| name | wp-demo |
| description | Demo HTML creation methodology — single-file demos with section comments for 1:1 WordPress conversion |
| user-invocable | false |
Demo HTML Creation Methodology
This skill defines how to create static HTML demo pages that serve as the design prototype and are later converted 1:1 into WordPress templates. Each demo is a single HTML file with all CSS embedded in a <style> block.
Purpose of Demos
Demos are the design-first step before WordPress development:
- Design agreement -- the client reviews a working HTML page in the browser
- CSS extraction -- the
<style> block is extracted verbatim into the theme's assets/css/styles.css
- Section mapping -- each marked section in the demo maps to a
template-parts/section-*.php file in WordPress
- Field definition -- every piece of content in the demo becomes an ACF/SCF field
File Structure
demo/
├── index.html # Homepage demo
├── pricing.html # Pricing page demo
├── about.html # About page demo
└── ... # One file per page
Naming Convention
- Homepage:
demo/index.html
- Other pages:
demo/<page-slug>.html (e.g., demo/pricing.html, demo/software.html)
Single-File HTML Structure
Each demo is a single HTML file containing everything: meta tags, embedded CSS, HTML content, and optional inline JS.
Template Skeleton
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html lang="en">
<head>
<meta charset="UTF-8">
<meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0">
<title>Site Name — Page Title</title>
<link rel="preconnect" href="https://fonts.googleapis.com">
<link rel="preconnect" href="https://fonts.gstatic.com" crossorigin>
<link href="https://fonts.googleapis.com/css2?family=Inter:wght@400;500;600;700&family=Playfair+Display:wght@400;500;600;700&display=swap" rel="stylesheet">
<style>
:root {
--color-primary: #1a5632;
--color-primary-light: #2d7a4a;
--color-primary-dark: #0f3d22;
--color-secondary: #c9a84c;
--color-neutral-50: #fafafa;
--color-neutral-100: #f5f5f5;
--color-neutral-200: #e5e5e5;
--color-neutral-500: #737373;
--color-neutral-800: #262626;
--color-neutral-900: #171717;
--color-text: var(--color-neutral-800);
--color-text-light: var(--color-neutral-500);
--color-text-inverse: #ffffff;
--color-background: #ffffff;
--color-background-alt: var(--color-neutral-50);
--color-border: var(--color-neutral-200);
--spacing-xs: 0.25rem;
--spacing-sm: 0.5rem;
--spacing-md: 1rem;
--spacing-lg: 1.5rem;
--spacing-xl: 2rem;
--spacing-2xl: 3rem;
--spacing-3xl: 4rem;
--font-family-primary: 'Inter', sans-serif;
--font-family-secondary: 'Playfair Display', serif;
--font-size-xs: 0.75rem;
--font-size-sm: 0.875rem;
--font-size-base: 1rem;
--font-size-md: 1.125rem;
--font-size-lg: 1.25rem;
--font-size-xl: 1.5rem;
--font-size-2xl: 2rem;
--font-size-3xl: 2.5rem;
--font-size-4xl: 3rem;
--shadow-sm: 0 1px 2px rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.05);
--shadow-md: 0 4px 6px rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.07);
--radius-sm: 0.25rem;
--radius-md: 0.5rem;
--radius-lg: 1rem;
--radius-full: 9999px;
--transition-base: all 0.3s ease;
--container-max: 1280px;
}
*, *::before, *::after { box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0; padding: 0; }
html { scroll-behavior: smooth; }
body {
font-family: var(--font-family-primary);
font-size: var(--font-size-base);
line-height: 1.5;
color: var(--color-text);
background: var(--color-background);
}
img { display: block; max-width: 100%; height: auto; }
a { color: inherit; text-decoration: none; }
ul, ol { list-style: none; }
.container {
width: 100%;
max-width: var(--container-max);
margin: 0 auto;
padding: 0 var(--spacing-md);
}
.header { ... }
.hero { ... }
.services { ... }
.footer { ... }
@media (max-width: 1024px) { ... }
@media (max-width: 768px) { ... }
@media (max-width: 576px) { ... }
</style>
</head>
<body>
<header class="header">
<div class="container">
<div class="header__inner">
<a href="/" class="header__logo">
<img src="https://placehold.co/180x50?text=Logo" alt="Site Name">
</a>
<nav class="header__nav">
<a href="#" class="nav__link nav__link--active">Home</a>
<a href="#services" class="nav__link">Services</a>
<a href="pricing.html" class="nav__link">Pricing</a>
<a href="#contact" class="nav__link">Contact</a>
</nav>
<a href="#contact" class="btn btn--primary">Get Started</a>
<button class="header__hamburger" aria-label="Toggle menu">
<span></span><span></span><span></span>
</button>
</div>
</div>
</header>
<main>
<section class="hero">
<div class="container">
<div class="hero__content">
<span class="hero__label">Welcome to Site Name</span>
<h1 class="hero__title">Your Compelling Headline Here</h1>
<p class="hero__subtitle">A brief supporting description that explains the value proposition in one or two sentences.</p>
<div class="hero__cta">
<a href="#contact" class="btn btn--primary btn--large">Primary Action</a>
<a href="#services" class="btn btn--secondary btn--large">Secondary Action</a>
</div>
</div>
<div class="hero__image">
<img src="https://placehold.co/600x400?text=Hero+Image" alt="Hero image description">
</div>
</div>
</section>
<section class="services section section--alt" id="services">
<div class="container">
<span class="section__label">What We Do</span>
<h2 class="section__title">Our Services</h2>
<div class="services__grid">
</div>
</div>
</section>
<section class="contact section" id="contact">
<div class="container">
</div>
</section>
</main>
<footer class="footer">
<div class="container">
<div class="footer__grid">
<div class="footer__brand">
<img src="https://placehold.co/180x50?text=Logo" alt="Site Name" class="footer__logo">
<p class="footer__tagline">Brief company tagline here.</p>
</div>
<div class="footer__links">
<h3 class="footer__heading">Quick Links</h3>
<ul>
<li><a href="#">Home</a></li>
<li><a href="#">Services</a></li>
<li><a href="#">Pricing</a></li>
<li><a href="#">Contact</a></li>
</ul>
</div>
<div class="footer__contact">
<h3 class="footer__heading">Contact</h3>
<p>email@example.com</p>
<p>(555) 123-4567</p>
</div>
<div class="footer__social">
<h3 class="footer__heading">Follow Us</h3>
</div>
</div>
<div class="footer__bottom">
<p>© 2025 Site Name. All rights reserved.</p>
<div class="footer__legal">
<a href="#">Privacy Policy</a>
<a href="#">Terms & Conditions</a>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</footer>
<script>
</script>
</body>
</html>
Section Comments
Every distinct section MUST be wrapped with an HTML comment in this exact format:
These comments serve as:
- Visual delimiters when scanning the HTML source
- Mapping markers -- each comment maps to a
template-parts/section-<name>.php file in WordPress
- Conversion guide -- when building the WordPress theme, each section is extracted into its own template part
Common Section Names
| Comment | WordPress Template Part |
|---|
SECTION: Header | header.php |
SECTION: Hero | template-parts/section-hero.php |
SECTION: Services | template-parts/section-services.php |
SECTION: About | template-parts/section-about.php |
SECTION: Testimonials | template-parts/section-testimonials.php |
SECTION: CTA | template-parts/section-cta.php |
SECTION: Contact | template-parts/section-contact.php |
SECTION: Footer | footer.php |
Design System Variables in :root
The :root block in the demo <style> is the source of truth for the design system. When converting to WordPress:
- The
:root variables are copied exactly into assets/css/styles.css
- All CSS rules reference these variables (never hardcoded values)
- The variable names, values, and scale MUST match the
wp-css-system skill definitions
External Skill Dependencies
The demo creation process relies on two external skills for design guidance:
frontend-design -- provides visual design principles, layout patterns, and component inspiration
ui-ux-pro-max -- provides UX best practices, interaction patterns, and accessibility guidelines
These skills are invoked automatically when creating demos. The demo author should follow their guidance for:
- Visual hierarchy and whitespace
- Color contrast and readability
- Component patterns and interactions
- Accessibility compliance
1:1 Section Mapping to WordPress
Each section in the demo becomes a WordPress template part. The mapping is direct:
Demo HTML WordPress
───────────────────────────── ─────────────────────────────
<!-- SECTION: Hero --> → template-parts/section-hero.php
<h1>Static Title</h1> → <h1><?php echo esc_html(prefix_get_field('hero_title')); ?></h1>
<p>Static description</p> → <p><?php echo esc_html(prefix_get_field('hero_subtitle')); ?></p>
<img src="placeholder"> → <?php $img = prefix_get_field('hero_image'); ?>
<img src="<?php echo esc_url($img['url']); ?>"
alt="<?php echo esc_attr($img['alt']); ?>">
Conversion Rules
- Static text becomes
prefix_get_field('field_name')
- Placeholder images become ACF image fields
- Repeated items (cards, list items) become ACF repeater fields
- Links become ACF URL or link fields
- Navigation becomes
wp_nav_menu()
- The HTML structure and CSS classes are preserved exactly
Responsive Design Requirements
Every demo MUST be fully responsive. See the wp-responsive skill for detailed breakpoint and responsive design standards.
- Use mobile-first CSS with
min-width media queries
- Test at: 375px, 576px, 768px, 1024px, 1440px
- No horizontal scrolling at any viewport width
- Hamburger menu on mobile, horizontal nav on desktop
Accessibility Requirements
Demos MUST follow semantic HTML5 and accessibility best practices.
Semantic Structure
<header>
<nav>
<main>
<section>
<article>
<aside>
<footer>
ARIA and Accessibility
- All images have descriptive
alt attributes
- Interactive elements have
aria-label when the visible text is insufficient
- Color contrast meets WCAG AA (4.5:1 for normal text, 3:1 for large text)
- Focus styles are visible for keyboard navigation
- Skip-to-content link at the top of the page
- Form inputs have associated
<label> elements
- Hamburger button has
aria-label="Toggle menu" and aria-expanded
<a href="#main-content" class="sr-only sr-only--focusable">Skip to content</a>
<button class="header__hamburger" aria-label="Toggle menu" aria-expanded="false">
<span></span><span></span><span></span>
</button>
<main id="main-content">
Placeholder Images
Use placeholder services with realistic dimensions that match the final design intent.
<img src="https://placehold.co/600x400?text=Hero+Image" alt="Description of hero image">
<img src="https://placehold.co/300x300?text=Team+Member" alt="Team member name">
<img src="https://placehold.co/180x50?text=Logo" alt="Site Name">
<img src="https://placehold.co/64x64?text=Icon" alt="Service name icon">
<img src="https://placehold.co/400x250?text=Blog+Post" alt="Blog post title">
Choose dimensions that match the expected aspect ratio in the final design:
- Hero images: 16:9 or 3:2 (e.g., 600x400, 800x450)
- Thumbnails: 16:10 or 4:3 (e.g., 400x250, 300x225)
- Avatars/portraits: 1:1 (e.g., 300x300)
- Logos: wide ratio (e.g., 180x50, 200x60)
Navigation Structure
The demo navigation must match the planned WordPress site structure. Navigation items should reflect the actual pages and sections that will exist.
<nav class="header__nav">
<a href="index.html" class="nav__link nav__link--active">Home</a>
<a href="#services" class="nav__link">Services</a>
<a href="pricing.html" class="nav__link">Pricing</a>
<a href="#contact" class="nav__link">Contact</a>
</nav>
- Internal page links use relative HTML file paths (
pricing.html)
- Section anchors use
#id links (#services, #contact)
- Active page gets the
--active modifier class
Footer Pattern
The footer follows a consistent pattern matching the WordPress settings page architecture.
<footer class="footer">
<div class="container">
<div class="footer__grid">
<div class="footer__brand">
<img src="https://placehold.co/180x50?text=Logo" alt="Site Name" class="footer__logo">
<p class="footer__tagline">Company tagline or brief description.</p>
</div>
<div class="footer__links">
<h3 class="footer__heading">Quick Links</h3>
<ul>
<li><a href="#">Home</a></li>
<li><a href="#">Services</a></li>
<li><a href="#">Pricing</a></li>
<li><a href="#">Contact</a></li>
</ul>
</div>
<div class="footer__contact">
<h3 class="footer__heading">Contact</h3>
<p>info@example.com</p>
<p>(555) 123-4567</p>
<p>123 Main St, City, ST 12345</p>
</div>
<div class="footer__social">
<h3 class="footer__heading">Follow Us</h3>
<div class="footer__social-links">
<a href="#" aria-label="Facebook">FB</a>
<a href="#" aria-label="Instagram">IG</a>
<a href="#" aria-label="LinkedIn">LI</a>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="footer__bottom">
<p>© 2025 Site Name. All rights reserved.</p>
<div class="footer__legal">
<a href="#">Privacy Policy</a>
<a href="#">Terms & Conditions</a>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</footer>
The footer maps to the WordPress settings/options page fields:
- Logo:
site_logo (option field)
- Tagline:
footer_tagline (option field)
- Social links:
social_facebook, social_instagram, etc. (option fields)
- Copyright:
footer_copyright (option field)
- Contact info:
contact_email, contact_phone, contact_address (option fields)
Summary Checklist