You may have been recommended to use WordPress for your next website but not really sure why? This article will explain why WordPress has become the worlds leading content management system.

First of all, a content management system (CMS) any software which enables creation, editing, organisations and publishing of content; this often refers to website content. To back this statement, Kinsta shows WordPress powers 42.4% of all websites globally and has 60% market share of CMS globally, the next closest is Joomla with 2.9% websites and 5.2% market share. As you can see, WordPress has an incredible volume of users. Check the WordPress market share here:

With top brand names such as The Walt Disney Company, Sony Music, and Microsoft News using WordPress, the question is still the same, “Why choose WordPress?”

Here’s what I think has made WordPress the global number

1: WordPress is free to everyone

WordPress software has and always will be free to use.

At wordpress.org you’ll be able to download a copy of WordPress and begin to create your responsive website straight away.

If you’re confident with your digital skills to create a website and know how to host it yourself there maybe be very little or zero cost for you. Most will require a bit of help though. While the CMS is free, hosting and services helping with set-up are not.

If you get help with creation of the website, the service provider (such as myself) will be able to recommend a host who can provide great customer service for a low monthly cost.

Alternatively, wordpress.com provides great packages for beginners. This option offers paid packages that include hosting, ideal when you’re new to creating websites and want to do it yourself, however slightly limiting for future expansion. Competitors to WordPress only offer the package offer which is why WordPress is the leader.

2: Build a blog, e-commerce or information website on WordPress

Whether you’re looking to create a blog, set-up your brand’s first website or launch an e-commerce website, WordPress enables you to do it all in one place using themes and plugins.

A theme when referring to websites is a design structure which you can customise to your goal. A plugin is a piece of software that is used in addition to the primary software to provide additional features. WordPress has thousands of themes and plugins via themselves and third-party companies.

It’s a simple as choosing a theme which matches the style of website you’re after, for instance, a blog, e-commerce or portfolio theme. Then take a look at the plugins that can provide the additional features after, like contact forms, event calendars, etc. Those many available for free with some options coming at a cost dependent on their complexity.

The competitors tend to only have limited themes and plugins, especially for free, making them more restrictive.

3: WordPress is simple to use

You may have seen WordPress is a WYSIWYG editor, which literally means “what you see is what you get.”

When you make changes via WordPress’ admin dashboard, they look exactly the same on the live site taking the guesswork out of editing your site. Plus the editor is very easy to use, like Microsoft Word. Making text bold, underlined or italicised is straightforward with no need to faff with HTML, though if HTML interests you, you just need to change from visual editor to text editor.

4: No need to learn code to use WordPress

As just mentioned, if you don’t know what to do with HTML, you don’t need to touch it to edit text or add images, etc.

The handy ‘Appearance’ tab enables you to do basic styling changes like theme colour, fonts or logo. Plus within this tab you can change your theme, any widgets you’d like to use or update your navigation menu.

5: Plenty of WordPress support available

Due to WordPress’ popularity, there are plenty of online resources from professionals giving their expertise to guide you through every question you may have when managing your site. WPBeginner is a great resource when starting out.

I love working with clients to create a website which visually excels their goal and is easily manageable day to day for them to update. I can provide you with support throughout your journey using WordPress.

6: WordPress can grow with your business

If for example, you currently have an information only company website, converting it to e-commerce is easy with WordPress. All you have to do is add an e-commerce plugin (the most popular being WooCommerce) and check your chosen theme supports it. As mentioned earlier, adding plugins and changing themes is simple, however, the best practice is if you know you’ll need an e-commerce plugin in the future, choose a theme now which will support it.

7: WordPress integrates with a lot of business software

If you want people to sign up to your company newsletter via your website, add the MailChimp for WordPress plugin or if you currently use Salesforce, add the Web-to-Lead plugin to monitor leads better. Take a look through the plugin store to see the many options with your existing software.

8: You own your website when built with WordPress, not always the case with others

With big names like Wix and Shopify you are only renting internet space, this means if you are for any reason unable to make the monthly payment your information may be held at best or possibly lost and your website will go down. All your hard work will be gone.

If you work with an agency to host it, make sure the contract stipulates that you own your website and its contents and they will back it up regularly for you.

Back-ups are important, as if your website does go down you’ll have a back-up. If you host your website yourself, make sure you regularly perform backups.

9: WordPress is the best blogging platform

When WordPress originally was launched, it was designed to be used exclusively for blogging. Since then they developed to offer every kind of website, though its still globally the best blogging platform.

You can choose whether to turn blog on or off. When you turn it on it has all the features you’ll require, whether you’re creating a small blog for updates or creating a large publication. Features include scheduling, setting administrators and more.

10: WordPress Is SEO-Friendly

If you read my blogs you’ll know how important SEO (Search Engine Optimisation) is to a website’s performance.

With every new blog post or web page you create on your WordPress website, WordPress automatically generates a title and description. This information shows up in search results on search engines like Google.

Plus with the addition of an SEO plugin, you’ll be able to rank your content by other important factors for SEO so you know how to improve your page or post.

11: You can upload photos, videos, & documents

This may surprise you, but not all competitors allow you to upload these types of files. WordPress supports all of the most common file types including .jpeg, .png, .pdf, and more.

12: WordPress is responsive

It’s essential your website is mobile-friendly, also known as responsive.

I can’t stress this enough; Google ranks mobile-friendly websites higher on result pages and over half of the internet traffic on average comes from mobiles or tablets. Make sure your website adapts to any screen size and is easy to navigate. This will make sure your website users get the best experience and maximise your opportunity to get enquiries or sales.

13: It’s popular

It’s popularity and it’s the dominance of 30% of the internet gives you the reassurance it’s not going anywhere. 

I use WordPress for all my client’s website. The freedom and creativity with design and simple content editing has enabled me to provide my clients dream websites. If you’re interested in having a WordPress website built send me a message for a free consultation.

You’ll love your new WordPress website, it’s almost guaranteed!