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Why use a WordPress website and how to maintain it

It comes as no surprise that WordPress websites are some of the most popular websites in the world. Most websites you browse on everyday will have a base of WordPress. Have a look at these statistics to see how widely-spread they are:

  • WordPress is used in over 178 countries and in over 60 different languages.
  • 43.3% of websites worldwide are using WordPress, representing 62.8% of the Content Management System (CMS) market.
  • As of May 2024, there were over 59,000 free plugins and over 12,000 free themes available through WordPress.org.
  • WordPress powers 14.7% of the world’s top websites.

Why is WordPress so popular? 

WordPress’s popularity as a world class website is clear, but why is it considered the gold standard? Here are a few reasons people choose this platform over the myriad of different options.

  1. Price Point and technology. The platform itself is free to use, download and adjust to however you would like it to be. Not only that, the system is open source. This means that a developer is able to go in and make adjustments to the code to develop whatever type of website they desire with whatever features, functions and aesthetics they wish. This allows for cutting edge developments in the software, with multiple contributors from all over the world adding to the collective knowledge base and development of the system. It’s a collaborative system, with some of the best minds in the business creating the best version of the platform possible.
  2. SEO Friendly. Google and other search engines rank WordPress website’s really well. There are SEO plugins available that will help with adding metadata to your site as well as plugins that can help speed up your site and optimise your content to ensure it’s easy for search engines to find. 
  3. Easy to Update. Updates are built into the system. You can set auto updates on your WordPress platform to have it automatically happen as soon as they are available, giving you one less thing to worry about.
  4. Flexibility. The primary reason for the popularity of WordPress is its flexibility. It’s able to do many different things, simply because of the massive library of plug-ins and themes that are available and the simplicity in the design of the platform.

Which begs the question, is WordPress really that complex, and is it really that hard to work with?

The answer is no. It’s actually quite simple to manage, and due to its flexibility will be able to adapt and change as your business does, with some simple things to keep it moving. 

There are a few things you should consider to ensure your WordPress site continues to serve its purpose:

Keep your content up to date

One of the benefits of keeping your content fresh and up to date is the benefits for your SEO and the relevancy of your website. You can read about SEO (Search Engine Optimisation) here. Essentially, each time you update your website, you are telling google, “Hey, this over here is relevant and new, perhaps you should tell people to look at it.” You are telling your audience that it’s a website worth going back to because they will get current information. Keep your content on your WordPress website fresh and relevant and potential customers will keep coming back. They will see your site as an authority in your field of expertise. 

Plugin and theme updates

To give your site the best chance of being safe you need to keep your site theme updated as well as any plugins you use. 

We can’t stop hackers altogether, but we don’t have to leave the back door open for them or the key under the mat. Updates to plugins and themes can contain critical security updates to protect against potential suspicious activity. These updates are all very easy to do, right from your dashboard. You will get notifications when there are updates available for your plugins. As previously mentioned, you can set your WordPress to auto update. Keep it up to date and it will stay as safe as possible.

Maintenance

Maintenance is important for any asset, and your website is no different. Here are a few things you should keep on top of to keep it humming along nicely:

  • Ensure you have current backups of the entire site kept in more than one location.
  • Check the validity of links and find and fix any 404 errors. There is nothing worse than finding out a link doesn’t work and not knowing how long it’s been sending your potential clients to a 404 page.
  • Change your passwords regularly. Like anything with a password, you should be keeping them updated frequently and difficult to guess.
  • Check and delete any spam comments.

Of course, if all this sounds arduous, please feel free to reach out. We don’t offer maintenance plans any more but there are a number of local businesses in Brisbane that I can definitely recommend. They will work with you to make sure these tasks are taken care of, keeping your site operating, while you get on with running your business.

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Why words matter, copywriting tips by Lynda Coulson

Guest Blog Post for Moonstone Creative by Lynda Coulson Creative.

Have you ever found yourself absentmindedly scrolling through social media, and suddenly find you have been hooked by some great copywriting without realising it? You’ve read the first few lines of some social media copy on a post and are intrigued.  You click on the “see more” link, and you read on.  You aren’t even reading the whole post, scanning or jumping from the first paragraph to the third. Before you know it, and without consciously being aware, you have clicked on the “learn more” button. And now you are looking at a checkout with items in it, ready for you to enter your credit card details. 

How did you get here? 

There are usually a number of factors working together that make the magic of a sale come together.  You may have been attracted by an image or a video, which motivated you to read the first couple of lines underneath. This part of the post has a hook, designed to stop you from scrolling and to see what this is about. You are interested and continue along this path (in marketing jargon we call this a funnel). Your interest in the brand offering get’s stronger and stronger. The more you read, the further through the funnel you progress. Until your email address is in and you’ve hit the PAY NOW button. This is where good copy earns its keep.

Let’s look at more reasons why copy can be the difference between a click and a close.

Brand Connection

When people talk about branding they assume it is only concerned your logo and the colours which represent your brand. Not true. Branding is about so many things. Seth Godin defines a brand as:

“A brand is the set of expectations, memories, stories and relationships that, taken together, account for a consumer’s decision to choose one product or service over another.“

Branding is about where you are positioned in the market. It embodies company culture. It is all of the things: visual representation, values and ethos, and customer service to name a few. How we communicate these things via imagery and words is how your customers are able to decide if your product is what they want and if they want to give you their money.  Mess up the words, and you mess up the brand connection.

What makes a customer click

People click on a link because they experience a response from the content. In its simplest form, someone sees your website, advert or socials content and has a need or a want that your product could fill.

Let’s look at an example. A response to a piece of content will be determined by:

  • Timing and Targets – consider a meal delivery service advert popping up at 6pm on a week night to a mum or dad in their early 40s.
  • Visual – same scenario, using a photograph of a happy family sitting at the dinner table with a sparkling clean kitchen in the background.
  • Message – same scenario again. With copy that discusses the difficulties of getting home from work and spending quality time with your children when there is a meal to prepare.  “There must be another way!”

The message tells the story of the problem, the visual is the magical happy ending everyone wants and the timing is right when those frustrations are at their peak in the day for those feeling it most.  

The customer can see their ideal outcome, and connects with the narrative.

This scenario is just one example of the importance of each element within a business’s brand.

Connecting all the Dots

If the language used doesn’t connect with the brand the message doesn’t land, and on that customer scrolls. For example, the target customer might be eco conscious. A pile of plastic containers on the table in the image won’t cut it and the copy should also play it’s part in portraying this key message. It should talk about compostable packaging and foods that are local and in season, for example.

If you get the imaging wrong, it won’t get past 1st base. However, get the copy wrong, and a fabulous image loses its value because in today’s social media land, there are plenty of good images where that comes from.

All elements need to be cohesive and high quality to break through the content noise. If the image is rubbish, it’s a scroll by.  If the copy doesn’t do its part, the disconnect breaks the brand message, and the customer is lost. 

There are many moving parts to getting a customer to the checkout, and without good copy, the marketing machine doesn’t work.

 

About Lynda

Lynda is a content creator who loves telling stories with words and photographs. To contact Lynda, see the links below:

www.lyndacoulsoncreative.com 
www.instagram.com/lyndacoulsoncreative 

 

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