Jumping Head First into the Unknown WordPress Project

For the last several years I’ve working hard, head down developing and supporting Smart eCart (formally GBS) ¹. Recently I’ve moved away from working full-time on that project but found myself without a clear direction as to what was next.

I contemplating getting back into full-time freelancing web development; for a stretch I was toying with getting a “real job” working for a team that I always wanted to work for; my original plan was go to school to learn iOS development. Instead I decided to keep doing what I’ve been doing, building and supporting a premium WordPress product. However the big difference: I’m on my own this time.

Deciding to build an app wasn’t as difficult as it was to figure out what I should build. At first I was looking to build an e-commerce solution for booking. That idea and many others didn’t last long because I found no real opportunity to break-in with the current solutions already available. I also didn’t want to build something that I’d never use myself.

I ultimately decided on building a WordPress plugin for estimates and invoicing after getting really annoyed with harvest ². Under the advisement of good a friend I was led think bigger and build more than just an estimate and invoicing app. Instead, I could have the invoicing app as the cornerstone to a whole suite of apps/plugins.

That’s what I’ve been working on. Sprout Apps will start selling Sprout Invoices 1.0 in August and there’s a lot to get done in the next three weeks in order for that to happen. A. Lot.