WordPress powers many of the most popular websites in the world. This hugely versatile web publishing platform powers hundreds of millions of websites, including heavy hitters, such as eBay, Sony, GM, UPS, Forbes, CNN, Reuters, The NYT, Samsung, IBM and TechCrunch are using WordPress as their blogging or website platform, and even many of the top 3 million websites in the world. Though it started off as blogging software, WordPress today is flexible, customisable, scalable, and secure. So what makes WordPress so great? In this article, I’m going to explore the reasons why WordPress is such an important part of the modern Web landscape.
WordPress is Open Source Software
What sets WordPress apart from other web platforms is that it is open source. This means that anyone can download the code and use it to create their own website, or they can hire a developer like Outside The Square, to do it for them. It also means that any bugs in the system are fixed as soon as they are found, and not after huge companies have made money on the software. Open-source software is generally more stable than proprietary systems, which means your site will be less likely to crash or go offline.
The reason it has become so popular is that it’s free, easy to use, customisable with plug-ins and themes, has tremendous online support via forums and tutorials, and there are plenty of professional developers that specialise in it.
WordPress runs on the ubiquitous LAMP software stack that is also open source, for those technically minded that’s Linux, Apache, MySQL, and PHP.
Powering millions of websites
The majority of websites are built on WordPress, the most popular web platform in the world. With over 55 million installs and counting, WordPress is the go-to website technology for professionals of all stripes. If you’re just getting started with your own blog or business site, it’s time to take advantage of this powerful content management system.
First, it offers reliability and security. With millions of installations worldwide, there’s an enormous amount of expertise behind WordPress’ codebase which makes it a safer option than other platforms like SquareSpace or Wix that lack this kind of experience.
Second, it offers flexibility and scalability with access to thousands of WordPress plugins that deliver functionality.
Easy to understand and use
One of the best features of WordPress is its ease of use. Whether you build it yourself or engage a professional, managing, editing and adding content is easy so you can keep it fresh, relevant and up to date. And if you’re not tech-savvy, there are plenty of tutorials on the internet that can help walk you through the steps.
WordPress Is Highly Customizable
One of the reasons WordPress is so popular is its ability to be highly customisable. With a wide variety of tools, plugins, widgets, and extensions available, it’s easier than ever to make the website unique to your brand. Plus, with WordPress’s popularity, you’re guaranteed that there will be professional help available should you need it.
WooCommerce, the online shop
WooCommerce is a free, open-source e-commerce platform built on WordPress. With WooCommerce, you can create an online shop with just a few clicks. You can sell physical or digital products to customers around the world, while taking advantage of WordPress’s flexibility and diverse plugin ecosystem. WooCommerce is the complete online selling platform.
WooCommerce easily integrates with payment gateways such as Stripe or GoCardless.
Search Engine Friendly
WordPress is that it’s search engine friendly out of the box, plus there are a variety of plugins such as Yoast SEO that will help make sure your site is presented correctly to search engines including Google. The content and keyword tools mean you can create and edit content that will help improve your visibility.
WordPress is universally supported
The WordPress platform is well-supported and has an active development team. It’s also free, which means that you don’t need to spend any money on the core platform. You can also find plugins that cater to your specific needs, such as security or SEO.
Many of the so-called, free platforms may look great in the TV ad but when it comes to making them look great for you, you are probably still going to need a professional – buying a great camera doesn’t make you a great photographer. While platforms such as Wix, SquareSpace or Shopify look great on the surface, by the time you’ve added all of the extras, you are normally better off going with a professional developer.
