WP20 – A Heartfelt Thanks

Earlier this year, WordPressers around the globe united to celebrate 20 years of community and innovation. There were parties, blogs, videos, and social media posts aplenty. And, of course, the trending hashtag, “#WP20”.

Throughout April and May, community members reflected on their journeys – what brought them to WordPress and its personal meaning. The stories, tweets, and videos were inspiring, nostalgic, and even humorous at times. There was swag, and the cakes were epic.

Let’s take a look!

On WordPress turning 20, and the Audrey Scholars program: https://t.co/Etwh8H6xh4

— Matt Mullenweg (@photomatt) May 27, 2023

WordPress celebrates 20 years tomorrow. It’s grown from a comment on a blog post to a web spanning phenomenon. Thanks to an outstanding community and the freedoms of Open Source. Happy Birthday, WordPress! #WP20 #WordPress pic.twitter.com/fght4XMJXb

— Mike Little (@mikelittlezed1) May 26, 2023

Look at this cute #WP20 cake from @RicksBakery! pic.twitter.com/f88H3usR5R

— Josepha Haden Chomphosy (@JosephaHaden) May 27, 2023

Tenemos regalitos para los que vengáis esta tarde a la Meetup.#WP20 pic.twitter.com/PSPsbWluv7

— Meetup WordPress Torrelodones (@WPTorrelodones) June 22, 2023

So @WordPress is turning 20 years old today! #WP20

Happy birthday to WordPress and its entire community! from me and @MariekeRakt pic.twitter.com/9N9T0SnsdL

— Joost de Valk (@jdevalk) May 27, 2023

Happy 20th birthday, @WordPress! Our Cebu meetup was a success!

…and our community is growing. Thanks to #enspaceCebu for hosting our party! #WP20 #WordPressCebu #WPCebu pic.twitter.com/TUFoKjuoxq

— Cebu WordPress Meetup (@WPCebu) June 3, 2023

I’m sure you’ve seen by now, but today is WordPress’ 20th birthday! Thank you to @photomatt and @mikelittlezed1 for following through with a seemingly wild idea. I don’t think anyone could have predicted we’d end up where we are today. Happy birthday @WordPress! #WP20 pic.twitter.com/tAZRlYThuS

— Jon Desrosiers (@desrosj) May 28, 2023

Hier ist der Recap vom letzten Zürcher #WordPress #Meetup im @westhive inkl. Audioaufzeichnungen und Slides der Präsentationen, sowie ein paar visuellen Eindrücken des Abends. #BBQ #WP20 https://t.co/IycEcb4DQL

— WordPress Zürich (@wpzurich) June 30, 2023

#WCEU #WCEU2023 #WP20 pic.twitter.com/Uodqd2OotM

— Osom Studio WordPress & WooCommerce Agency (@OSOM_STUDIO) June 10, 2023

Celebrating #WP20 at #WCEU with @photomatt @JosephaHaden @matias_ventura pic.twitter.com/9LM9HnEfYn

— Felix Arntz (@felixarntz) June 10, 2023

Want to see more tweets? Check out the tweet wall here.

Bits & Bytes

Official website for WP20

The hashtag was used at least 18,000 times between March 1 and June 8, 2023 on social peaking on May 27 with at least 2,700+ metions

165+ meetups took place to celebrate WP20

At least 4,661 people attended a meetup across six continents

100+ kits of swag were shipped to meetup organizers

Want more social media for WordPress? Check out the official accounts here:

Twitter

Instagram

Facebook

LinkedIn

YouTube

Pinterest

Tumblr

Snapshots from WP20 Celebrations

Props

WP20 celebrations, swag, websites, social media, graphics, and so much more could not have happened without the wonderful contributions of so many. Beyond the organizers of the 165+ events, there were many people working behind the scenes to ensure WordPress got the recognition it deserved. Thank you to everyone who worked behind the scenes to organize the meetups, create swag, and to spread the word. Some of these hardworking folks include: Mark Andrew, Joen Asmussen, Tino Barreiro, Chloe Bringmann, Josepha Haden Chomphosy, Cate DeRosia, Em DeRosia, Beatriz Fialho, Nicholas Garofalo, Nyasha Green, Nick Hamze, Meagan Hanes, Kelly Hoffman, Pablo Honey, Santana Inniss, Marko Ivanovic, Angela Jin, Winston Koone, Megan Marcel, Jenni McKinnon, Brett McSherry, Jonathan Pantani, Se Reed, Lauren Stein, Francisco Vera, Andrew Wikel, and Adam Wood.

Some More Fun

A WordPress event is not complete without a Wapuu, and not only was there one, but there was a whole campaign to color it in! Thanks to Em DeRosia for creating the commemorative Wapuu!

The Marketing team ran an interactive campaign, From Blogs to Blocks, a series of prompts across 20 days for WordPress enthusiasts to celebrate all-things WordPress.

Additional campaigns took place on social media and included prompting folks to share their favorite WordPress memory and most cherished WordPress swag item, to highlight the 21 contributing teams, and even to share a birthday greeting.

My fav #WordPress swag, which I use daily! This was the speaker swag from #WCBos 2019. @melchoyce, I think you designed this stunning logo? #WP20 https://t.co/1sEIEMGzM9 pic.twitter.com/F0ufF9msqP

— Angela Jin (@AngelaSJin) April 25, 2023

We had lots of digital goodies too! From 3D desktop wallpaper, to selfie-props for the celebrations, and more. You can download them here.

Got Swag? Need Swag?

It’s not too late to order your WP20 commemorative items. Find shirts, stickers, and more, while supplies last!

See you in five years for the 25th!

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