The internet is a big place. Even though it may seem like the little guys can’t make a dent, that couldn’t be further from the truth.
Having a website for a small business is more important now than ever. The internet is the staple by which people communicate and do business. There are a multitude of platforms to create a website on today, but WordPress still reigns supreme as the best choice for small businesses.
What Sets WordPress Apart?
Here are some of the main reasons why small businesses should consider using WordPress for their website.
WordPress Is User-Friendly and Easy to Set Up
Unlike other website creation platforms, WordPress is designed to be user-friendly and easy to set up, even for those with little-to-no experience. The platform walks users through each step of the process including choosing a domain name, creating content, and publishing their site.
Online Help and Community
WordPress was created as an open-source platform for web design and development. Originally built to host blogs, WordPress has become the number-one website builder in the world. For this reason, there is a vast amount of resources available to help a user build their site. YouTube and social media platforms offer a ton of tutorials and helpful groups. There is literally an answer to almost every question about WordPress online.
Versatility and Customization
With WordPress, businesses have the flexibility to create a website that is truly unique and reflective of their brand. With thousands of themes and plugins available, WordPress allows a business to tailor their site to their specific needs.
Page Builders
Several companies exist to make designing a WordPress site easier. There is the original block builder of Gutenberg. This takes a little more getting used to but is easy once you get the hang of it. Beaver Builder and Divi are excellent choices for page builders. We personally prefer the power of Elementor page builder. It is the easiest to use for newcomers and can be customized easily by more advanced web developers.
You can see a list of the best drag and drop builders right here: 6 Best Drag and Drop WordPress Page Builders.
SEO-Friendly
First, what is SEO? It is short for Search Engine Optimization. SEO makes your site findable on a search engine like Google. Nearly 90% of all web searches are performed on Google, with Bing as the runner-up.
When a WordPress website is designed correctly and given good content, the search engine is more likely to rank your website higher in searches. This doesn’t mean that a mom and pop hardware store will outrank Home Depot, but it can definitely help you rank in local searches such as “hardware store near me.” WordPress works well with almost all search engines.
The other great part is that there is a range of SEO plugins to help you optimize your site on your own! Just follow the steps laid out by your SEO plugin to help design your site and add content like product descriptions, keywords, and images. Like anything else with WordPress, there are groups and videos exclusive to learning how to best use these plugins to optimize your website.
SEO is a beast. Optimizing your site is a constant battle as search engines are always changing their ranking factors behind the scenes. The key is having good design and good content. To learn more about SEO you can check out our blog 7 SEO Tips for Home Builders to get started.
Affordability
Compared to other website creation platforms, WordPress is very affordable. There is no need to pay for expensive hosting or design services. Everything you need to create a professional website is available for free.
As a side note, free is free. To better optimize your site and SEO, it is advisable to use paid hosting like Siteground, HostGator or Bluehost. SiteGround has proven to be the best bang for the buck for me.
You Can Take Your Site With You
If you ever want to move your website or take it offline, you can back it up, save it, or migrate it to a different host. This can save on hosting costs and make it easier to allow a professional designer/developer to work on your site.
Other site builders like Shopify, Wix, and Square force you to use their hosting because you cannot back up the sites to export and move to a different hosting provider. Wix may allow you to build for free, but to get decent hosting on their system, it costs almost $600 a year.
Why You Should Still Hire a Professional
Despite how user-friendly WordPress is, there are a few reasons why you should still hire a professional to handle your website creation:
- Stand out from the crowd: WordPress is great for building your own website. With pre-built templates and themes, all you need to do is replace some text and images. But the problem with using pre-built templates is that there are going to be a ton of sites that will look just like yours, including your competitors. Hire a professional designer to help you stand out from the crowd.
- Enjoy troubleshooting and maintenance services: Troubleshooting and maintenance are better provided by a professional designer/developer. This will help you avoid serious issues and avoidable website downtime.
- Achieve a better user experience and SEO: Professionals understand the concept of hierarchy of web design and can use custom code to add a little more to your site. This helps in creating a better user experience and SEO ranking.
- Use your time for other tasks: Perfecting your website can take time. As a small business owner, your time will be better-spent focusing on other business tasks. Even for a professional, it normally takes a month or more to get a website ready to launch.
Start Your Journey Toward an Excellent Website Today
If you’re looking for a platform that is user-friendly, customizable, and affordable, WordPress is the perfect choice for your small business website. Contact a WordPress expert today to get started on creating your site. Or, if you need help, The Coutts Agency is ready to get the process started for you.
Curtis Rosler owns and operates the website and graphic design studio Rosler Art & Design LLC. in Honesdale, PA. It is dedicated to helping small businesses with affordable website design and graphic art. Their mission is to help small businesses grow and succeed, and their vision is to be the go-to source for all things graphic art and website design.