope, page count, integrations, and content needs. We share the full quote before any work starts — no hidden costs, no scope-creep invoices. Light "budget builds" are available for the right fit.
How long does a custom WordPress build take?
Six to twelve weeks for most projects, depending on content readiness and approval velocity on your end. We give you a written timeline before Phase 03 (Built) begins.
Will my site actually rank in Google?
A custom build gives you the cleanest foundation possible — fast load, semantic markup, schema, accessibility, mobile-first. Whether it ranks depends on competitive landscape, content depth, and ongoing SEO work. Our Internet Marketing service (via the Salterra partnership) handles the second part if you want it.
What happens after launch?
We don't disappear. The Maintenance phase (Phase 04 of our Method) includes ongoing optimization, security patches, content updates, and performance tuning. When you're ready to layer marketing or business automation on top, Salterra handles those handoffs cleanly.
Do you work with clients outside Tucson?
Yes — most of our portfolio (Arizona, Ohio, California) is outside Tucson. The brand is Tucson-focused because we believe in serving the local market deeply. But the craft travels wherever the client is.
Why custom over a page builder if I want to update things myself?
Custom WordPress + Gutenberg blocks gives you the editing freedom of a page builder without the performance tax. Builders ship 200-500KB of overhead per page just to enable drag-and-drop. We give you the same editing power via custom blocks — without the speed penalty.
Let's talk about your project.
Every custom WordPress build starts with a 30-minute conversation. No slide deck, no pitch — just a real talk about what you're building and whether we're the right shop to help.
Send us your current site.
If you'd rather not talk yet, send us your URL. We'll send back an editorial-style audit covering design, performance, SEO, and conversion — usually within 3 business days. No follow-up sales sequence.
Get a free website audit