The 10 Benefits of a WordPress Website, Explained and Compared to Other CMS Platforms.

The WordPress History in Brief…

Launched in 2003 by Matt Mullenweg and Mike Little as a simple blogging platform, WordPress has undergone an impressive transformation. What began as a modest tool for sharing digital stories has grown into the most widely used content management system (CMS) in the world, powering approximately 40% of all websites. The open-source nature of WordPress has enabled a community of developers and designers to continuously contribute to the evolution of the CMS, allowing the platform to adapt to the changing needs of the internet. Over the years, WordPress has introduced numerous improvements and expansions, including revolutionary themes and plugins that help users optimize their online presence.

The 10 Major Benefits of the WordPress CMS

In the ever-changing world of web development, one platform has consistently stood out: WordPress. The question is: why? While there are countless CMS options available, WordPress remains at the top. Now it’s time to dive deeper into the ten biggest advantages of WordPress.

1. WordPress is Highly Flexible

WordPress is incredibly versatile and can be used for a wide range of websites, from simple blogs to complex e-commerce platforms and corporate sites. This flexibility stems from the open-source nature of WordPress. Thousands of developers worldwide contribute to WordPress’s core code and create a wide array of plugins and themes. This means users have access to an extensive toolkit to customize their website to their unique needs and preferences. Whether you’re building an online portfolio, supporting a non-profit organization, or setting up a fully-fledged online store, WordPress provides the tools and resources to make it happen.

2. WordPress is Easy to Use

WordPress stands out for its exceptionally user-friendly interface, known as the dashboard. Most tasks, from publishing a post to updating a theme, are just a few clicks away. Its intuitive design means even absolute beginners can become familiar with the basics in just a few hours. Additionally, the WYSIWYG editor (What You See Is What You Get) provides a real-time preview of how content will appear, similar to the Microsoft Word interface, making editing simple and straightforward.

How Does This Compare to Other CMS Platforms?
Other CMS platforms, like Drupal, often require more technical knowledge, especially when adding custom features. Joomla, while flexible, has a more complex administrative panel that may not be as intuitive for beginners. WordPress, on the other hand, is accessible to both newcomers and experienced users alike.

3. WordPress Grows with Your Business

WordPress offers a flexible foundation that can grow with your business. Whether you want to transform a blog into a large news portal or expand a local store into an e-commerce site, WordPress has the tools and plugins to support scaling up. Its modular structure, with themes and plugins, ensures additional features can be seamlessly integrated.

How Does This Compare to Other CMS Platforms?
Platforms like Wix or Weebly, while offering ease of use for beginners, can be limited in terms of functionality and scalability, especially if advanced customizations or features are needed. Because these platforms aren’t open-source, they also lack the large community developing new features and themes for WordPress, making their capabilities inherently more restricted.

4. WordPress Has a Strong Community

The global WordPress community consists of millions of enthusiastic users, developers, and designers. This community regularly organizes WordCamps, offers countless online tutorials, and maintains support forums where questions are quickly answered. Thanks to WordPress’s open-source nature, the platform benefits from constant updates, security patches, and new features contributed by the WordPress community.

How Does This Compare to Other CMS Platforms?
While other CMS platforms, such as TYPO3 or Concrete5, also have communities, they lack the overwhelming user base and active engagement that WordPress enjoys. This means that the resources and support for WordPress are often more extensive and more easily accessible.

5. WordPress Is Great for Website Visibility

A well-optimized website is essential to improve search engine visibility. WordPress already offers several built-in SEO-friendly features, such as clean URL structures, the ability to add meta tags, and fast loading times. Plugins like Yoast SEO and All in One SEO Pack provide users with advanced tools for on-page SEO, sitemaps, breadcrumbs, and more.

How Does This Compare to Other CMS Platforms?
Some CMS platforms, like Squarespace, also offer built-in SEO tools, but the flexibility and depth of plugins and customization options in WordPress are often superior. Systems like Drupal require deeper technical expertise to achieve the same level of SEO optimization.

6. WordPress Is “Free”

WordPress is open-source software, allowing anyone to download and install it at no cost. While premium themes and plugins may incur some costs, there are thousands of high-quality free options available. Additionally, hosting costs for small WordPress websites are often competitive, with hosting plans optimized specifically for WordPress providing excellent performance without breaking the bank. For example, WP Masters offers speed-optimized VPS (virtual private server) hosting exclusively for WordPress websites.

If you want something more unique than a standard WordPress theme or design, custom solutions are often a great option. Custom work requires specialists, and specialists cost money, but because the website is built on the WordPress CMS, it often costs less than a custom website in another CMS (or without a CMS). Of course, the price depends on your specific needs. If you’re interested in exploring what a custom website can do for your brand or business, schedule a meeting with one of our specialists, and we’ll gladly discuss all your options.

How Does This Compare to Other CMS Platforms?
Platforms like Squarespace, Wix, or Shopify have recurring monthly or annual costs. These can quickly add up, especially if you need more advanced e-commerce features or additional extensions.

7. WordPress Is Fast and Easily Customizable

WordPress is renowned for its incredible flexibility. This stems not only from its open-source nature but also from the extensive APIs and hooks the platform offers. This enables developers and designers to create custom solutions without altering WordPress’s core code. The result is a website that is unique in both design and functionality, tailored to specific business needs. Every WordPress website can have a unique design, depending solely on your own skills or those of your web designer.

How Does This Compare to Other CMS Platforms?
Drag-and-drop platforms like Wix offer personalization, but the depth of customization in WordPress—through child themes, custom plugins, and more—often surpasses what closed systems can achieve.

8. WordPress Is Responsive by Default (Mobile-Friendly)

With the rise of mobile internet traffic, it’s crucial that websites perform just as well on mobile devices as they do on laptops or desktops. WordPress themes are often designed with mobile responsiveness in mind. This means that the website automatically adapts to different screen sizes, from smartphones to tablets and desktops. As a user, this reduces the amount of work required. However, for custom solutions, it’s always wise to pay extra attention to the mobile version and adjust the content accordingly.

How Does This Compare to Other CMS Platforms?
Some CMS platforms may have default themes that aren’t fully optimized for mobile. With WordPress, you have access to numerous themes specifically designed for an excellent mobile experience.

9. WordPress Receives Regular Updates

In the rapidly changing world of the internet, regular software updates are essential. WordPress frequently receives updates, not just for the core system but also for themes and plugins. This minimizes security risks and ensures that new features are regularly introduced.

If you need help with maintaining and managing your WordPress website, our WordPress experts are happy to assist. We offer various maintenance packages and can advise you on the package that best suits your situation. Contact us for more information, and we’d be happy to schedule a meeting to go over everything.

How Does This Compare to Other CMS Platforms?
While other systems, such as Joomla and Drupal, also receive updates, the consistency and breadth of the WordPress community often allow it to respond faster to new web trends or security challenges.

10. WordPress Supports All Media Types

A modern website includes more than just text. Videos, images, and audio clips can bring a website to life. WordPress has built-in support for easily adding these elements, and with features like the built-in media library, managing and organizing your media is easier than ever.

How Does This Compare to Other CMS Platforms?
While most modern CMS platforms support multimedia, WordPress makes it exceptionally easy to upload, embed, and customize media. In contrast, some other CMS platforms may rely more on external plugins or more complex processes to manage media effectively.

Conclusion: Should You Choose WordPress as Your CMS?
While WordPress offers clear advantages, it’s important to note that the best CMS choice always depends on the specific needs and preferences of an individual or organization. Each CMS has its own strengths and is designed for specific users and applications.

Our WordPress Masters are happy to provide free advice when choosing a CMS for your new website. While we naturally have a preference for WordPress, we’ll recommend other systems if they’re better suited for your needs. After all, it’s in no one’s interest to recommend WordPress if we already know it may cause problems later.

In addition to advice, we also help WordPress users further develop and design their websites. We build custom, unique websites with WordPress. Take a look at our portfolio or send us a message with your ideas, and let’s schedule a meeting.