Why choose WordPress to build your website
A question that often comes up during my discussions with clients, at the start of every project: what is the best solution to use for my website?
Today the web is full of options, each with its advantages and its drawbacks.
For a showcase site or an online store, depending on the client’s budget and end goal, my approach is always to pick the platform that is the easiest to handle, the most used on the web, and the one with a large community of users.
This is why I often recommend WordPress.
1. What is WordPress?
WordPress is an open-source CMS created in 2003 by Matt Mullenweg and Mike Little. In the beginning it was a blogging platform, but over time it has become a full CMS with thousands of plugins and themes in its catalogue.
In 2022, by W3Techs statistics, WordPress ran more than 43% of the websites on the web.
2. Why choose WordPress?
Several platforms exist to build a website: Joomla, Wix, Weebly, Squarespace, and others.
Each has advantages and drawbacks. The point of this article is to explain why I choose WordPress.
2.1 WordPress is free, but…
Yes, WordPress is free and open-source. There are still two versions: WordPress.com and WordPress.org.
2.1.1 WordPress.com
WordPress.com is the hosted version, like Blogger and Tumblr. It lets you create and run a site for free. But on WordPress.com you get:
- advertising shown whether you want it or not;
- no right to monetise your site with ads (AdSense for example);
- a limit on how many themes and plugins you can install.
2.1.2 WordPress.org
WordPress.org is the downloadable, self-hosted version. You keep full control. You can install themes and plugins freely, though that is not always wise. You can even write your own theme and plugin if you know HTML, CSS, JavaScript and PHP.
Because of its flexibility and its module system, you can build an online store with WooCommerce, which I will cover in a dedicated article. You can also run a whole social network with plugins such as BuddyBoss.
3. WordPress and security
In computing, the more a solution is used, the more it is targeted.
WordPress is no exception: the CMS is heavily targeted. Fortunately the platform is well maintained, updated regularly, and the core team reacts quickly when a security issue appears.
WordPress sites do get hacked, and almost always because of missing maintenance. You have to update WordPress, the plugins and the themes you installed. That is the first cause of compromise, well ahead of code quality.
4. Conclusion
WordPress is a powerful platform to build a website and get an online presence. You can build any kind of site with it, improve the design with themes, and add features through thousands of plugins, free or paid.
For a complete site that fits your needs, going through a WordPress professional is often the better move.
5. Why hire a WordPress developer?
With a bit of computer knowledge, it is easy to set up a site with WordPress, host it and put it online.
But for a company that wants a professional site, with specific features and a solid design, it is better to work with a developer and web designer who specialises in WordPress.
A professional helps you choose the right theme and the plugins that answer your need. They know the platform well enough to solve the problems that come up during the build, and to avoid the ones that cost money after launch.