Kevin Geary Announces EtchWP for WordPress
Kevin Geary just announced EtchWP, a new unified WordPress builder, to address common pain points faced by developers and site owners. While many in the WordPress community are excited about its potential, others remain skeptical about its financial model and whether it truly brings something new to the table. Here's what I've gathered
Justin Gluska
Updated September 5, 2024
Reading Time: 5 minutes
The WordPress community has been very vocal (with both excitement and skepticism) following Kevin Geary's recent announcement of EtchWP, a new tool promising to revolutionize WordPress development.
As the CEO of Digital Gravy and creator of popular WordPress products like Automatic CSS and Frames, Geary has a track record of innovation in the WordPress ecosystem. Here's some news about what's planned & community comments I've gathered.
What is EtchWP?
At its core, EtchWP aims to be a unified builder (built using Svelte 5) that addresses many of the pain points WordPress developers and site owners face today.
Geary describes it as a "UDE" (Unified Development Environment) that will allow users to perform common tasks like creating custom post types, adding custom fields, and building layouts without constantly switching between different interfaces or relying on a hodgepodge of plugins.
Some of the key features touted for EtchWP include:
- Real-time block authoring with Gutenberg integration
- Two-way block sync between EtchWP and Gutenberg
- Built-in custom post type and custom field functionality
- A class-first workflow for HTML and CSS manipulation
- Integration with the WordPress Pattern Library
The Vision
Geary's vision for EtchWP seems to stem from frustrations many in the WordPress community share. WordPress has been losing market share for new projects, and there's widespread dissatisfaction with the Gutenberg block editor. Many feel that WordPress has shifted focus away from core CMS functionalities to chase the site builder market.
"WordPress should have addressed these issues years ago," says Thomas Kirschnick, a WordPress developer. "EtchWP reflects the problems and frustrations of thousands of devs. We have so many yearly subscriptions for things that should be implemented into core."
The Promise (and the Skepticism)
While many in the WordPress community are excited about EtchWP's potential, others remain skeptical. Not everyone is convinced.
Stephen Gordon, another WordPress professional, asks, "So it's a page builder in competition with Bricks, Breakdance, Spectra Blocks, etc?" This sentiment is echoed by others who wonder if EtchWP is truly bringing something new to the table or just repackaging existing concepts.
The Financial Model and Development Timeline
One aspect of EtchWP that has drawn criticism is its financial model. Geary is using a pre-sale approach to fund development, which some view as outsourcing the financial risk of failure to the community.
Clovis Shropshire, who purchased the highest-tier plan, expresses some reservations: "Literally no demo, not even a screenshot, got me feeling salty after dishing out $800 for what essentially sounds like a promise. Yes, I make enough to buy it, but no, I do not like wasting money when I don't need to."
It's worth noting that EtchWP is still in development, with no alpha or beta version available. Geary has stated it could be a year or more before a stable release is ready for use.
The Marketplace and Integrations
Geary has mentioned plans for a marketplace within Etch, primarily for design sets. However, there's some confusion about what exactly will be available through this marketplace. SureCart has already committed to an integration, suggesting that third-party tools will play a role in the EtchWP ecosystem.
This has led some, like Didou Schol, to worry: "If you're gonna need 3rd party integrations, those parties are probably going to wring you for extra subscriptions."
The Road Ahead
Will Etch truly unify the WordPress development experience? Will it be able to compete with established page builders and attract both developers and casual users?
Kevin is relying on his (incredible) track record of creating successful products to gain trust in people purchasing the tool before it's even out yet.
Shah Jee, an early supporter, remains optimistic: "By looking at the history and his vision and his potential, I see it coming together. Although this project is ambitious, we have KG on the other end with a team as well."
Others are taking a wait-and-see approach: "Good! Will see after 2 years."
I trust Kevin, I really do. He's definitely a big marketing man, but so far, he's always been able to deliver on his promises. If the project fails, he will likely lose a huge chunk of his reputation, and I doubt that's something he's willing to put on the line unless he is extremely serious and confident about what he's making.
And That's About It
EtchWP represents a bold vision for the future of WordPress development. While it has generated significant excitement, many questions remain unanswered. As the project develops, the WordPress community will be watching closely to see if Kevin can deliver on the promises and truly? revolutionize the way we build WordPress sites.
For now, EtchWP remains a tantalizing glimpse of what could be – a potential game-changer in the WordPress ecosystem or, as some fear, just another tool in an already crowded marketplace. Best of luck to Kevin and the team.
Links You May Be Interested In:
- Etch Official Website
- Dynamic WP Facebook Group Thread
- Article by David McCan
- Article by Lawrence Ladomery
And the Dear WordPress video by Kevin:
*I wasn't paid or asked to write this. Just trying to share what I know in the most objective way possible.
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