Impressive Hosting

Security isn't optional for news sites—they're constant targets for attacks. Claudiu Lodromanean discusses how Newspack protects publishers with two-factor authentication, monitoring systems, and proactive alerting. Most hacks come from password reuse, not sophisticated exploits.  Newspack Jetpack Elasticsearch WooCommerce Click here to watch a video of this episode.

Over 330 independent news organizations trust Newspack for their WordPress hosting needs. Discover how they handle massive databases, dynamic content, and traffic spikes while keeping news sites performant and reliable.  Newspack Digital Trends WordPress VIP Google News Initiative Knight Foundation Bangor Daily News Elasticsearch Jetpack

How do you help hosting companies go to market with WordPress solutions? Jesse Friedman shares his approach to building trust with prospects and crafting custom strategies, from moving down-market to creating specialized vertical solutions.  Click here to watch a video of this episode.

What happens when WordPress hosting is built by the team behind WordPress.com? Jesse Friedman and Joshua Goode explore how WP Cloud elevates the entire hosting ecosystem with WordPress-first infrastructure.  Bluehost Cloud Pork Bun Conve Pressable AWS WordPress VIP Joshua Goode on LinkedIn Click here to watch a video of this episode.

The days of selling disk space and bandwidth are over. Vikas Singhal explains why hosting companies must embrace the 'saasification of WordPress' to compete with platforms like Shopify and Squarespace.  InstaWP Bluehost Cloud Gutenberg Vikas Singhal on LinkedIn Click here to watch a video of this episode.

Hosting companies can't just sell hosting anymore, they need to sell experiences. Vikas Singhal discusses how InstaWP's ephemeral sites let customers try WordPress instantly, reducing churn and creating tailored experiences for specific niches like hairdressers or dentists.  InstaWP Vikas Singhal on LinkedIn CloudFest Contact Form 7 Gravity Forms Elementor Click here to watch a video of this episo...

Jesse Friedman continues his conversation with Konrad Keck about AI in hosting support. They discuss how AI can enhance support teams rather than replacing them, why forcing customers through AI chatbots creates frustration, and how hosting companies should measure success by customer time saved instead of just cost reduction. They also explore Web Hosting Today and innovation opportunities in the...

Agencies are already doing the work of hosting companies. They just aren't getting paid for it. Discover how WordPress professionals can transform their existing workflows into recurring revenue streams.  Konrad Keck on LinkedIn PanelAlpha Modules Garden Web Hosting Today WHMCS Click here to watch a video of this episode.

Jesse Friedman talks with Jeffrey Golenski from Automattic for Agencies about product management, innovation, and the future of WordPress hosting. They discuss unplugging from technology, customer feedback versus competitor watching, light-switch features, and how AI tools are empowering designers to expand into full-service agency work without devaluing their expertise.  Guest Jeffrey Golenski on...

Jesse talks with Jeffrey Golenski, Product Manager for Automattic's Agency Program, about what agencies really need from hosting providers. They explore support expectations, flexible billing models, and how hosting companies can help agencies compete against platforms like Shopify. Jeff shares insights from working with agencies of all sizes across global markets.  Automattic for Agencies WordPre...

Jesse Friedman continues his conversation with Wes Tatters from Rapyd Cloud, exploring performance benchmarking through Orderly Apes, why successful sites need white-glove service expectations, and how WordPress hosts defend against SaaS platform migration. They discuss WordPress scalability challenges, the importance of contributing to WordPress core, and why data ownership makes WordPress superi...

Jesse Friedman speaks with Wes Tatters, Managing Director of Rapyd Cloud, about WordPress hosting for high-concurrency sites like BuddyBoss communities and LearnDash courses. They discuss why traditional page caching fails for dynamic sites, how data privacy drives WordPress community platforms, and why security should be foundational rather than an afterthought in managed hosting.  Guest Informat...

Jesse Friedman continues his conversation with Brad Williams from WebDevStudios, exploring how hosting companies should adapt to agency workflows, the value of diversifying hosting partnerships, and WebDevStudios' innovative approach to migrating legacy WordPress sites to the block editor. They discuss why WordPress needs better enterprise marketing and how hosts can help promote modern WordPress...

Jesse Friedman speaks with Brad Williams, co-founder of WebDevStudios, about the critical partnership between WordPress agencies and hosting companies. They discuss why relationships matter more than vendor transactions, the "triangle dynamic" between agencies, hosts, and clients, and what managed WordPress hosting means from an agency perspective. Brad shares practical strategies for building par...

Jesse Friedman continues his conversation with Jeffrey Zeldman about the open web versus social media platforms, AI's role in WordPress hosting, and empathetic design. They explore how hosting companies can help users reclaim individual voice from algorithm-controlled platforms while using AI responsibly to enhance website building without replacing human creativity and authentic expression.  A Li...

Jesse talks with web standards pioneer Jeffrey Zeldman about surviving the browser wars, empathetic design versus data extraction, and why hosting companies should focus on customer success over conversion optimization. They explore how WordPress can restore individual expression to a web increasingly dominated by sterile, algorithmic platforms.  A List Apart An Event Apart A Book Apart Jason Kott...

Jesse Friedman and Jamie Marsland explore why 70% of WordPress users are DIYers, yet hosting companies focus on agencies. They discuss strategies for supporting DIY success, leveraging educational content, and avoiding the race-to-the-bottom pricing that hurts the entire ecosystem.  Jamie WP Jamie Marsland Pootlepress @pootlepress WP101 WordPress.org AI Initiative WordCamp Central Jamie talks with...

In this episode of Impressive Hosting, Jesse Friedman sits down with Jamie Marsland, head of WordPress YouTube at Automattic, to explore the evolution of WordPress education and hosting. With over 12 years of experience training 5,000+ people on WordPress, Marsland shares insights from his journey from in-person training to building a successful YouTube channel. They discuss how hosting companies...

Jesse Friedman talks with Chris Reynolds from Pantheon, and together they explore the evolving role of developer relations in WordPress hosting. From organizational structure challenges to community contribution responsibilities, the two discuss how DevRel teams bridge customer needs with product development while giving back to the WordPress ecosystem beyond code commits.  Pantheon Convesio 10up...

Jesse interviews Chris Reynolds, developer advocate at Pantheon, exploring how empathetic development and technical support experience shape enterprise WordPress hosting. They discuss developer relations as "customer zero," innovative content publishing solutions, and how understanding actual customer challenges drives better platform development and user experiences.  Pantheon WebDev Studios Huma...

Jesse continues his conversation with Gravity Form's Matt Medeiros, exploring podcast hosting, content ownership, and RSS feeds. Jesse and Matt discuss how WordPress agencies can leverage content strategies, navigate the risks of platform dependence, and why open-source publishing provides critical independence for businesses.  WP Minute Transistor.fm RSS.com Buzzsprout Podcasting 2.0 PocketCasts...

In this episode of Impressive Hosting, Jesse Friedman talks with Matt Medeiros from Gravity Forms about defining community in WordPress hosting. They explore what "WordPress community" really means, different ways to contribute beyond code, and why hosting companies need deeper agency partnerships that focus on mutual success rather than just reselling infrastructure.  WP Minute YouTube Channel Ma...

In this episode of Impressive Hosting, Jesse Friedman continues his conversation with SEO expert Joe Hall about essential WordPress hosting tools, customer support quality, and how AI is reshaping SEO. They explore bundled plugins like Yoast, the importance of knowledgeable hosting support, AI Overviews' impact on search traffic, and technical considerations for AI crawling.  Previous episode: How...

In this episode of Impressive Hosting, Jesse Friedman interviews SEO expert Joe Hall about WordPress hosting and technical SEO. They discuss WordPress's built-in SEO advantages, Core Web Vitals performance metrics, the importance of caching and CDNs, and why custom CMSs often create more problems than they solve for search optimization.  Joe Hall Google Search Console Core Web Vitals Previous Impr...

Jesse Friedman continues his conversation with Oliver Slid about WordPress security, exploring what "managed security" actually means versus marketing promises. They discuss the three essential security layers hosting companies should provide, why security requires ongoing "hygiene" rather than one-time solutions, and how hosts can communicate responsibly about security without creating false conf...