So you know you need a website, but the sheer number of choices available is overwhelming. You’ve heard about WordPress, but aren’t sure if it’s the right choice for your site, even after doing some research. Here, we’ll answer some questions regarding WordPress sites in general, and if WordPress is the best fit for your needs.
Isn’t WordPress Just for Bloggers?
WordPress started as a blogging platform in 2003. Since then, it’s since grown into a fully fledged CMS (Content Management System). It’s currently used by over 75 million sites worldwide, and is the most popular CMS in the world.
Do You Need the Ability to Edit Your Site on a Regular Basis?
In the early days of the internet, someone would build a site and then basically leave it untouched for years (I can vouch that some of those sites are still out there). Nowadays, users expect to see new content on a regular basis. WordPress, being a CMS, provides an administration area where users can edit the content of the site pages themselves. You can regularly update and refresh your content, with complete control over what site visitors see at any given time. Being able to regularly update your content increases your SEO capabilities, helps keep people on your site, and increases conversions.
What Functionality Does Your Site Require?
By functionality, I mean such things as contact forms, video players, image galleries, etc. You have access to thousands of plugins with a WordPress site (available from https://wordpress.org). Chances are, you’ll find a plugin that fits your needs. If your site requires advanced functionality, or a complex implementation that isn’t covered by an existing WordPress plugin, then custom coding may be necessary (good news – we can help with that).
Would You Like to Sell Things on Your Site?
If you plan to have an e-commerce site, guess what? WordPress has a plugin available called WooCommerce. This plugin will get you going with a basic online shop, and features its own compatible plugins to further enhance your e-commerce site. WooCommerce can be used for both physical as well as digital products and offers such things as customer accounts, a built-in checkout/cart system, and multiple customer payment options.
Is SEO Important to You?
Optimizing your site’s content so it’s easily found by search engines and potential clients is critical in today’s world. WordPress provides several plugins for SEO, with Yoast SEO the most widely used plugin. Available in both a free and paid version, Yoast makes it easy to control the on page SEO for your site, including keywords, snippets, etc. Yoast has a new area when you’re editing a page in the WordPress admin where you can fine tune these important SEO elements on a page by page basis. If you find that you need more advanced SEO implementation beyond what Yoast can offer, we can help with that as well.
Why Might WordPress Not be the Best Fit for Me?
If your site requires advanced functionality not supported by WordPress (or its plugins), then a custom site solution might be the best approach for you. This could range from a completely customized site, to a combination of a WordPress site with a custom plugin solution. It all depends on what you need, and what you plan to do with your website.
I hope this post helps you decide if a WordPress site is the right choice for you. If you’re unsure which type of site you need, just contact us, and we’ll help you find the best solution.
