Unless you’ve been living under a rock, it is likely that most of our readers here have heard of WordPress (WP).
Created in 2003 by a pair of developers in the US (one American and one English), WP is a free, open-source content management system – allowing users to create, manage and update their website, or websites of others, at will.
In recent years, however, WP has seen several popular competitors released that claim to do everything that WP can – such as Wix and SquareSpace. So, why do we continue to use WP, despite there being more options on the market? Read on to find out…
Why we choose to use WordPress
Market Share
According to an industry source, WP currently powers almost half of all websites on the internet. That is a staggering number when considering the number of websites that are out there. Furthermore, this includes all types of sites, including e-commerce, blogs and business websites.
Its always good to go with something that is tried and tested, and the platform/software wouldn’t be as widely used as it is if it wasn’t the best around. We mention above that WP powers almost half of all websites. This stat actually jumps to a whopping 65% of sites that use a content management system.
Since 2011, WP has increased its market share by roughly 12% every year – this is up to 2022. So, with no sign of slowing down, it looks set to continue to be the most popular platform for websites.
Free and wide variety of Plugins with WordPress
Much like Apple has a huge selection of free apps to download onto your iPhone, WP has free plugins that developers can use and install onto websites.
First, the fact that the majority of these are free works well as it means we don’t have to pass any costings onto our clients. The WP directory includes hundreds of plugins – which are effectively small pieces of code designed to perform specific tasks – that allow the developer to add various features. These include e-commerce, contact forms and more.
No Manual Coding
Manual coding is something that takes considerable expertise and a lot of time. The fact that WP has plugins readily available means there is less need for this. This means that – as a developer – we are able to design and develop sites at greater speed – again making cost savings for our clients.
Client Self-Management
Although we offer excellent post-development assistance, many of our clients do a lot of the more routine, day-to-day web updates by themselves. This might include things like uploading blogs, changing copy or updating stock levels.
Due to WP’s ease of use, these customers rarely run into any trouble – this might not necessarily be the case if something more complex or unusual was powering the site.
Stats Don’t Lie
As we’ve said, WP has by far the largest market share of any development tool, and the above points go a long way as to why that is. Put simply, it is the best software on the market.
With a WP site, due to the popularity, if a user is ever in need of somebody else to edit or update their website, they won’t struggle finding a developer familiar with WP and its working. We have had clients come on board for this reason exactly. This is particularly true when compared to some of the competition, such as Wix.
Why not take a look at some of our favourite projects from the last few years, all designed and built using WordPress.
If you want to find out more about getting a WordPress website designed for you – get in touch.
