Headless WordPress Development

Headless has some really interesting use cases, but it’s worth mentioning that it’s not for every website. If you’re building a simple website, looking to use everything in WordPress out of the box or add plugins to your heart’s content, then headless probably isn’t the right fit for you.

If you’re looking for one of the highest performing and highest quality websites you can ask for, then headless is likely the best fit.

Where headless shines is in a few particular examples…

Delivering content to multiple front-ends – if you need to display the same bunch of content or media to several different places (e.g. your website and a mobile app, too) then you can use WordPress to power the same content in multiple applications.

Saving content on a user’s device – if you’ve got great content to share with your audience that they’ll need to access later when they’re offline, the headless approach would be ideal. Use WordPress to manage your content, alongside a PWA to store the content in the user’s browser.

Progressive web applications – if you’ve a keen interest in using progressive technologies and putting your best foot forward then it’s well worth considering WordPress to power the great front-end you’re planning to build.

Multiple complex integrations – if you’ve got a really complex mixture of applications and integrations that all need to work smoothly together with a single, or indeed multiple front-ends, then headless is a great way to reduce the ‘weight’ of your website and keep the front-end light and fast.

Ultimately, if you’re unsure, we’re here to help. Reach out to discuss your exciting plans, requirements, concerns and everything in between.

Over 100 years of combined experience in the WordPress platform, paired with our dedicated Research & Development team, Illustrate Digital is one of the early innovators and modellers of the advantages that Headless WordPress can bring.

In our pursuit to build the most advanced Headless WordPress architecture for enterprise brands, we prioritised research, thorough testing and at all times have championed quality, security and performance.

True to the certifications we hold from the International Standards Organisation (ISO), our approach guarantees quality, value for money and a great working relationship with you and your organisation.

We often describe ourselves as “not a selfish agency” and aim to take the best approach that suits the needs of our customers. This is true for headless, too!

If you’re looking for a one-stop solution to planning, designing and developing your next headless website then we can help. Equally, if you’re looking for a helping hand, some advice or just pointing in the right direction then we’re ready and willing to be your guide.

Whilst there’s a whole range of different front-end frameworks that can be used to pair with WordPress in a headless architecture, we’ve given focus to three open source frameworks in particular.

Next.js – built upon the very popular React framework, Next is a production framework that makes it efficient and intuitive for developers to create static websites front-ends.

Gatsby – also built upon React, Gatsby has a great commercial structure around it and even has its own Cloud platform to power your front-end. It’s become one of the most popular options for those building headless websites and applications.

React – the main front-end framework of the 21st century, React is a JavaScript library developed by. It’s used for building user interfaces and is the baseline framework upon which a lot of other frameworks have been built.