WordPress vs Other Options

Pros of WordPress

From hobby websites to e-commerce, social media, membership sites, forums, blogging etc, WordPress can do it all. Here are some additional pros of using WordPress, in no particular order:

• Scalable – The killer feature of WordPress is that it is adaptable to various hosting services throughout the globe. If you have a website that needs to be able to handle thousands – if not millions – of concurrent users, WordPress is considerably more adaptable and scalable than alternative platforms such as Wix and Squarespace etc.
• Support – The WordPress community is large and well established, this means that there will always be an answer to every question, a solution for every problem, and a work-around for every out of the box idea you could possibly think up.
• SEO friendly – You won’t notice as many Wix, Squarespace or Shopify sites at the top of the SERPs. Meanwhile, there are millions of WordPress websites dominating those positions. Combining custom WordPress SEO strategies with top notch SEO WordPress plugins is a recipe for ultimate ranking success.
• Customization – There is no other platform on the market that offers as many customization options through its themes and plugins than WordPress. There is a plugin for almost anything, whether it be SEO, e-commerce, m-commerce, site maintenance, security plugins etc. The choices are essentially infinite.
• Integration with third-party – Because WordPress is the biggest website building platform on the market, it has integration with third-party services and applications like SEO tools, CRM software, marketing software, business software and even most payment platforms.

Cons of alternative options

Cons of using some of the other alternative website building platforms that are currently out there include limited design flexibility, slow page speed, slow development and poor price vs features ratio etc. Here are some additional noted cons:

• Paid services – Services like Wix and Squarespace do offer a free version of their services, but that comes with a big silver lining. You have to use their branding on your website, which can considerably downgrade your own professional image. Most alternative options will cost a minimum of $20-$30 per month and usually require you to pay in bulk annually.
• Limited customization – Options like Wix and Weebly come with fixed templates that you can drag about and change, but in terms of customization, they are pretty limited. Plus, since these themes are made in HTML5, you won’t see much support by the community.
• Lack of several features – Most alternative platforms available right now are not complete solutions and they lack several features that are available by default in WordPress. For example, in Wix, you can’t make a dedicated native commenting system, you have to rely on Facebook comments.
• Not your platform – Every alternative platform has its own set of terms and conditions that you must agree too. If even by accident you do something they don’t agree with they can cancel you and shut you down immediately. This has even happened with many Shopify websites. With WordPress you are free, its YOUR platform.
• SEO limitations – Whether it be slow page speeds, slow loading websites, slow development, poor navigation, or simply a lack of proper SEO tools and features – all these factors will affect adequate SEO optimization. You’ll find that alternative platforms suffer from one or all of these limitations.

Companies that use WordPress

You never really hear of many professional organizations or corporate companies using these other alternative platforms. However, there are countless mainstream companies that use WordPress as their trusted website building platform.

It’s not just the popularity factor or the trust factor, even though that would be enough. The reality is this: branding is 100% yours, customization is 100% yours, and the possibilities are 100% limitless. No other platform can make these claims. Some mainstream companies that currently use WordPress include:

• Spotify
• New York Post
• CNN
• Sony Music
• The White House
• Microsoft News Center
• The Walt Disney Company
• Facebook Newsroom
• TechCrunch
• TED Blog

And so many more. Always consider your growth options and scalability. Again, these other alternative platforms usually hit a tipping point. With WordPress you can scale up as much as you like. Popularity, powerful features, scalability, and ease of use – WordPress has no limitations.

WordPress is excellent for E-commerce

In a post-covid world, e-commerce is growing even more rapidly then before. Because of WordPress.org’s previous association with blogging many people get confused about the possibility of e-commerce on WordPress. And the answer to those wondering if e-commerce is possible using WordPress is, yes – absolutely.

WordPress is actually leading the way. In fact, 22% of the top performing e-commerce websites in the world are powered by WordPress.

There are many benefits of using WordPress to build your e-commerce store. Some of the major benefits are listed below.

WooCommerce

WooCommerce is the main plugin used within WordPress to start an online store. WooCommerce is a free plugin, simple to configure (including taxation and shipping methods), and offers complete customization and control.

Payment gateways

All the major payment card options are available on WordPress e-commerce, and all payment gateways available according to your location. In case you can’t find your particular payment gateway, WordPress almost always has an alternative.

Full control of your store

You own it all. You own the platform, the store, the data, you have full oversight and control over every aspect of your business. From terms and conditions to customizations and features. Operate how you want to operate, dictate your own moves. There’s no limitations.

You can get creative with plugins

You will have the luxury of installing from a wide selection of plugins according to your customization requirements. There are over 58,000 plugins available for WordPress. Thousands of those are specifically for e-commerce, adding additional features to the default WooCommerce setup.

SEO and Digital Marketing made easy

Performing simple SEO tasks on products and product pages is a breeze. And there are excellent SEO plugins available for on-page SEO to help guide the way. You can add schema markups and your tags, categories and comments can be handled with simple customization.

“owning your platform is the best investment of all”