Tommi's Scribbles
Why Wordpress Isn't Necessarily The Best Choice For You
- Published on 2022-01-02
So you've decided to start a web page either for yourself or your business. Odds are great that if you ask around, most will recommend "Go with Wordpress". However, this could end up being a terrible mistake.
Why Wordpress Isn't All That Great
First of all, Wordpress actually is pretty great. For the developer. Chances are, you are going to enlist a freelance web developer to create the Wordpress site of your dreams to you. Chances are, they reuse a theme and template they already have, full of custom code and plugins. You pay a few hundred to a thousand, and chance are, there is no support plan.
After a year or two, I come across you, you find out I'm good with tech, and you go "Oh I have this problem with my website, could you help." And the chances are, I can't. The custom code prevents updating to a newer version of Wordpress, and your webhotel host is threatening to pull your site down. Or the plugin no longer works as the Twitter API has changed and the plugin that was used was abandoned years ago.
While drastic examples, I have encountered this numerous times. And web development isn't even my main act.
Alternatives
What are the alternatives then? That depends. One reason I hear with people picking wordpress is cost. That is, the self managed one is free, though obviously you need something to run it on and a domain. Many webservice providers usually have a tailored package for this that runs from a fiver to a ten. However, this usually gets you a shared VPS in a single location.
Alternatives: Static Sites
What if I told you, that for the same price, you could actually get an AWS hosted website cached at the edge with better SEO rankings for the same money? Well you can, with the help of static sites.
A skilled web developer can easily develop a powerful website with something like eleventy, jekyll, next.js, or React, that is pre-generated with CodePipeline, hosted from an S3 bucket with a Route53 domain and Cloudfront caching, which means the site will be fast. And if you haven't heard, fast is good for search engine rankings.
This website is created in that exact way. And the price tag is about $6 per month, $4 of which is the Amazon WorkMail for my custom domain. That's crazy bang for the buck! NOTE: That excludes the domain, which usually runs like $15 for a year.
Alternatives: Use a service
Now, the static sites still have the problem that you need a developer to customize the site. And creating content is usually done writing markdown, which might be uncomfortable for some. This is where something like Squarespace comes as a great alternative.
The benefit Squarespace has over Wordpress is that Squarespace takes care of everything for you. All you have to do is create the content and customize the visuals using their great user friendly tools, and you are all set.
Now, Squarespace does have a higher monthly price tag. But you get a full team of engineers working and maintaining the platform. You can also always hire a Squarespace developer as well to do work for you.
Still want to go wordpress?
If you are still convinced you want to go Wordpress, just do me one favor. When you get the developer to create the site for you, have them include a support plan in the bid. This will save everyone's sanity down the line!