As those who know me will testify, I have not always been the biggest fan of Content Mangment Systems (CMS). In my time I have worked on a few large commercial systems and that experience has left me a little cynical. I still come to each new system with a touch of healthy sceptism. However, I have now been using WordPress, for my own and client sites, since the release of 3.0 back in June last year (June 2010).
Why did I make the jump?
I have three main criteria for using and recommending any content management system:
1. It can’t restrict the quality of my designs
2. It has to be easier than building from scratch
3. Most important it must be user friendly for my customers.
For me WordPress 3.0 met all that and more. I will try not to sound like an evengalist here. As a web designer I can create my sites from scratch without content management systems (CMS). But really, why would I want to if WordPress makes my job easier? Most importantly it makes my customers life easier. One of the biggest changes since I started building sites in Worpress is the reduction in the need for technical support. I can now spend more time building sites and leave the updating to the website owners.
Here are my top five reasons why you should use WordPress
1. It’s easy to use and manage your content.
WordPress was originally designed as a blogging tool where authors are writing content on a daily basis. It has become popular because it does the job well. Since those days it’s functionality has grown into a powerful tool, but has still kept it’s user friendly roots.
2. There are hundreds of free themes and plugins.
If you can’t afford a web designer there are a lot of themes out there that can be customised by adding your logo and branding. Be aware, if you use a popular theme, you may find a few other sites that look like yours.
Need some extra functionality? WordPress almost certainly has a plugin to help. Plugins cover a wide range of functionality including e-commerce shop carts, photo galleries, or membership management for clubs and networks. See the useful links at the bottom of the page for some examples.
3. It’s search engine friendly
Getting those search engine results takes time, research and perseverance. WordPress along with popular search engine optimisation (SEO) plugins makes it easy to ensure your web address, titles, tags and content match your SEO goals.
4. Updates can be done automatically
One of the big issues with open source software is keeping it up to date. WordPress releases regular security updates. The update process is as easy as clicking a link to accept each new release. Although, I do recommend you back up before you make each update, as some plugins might not support changes as quickly.
5. Professional support and development.
If you want to take your site to the next level then you are never going to be short of the professional support to do so. The WordPress developer community is huge and will only expand as WordPress gets more popular.
I expect to be building many more WordPress sites in the future.
Useful links
WordPress.org – the source for everything WordPress
Smashing magazine – great for articles and WordPress tutorial
Thematic – a great WordPress theme framework that takes some of the pain out of development
Buddy press – Great for clubs and creating online communities
SEO plugin by Yoast – a free plugin to help optimise for SEO
Need a WordPress developer check out my web business at www.lineandform.co.uk
