Torre Capistran operates a website design and maintenance agency that prides itself on being straightforward and transparent. The company’s founding principle is that web design and development can be simple and dependable in a world where they are often overly complicated and unreliable. Their team strives daily to complete client work punctually and with transparent communication. Torre’s ultimate goal is to eliminate the unnecessary complexities and inefficiencies that plague the web development industry, such as missed deadlines, vague expectations, poor communication, and needlessly complicated practices.
Torre obtained her degree in Marketing, with a minor in Chinese and German languages, from Southern Methodist University in Dallas. She often jokes that she would happily attend school for a living if she could. After graduating, Torre embarked on a six-month adventure to a beach in Mexico, where she taught herself website development and fundamental coding languages, including HTML and CSS. However, she soon realized that she missed the challenge and structure of a demanding job, so she returned to Dallas and landed a position in Digital Marketing. Torre spent two and a half years working in a corporate environment before launching her agency.
Founding Hooked On Code
During her time working in Digital Marketing, Torre gained valuable experience working on the client-side of major website projects with vendors. While these experiences were often challenging and disappointing, she came to accept them as a normal part of the industry. In response to these negative experiences, Torre took a straightforward approach to her agency’s process, focusing on delivering what was promised on time and ensuring that clients could easily manage their websites after launch.
At Hooked On Code, Torre finds the most joy in her day when clients send personal texts or heartfelt emails expressing the positive impact working with Hooked On Code has had on their lives. These messages not only energize her but the entire team as well.
As a leader, Torre’s favorite part of her routine is conducting weekly one-on-one meetings with each team member. During these meetings, they discuss achievements, work through challenges, exchange ideas about improvements, and overall maintain a strong sense of connection.
Her Success Recipe
Torre believes that success is subjective, but she takes pride in the fact that her clients are extremely satisfied with the work her agency produces. This happiness has been a driving force behind the consistent growth of her business. Torre attributes her clients’ satisfaction to her agency’s approach, which prioritizes simplicity over complexity, and transparency over smoke and mirrors. Hooked On Code strives to educate clients and involve them in the development process, which has led to long-lasting and positive relationships. Additionally, Torre takes pride in the fact that her team is encouraged to show up as their authentic selves, something that she believes is rare in the industry. She thinks about this almost daily and is grateful that she can bring her whole self to her work.
Best Website Developer
Hooked On Code is a web design and development agency that specializes in creating and revamping websites using WordPress, while also prioritizing ease of use. While many agencies create custom themes and limit their clients’ ability to edit content, Hooked On Code intentionally uses client-friendly builders like Divi by Elegant Themes and Elementor while discouraging custom-coded solutions. This approach enables clients to have greater control over their websites and make easy, low-cost changes post-launch. By prioritizing client control and ease of use, Hooked On Code ensures that its websites are sustainable and long-living.
Rescuing Agency-Abandoned Projects
This year, Hooked On Code has received a significant number of inquiries about finishing projects that other agencies had started and abandoned, leaving clients disappointed and stranded mid-initiative. These projects often involve taking over design files that were never built due to an overcomplicated development process or being ghosted by the previous agency. Hooked On Code is honored to have the opportunity to dive in and turn these visions into reality for clients, ensuring that their projects are completed and launched successfully.
Replacing Custom Themes
The agency has also received rave reviews for its “theme rebuild” projects. In these cases, Hooked On Code takes freshly designed websites that meet clients’ visual expectations but are extremely constraining and fragile in terms of development (e.g., mostly hard-coded custom themes). The team then rebuilds the design using a more flexible tool such as Elementor or Divi Theme, resulting in a more client-friendly and functional website in terms of edits, additions, and maintenance.
Award Winning Maintenance
In addition to web design and development services, Hooked On Code offers an award-winning maintenance service called Care Plans. These plans have a nearly 100% year over year retention rate and provide clients with easy, direct access to the agency’s team as part of their everyday operations. Recently, the agency has even started offering all-inclusive, flat-rate plans, ensuring clients receive continuous support and maintenance for their websites with no variable or hourly invoicing.
Proficient in Simplifying the Complex
Hooked On Code’s philosophy revolves around simplifying complex web development processes, which is evident in every decision, even the smallest ones. The agency ensures that every development decision is easy for clients to understand and change in the future. This philosophy is also reflected in their internal communication and systems. Moreover, the team strongly believes in following through with commitments, and showing up professionally while staying true to oneself. They celebrate the unique qualities and individuality of every team member and client, fostering a welcoming and inclusive environment.
Following Client Centric Business Practices
Hooked On Code’s approach to innovation is to focus on the tools and strategies that work best for their clients, while staying informed on the latest trends and technologies. Torre and her team are constantly testing and evaluating new tools, and are always open to making quick changes to ensure that they are delivering the best possible end-product for their clients. Ultimately, however, client ease-of-use is kept at the forefront of decisions.
Moreover, Hooked On Code believes that innovation is not just about technology, but also about business practices and ethics. By prioritizing transparency and reliability in their communication with clients, they believe they can have a positive impact on their client’s lives and be part of a ripple-effect that makes a difference in the world.
Leadership Advice- “Ask and Listen”
Torre advises emerging leaders to prioritize asking questions and then actively listening without interrupting. She emphasizes that it’s not necessary for the leader to be the smartest person in the room, as their role is to empower their team to feel and act smart. Torre recommends reading two books, “The Coaching Habit” by Michael Bungay Stanier and “Multipliers” by Liz Wiseman, to further enhance leadership skills.
To get in touch with Torre and her team at Hooked On Code, visit their website at https://hookedoncode.com/
Written by Steve Sanchez.
