Custom WordPress & Divi builds
I specialize in WordPress and Divi but I don't lean on cookie-cutter templates. Layouts, components and page structures get built around your brand, your content and the actions you want people to take.
Front-end · WordPress · Divi 5
I build fast, search-optimized sites that convert
I'm Alec Willits, a front-end developer. Custom WordPress and Divi builds, hand-coded sites when a CMS would only get in the way, and the site-builder platforms in between — chosen on what fits the project. All of it fast, findable, and built to convert.
- 50+ sites shipped
- 10+ years on the web
- B.S. Web Development, BYU–Idaho
- 50%+ load-time reductions
Why work with me
Plenty of people can install a theme
I go past that — combining front-end craft, SEO experience and a software engineering background to build sites that are fast, stable, and pointed at a real business goal.
Search-first structure
Clean markup, smart internal linking, optimized metadata and content structure that supports real search intent. Day-to-day tools: Yoast SEO, SEMrush, Google Analytics and Search Console.
Performance as a requirement
Responsive layouts, image discipline, caching and Core Web Vitals tuning. At Hangar Marketing that work has cut client load times by more than half — which shows up in both experience and rankings.
A software engineering mindset
A B.S. in Web Development and a minor in Software Engineering means version control, testing, maintainable code, and a working understanding of how front-end decisions ripple into the back end.
My goal isn't just to launch a website; it's to build a fast, reliable system that supports your business long term. — Alec Willits
Selected work
Sites that are still doing their job
Real builds for real businesses — healthcare, agencies, local services and public sector. Each one shipped, launched and handed over in a state the next developer can live with.
Madisonhealth
Enterprise healthcare website
A regional hospital serving Eastern Idaho, rebuilt around the thing patients actually arrive needing: a fast answer.
Palos Verdes K9
Dog training & boarding
A competitive Southern California local market, built from nothing to win local search and convert the people it brings in.
Kardia Marketing
Healthcare marketing agency
A healthcare marketing agency hired me to build their own website — the hardest audience there is, because they do this for a living.
Rexburg-Madison Airport
Regional airport
Three unrelated audiences, one website, and no tolerance for anyone having to hunt. Built from scratch for my own community.
Mrs. Powell's Bakery
Bakery & retail brand
Rebuilding the shopfront while the till stays open — a brand redesign with live ecommerce underneath it.
Sell My Land Fast
Nationwide land acquisition
A site with exactly one job. Everything on it either moves someone toward the form or is noise.
Modern Home Remodeling
A remodeling company with no remodeling pages
A licensed Phoenix remodeler selling five trades from a website that described none of them. The wider argument is on the <a href="/contractor-websites/">contractor websites</a> page. The fix was structural, not cosmetic.
The Loving Rebellion
Breathwork & healing
A solo practitioner whose entire business runs on her calendar — so the booking engine was built, not rented.
Manufab
Custom metal fabrication
A fabricator whose own website was quietly arguing that it did something else. The rebuild put the manufacturing back in front.
What do clients say about working with Alec? Reviews and testimonials
★★★★★
“Willits Forge did a wonderful job building a website for my small business. Plenty of talent and passion for their work! Would not hesitate to recommend”
What I can help with
New builds, redesigns, and rescues
End-to-end front-end and WordPress work, with SEO and analytics built into the process from the first commit.
WordPress & Divi development
- Custom themes and layouts built to your brand
- Clean, maintainable HTML, CSS and JavaScript
- Content structures your team can actually update
- Plugin and third-party tool integration
Redesigns & performance
- Rescues for outdated or underperforming sites
- Page speed and Core Web Vitals work
- Image optimization, caching, script and style cleanup
- Refactoring heavy page-builder layouts
SEO & conversion
- Technical SEO: sitemaps, metadata, structure, schema
- On-page optimization driven by keyword research
- Analytics with Google Analytics and Search Console
- UX changes and A/B-friendly layouts
Ongoing support
- Regular core, theme and plugin updates
- Security practices and backup strategy
- New landing pages and content updates
- Continuous performance and SEO improvement
How a project runs
A clear, collaborative process
Good results come from clarity and communication. Here's how a typical project moves from first conversation to launch.
Discovery & goals
We talk through your business, your audience, the site you have now, and what success looks like — more traffic, better leads, better UX, or all three.
Planning & architecture
I map the site structure, key pages and content priorities: how people will navigate, what needs to exist, and how each page carries its weight.
Design & development
I design and build in WordPress, implementing responsive layouts, performance practices and SEO fundamentals from the first commit. You see progress in stages and give feedback as it goes.
Testing, launch & tuning
Cross-device and cross-browser testing, analytics connected, sitemaps and metadata handled. After launch we read the data and keep improving.
Who you'd be working with
Hi, I'm Alec
I'm a front-end and WordPress developer with a Bachelor of Science in Web Development and a minor in Software Engineering from Brigham Young University–Idaho. I've built, optimized and maintained sites for agencies, healthcare organizations and local businesses — usually as the bridge between design, development and marketing.
- B.S. Web Development, minor in Software Engineering — Brigham Young University–Idaho.
- Front-End Web Developer at Hangar Marketing, managing a creative team of web developers, a designer, a videographer and a copywriter.
- Full-stack background across MEAN, .NET and PHP/MySQL — which is why the front end I hand you plays nicely with whatever is behind it.
- SEO tooling day to day: Yoast SEO, SEMrush, Google Analytics and Google Search Console.
- Extensive WordPress, Divi, Elementor and custom plugin experience — including hospital-scale builds.
- Proficient in Spanish and experienced working with diverse teams.
Off the clock
Why I still enjoy this
I like this work because it's the same satisfaction as any other kind of building: you take a rough idea, shape it, and end up with something solid that holds up under use. The rest of my time goes to my wife and our two boys, and to being outside in Idaho as often as the weather allows.
By the numbers
50+
Sites shipped
Across agencies, healthcare and local service businesses.
10+
Years on the web
Front-end, back-end, and the marketing side of both.
50%
Faster, or better
Typical production load-time reduction on performance work.
1
Business day
How long you wait for a reply. Every time.
Toolchain
What I build with
Technology chosen for performance, maintainability and what will serve the project — with your future workflow in mind, not just launch day.
WordPress & front-end
- WordPress
- Divi 5
- Elementor
- HTML
- CSS
- JavaScript
- Custom themes
- Custom plugins
Back-end & APIs
- PHP
- Node.js
- Express
- .NET
- Razor Pages
- REST APIs
- MySQL
- SQL
- MongoDB
SEO, analytics & marketing
- Yoast SEO
- SEMrush
- Google Analytics
- Search Console
- Schema markup
- Conversion UX
Infrastructure & other
- Docker
- Kubernetes
- Azure
- AWS
- Google Cloud
- Python
- React
- Angular
- Flutter
Common questions
Before you send a message
What does a typical project cost?
Most builds land between $2,000 and $10,000+ depending on scope. $2,000 is a ten-page WordPress site and $10,000 is one coded from scratch. Send a message with your budget range and timeline and you'll get a real number back.
Could I not just build it myself?
Sometimes yes, and there's a whole article here on when. The short version: modern builders look good, so what usually goes wrong isn't the design. It's the half that's invisible in the editor — structured data, page titles, how the thing behaves on a real phone, whether a search engine can read it at all. Nothing warns you that part is missing.
How quickly can you start?
Usually within one to two weeks. If something is urgent, say so in your message and you'll get a straight answer about whether it can be squeezed in.
Do you work on sites that weren't built with Divi?
Yes. Most of the work is Divi 5, but custom themes, native WordPress blocks and other stacks are all fair game. No technology gets pushed that's wrong for the use case.
Can you fix a slow site without rebuilding it?
Often, yes. Performance work frequently means image discipline, caching strategy, script and style cleanup, and refactoring heavy page-builder layouts — not starting over. Production load-time reductions of 50% or more have come out of exactly that work.
Do you offer ongoing support after launch?
Yes. Monitoring and updates start from $25 a month — someone watching the site, and WordPress, the theme and the plugins kept patched. Content changes are quoted separately when you want them, so you're not paying a monthly fee through months where nothing needed doing.
Ready to improve your website?
If you want a developer who understands WordPress, Divi, SEO and performance — not just how to install a theme — tell me a bit about your project. You'll get ideas and next steps back, not a generic discovery deck.