Blogging nowadays is not only an expression of one’s thoughts spilled all over the Internet for people to read, enjoy, or debate over.
Blogging is also a powerful tool for businesses to reach out to a wider customer base.
Blogs have been successful in communicating with people from across the globe, a major feat that businesses cannot do without a strong online presence.
Now, mention the word “blogging” and WordPress almost automatically pops into one’s mind.
Why, you may ask?
WordPress has become one of the most famous platforms for blogs and business websites across the Internet.
It’s been used by lots of people, from simple startup bloggers to big business owners.
Yet what is it with WordPress that makes it so popular in the world of blogging?
And what is it that bloggers gain from using WordPress as opposed to other blog management sites?
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What is WordPress?
Simply put, WordPress is a blogging platform.
But in the wider scope, it is actually an open-source content management system (CMS) where users can manage not just blog entries, but also other types of web content, such as the following:
- Media galleries
- Forums
- Online stores
- Mailing lists
WordPress is the blogging platform of choice of over 60 million websites across the Internet.
Statistics also show that as of April 2018, more than 30% of the world’s top 10 million websites have been using WordPress as their blog management system.
WordPress is a free open-source CMS which works upon installation to a web server.
The program runs mostly in two ways:
- WordPress as part of an Internet hosting service
- WordPress run from a computer with the WordPress.org software package installed in it so it can become a network host on its own
The platform uses web template systems with template processors to create custom web pages.
It has an easy-to-use dashboard where bloggers may control how their websites look and respond to users.
WordPress websites can be customized with various themes, either the free ones installed on the platform or the premium ones that can be bought from other WordPress developers.
Bloggers can also install different plugins to enhance the functionality of their blogs. WordPress has more than 55,000 available plugins for bloggers to choose from.
Such plugins range from navigation bars and widgets to SEO tools and content displaying features.
These plugins are readily available via the WordPress dashboard or via manual installation using FTP.
Other WordPress features include the following:
- Post tagging
- Automatic filters
- Mobile applications for iOS, Android, WebOS, BlackBerry, and Windows Phone
- Permalink structure that is search-engine friendly
- Integrated link management
All in all, WordPress is a simple yet powerful tool that lets even the most amateur bloggers create professional-looking blog websites even without knowledge of coding through its dashboard features.
Why Do New Bloggers Love WordPress?
The Benefits of WordPress on New Blog-Building
Bloggers love WordPress simply because it has lots of advantages over traditional website building methods.
They find it empowering to easily build and maintain their own blogs when they use WordPress to power their individual websites.
Meanwhile, here is a specific list of the top benefits a new blogger like you can gain from this amazing blogging platform.
1. Reduces Costs in Website Building
Cost-effectiveness is probably one of the best reasons why bloggers love starting their websites on WordPress.
Long ago, website creation can cost a developer thousands of dollars in the conception of the website idea alone (not to mention the maintenance).
But with WordPress, website creation is much cheaper and cost-effective.
WordPress is completely free software to use. It is indeed great for new bloggers who are looking to start a website on a tight budget.
A new blogger like you can easily go on the do-it-yourself route and put up your own site using WordPress instead of hiring a web designer which will cost you significantly more bucks.
You may also choose to hire someone to professionally build your WordPress website, which will still cost you less than going for the traditional website-building route.
Pricing for professionally-made WordPress sites may cost you around $200 at the cheapest.
Blog maintenance is also cheaper, if not for free, since you can easily update your content in WordPress via your dashboard.
There’s no need to hire somebody else to maintain the blog for you, saving more of your money in the long run.
2. Simple and Quick Installation
WordPress is supported by most major web hosting providers, including the following:
- Dreamhost
- Bluehost
- SiteGround
- Kinsta Hosting
- HostGator
This means that you don’t need to manually download the platform’s installation files and upload them with an FTP server.
You can simply go to your preferred hosting provider’s control panel and look for the Install WordPress button or link.
It’ll automatically load WordPress on your computer within a few minutes. Once done, you can proceed to creating your own blog immediately.
3. Doesn’t Require Much Technical Know-How
WordPress is created to make blogging and website creation easy for people who know little to none about coding.
The platform features an administrative dashboard that is easy to navigate and understand, so that completely new bloggers can build their websites from scratch without having to create a single line of code.
If you are knowledgeable with codes, you may enhance your WordPress blog by putting your PHP and MySQL knowledge across the platform.
But generally speaking, WordPress is more of a user-friendly blogging platform that makes adding professional blog contents with just a few clicks from a dashboard.
4. Seamless Website Upgrades
WordPress easily lets you add new functions and features to your blog.
Remember the plugins being talked about earlier?
That’s how WordPress can easily customize your blog – and you can do it by yourself as well.
Websites made the traditional way usually require the assistance of skilled web developers just to add new features or functions.
But if your blog is built using WordPress, each upgrade you want can be seamlessly added through plugins from the convenience of your dashboard.
You have a choice of over 55,000 customized plugins that can surely enhance and upgrade your blog’s functions and appearance in one way or another.
5. Customizable Theme Designs
Dreaming up a certain look for your new blog?
WordPress can help you customize your blog’s entire theme to make your visualizations a reality.
There are several WordPress-compatible themes available for you both inside and outside the platform.
Some of them are free, while some come at a small price tag.
You can adjust your blog’s themes easily through the WordPress dashboard.
If you have knowledge on CSS, you are free to create your own unique theme design to match your blog’s feel.
Otherwise, there are hundreds of pre-loaded themes on the platform which you can use accordingly.
6. Addresses the Need for Responsive Web Design
Responsive web design is a must for every blogger nowadays.
Blogs aren’t just created to be used on laptops and desktops; the rise of browsing via smartphones is making the demand for these blogs to be equally responsive on mobile devices as well.
WordPress integrates a responsive web design technology which makes blogs automatically responsive to mobile devices.
You won’t need to build additional mobile-based web pages if you use WordPress to host your blog; it automatically becomes mobile-friendly.
This will save you a lot in terms of blog maintenance costs as well.
7. Good Website Security
When WordPress was first created and used in 2003, many were concerned about the seemingly lack of security features of a freshly-created site.
However, as years flew by, WordPress was able to strengthen its security measures and can now provide a decent amount of security for the websites created under its wing.
Plugins available within the platform such as WordFence Security can be installed to your newly-created blog to prevent hackers from skimming through your site.
Plugins for data back-ups are also available for an added security layer.
These same security features may be hard to replicate in a website made the traditional way.
8. Easy Social Media Integration
Blogs are often linked to various social media networks to enhance their viewership and bring content closer to the targeted audiences.
With WordPress, you are free to integrate your new blog easily with social networking sites such as Facebook, Twitter, Google+, and LinkedIn.
WordPress automatically links them up for you if you set them on your dashboard.
There’s no need to manually link your new blog one-by-one to each one of the social media networks.
9. A Great Platform for Frequent Content Marketing
Fresh and updated content is important in blogging, whether it be a simple blog or a business-oriented one.
Blog readers get excited about fresh content delivered quickly and constantly.
That’s why it is important for a blog to have a fast means of being updated in terms of its contents.
WordPress is a great platform for quickly creating, publishing, and sharing various kinds of blog content.
If your blog’s aim is to promote ideas or products, you will benefit from frequent and easy updating of blog contents according to your desires.
You can update your blog’s content in a span of a few minutes and as frequently as you want to.
This is something that is not as easy to do when your website is created from traditional methods; it may take more steps and more time to do it as compared to WordPress-built blogs.
10. An Updated Piece of Software
Looking for a blog platform that ever-evolves and never gets old? Then, WordPress is exactly what you need.
Since WordPress is an open-source free software, several users from the web design and development field continue to create constructive feedback on the software itself.
This leads to continuous updates that make WordPress even better as days go by.
Bugs are quickly fixed, features are often updated, and additional functionalities are constantly added.
This makes WordPress an exciting software program that never gets stagnant.
11. SEO-Friendly
Your new WordPress-built blog must stand-out in search engine pages to receive a good amount of traffic and to establish your authority on your niche.
You can do that by using Search Engine Optimization (SEO).
Luckily, WordPress-built blog sites rank high in search engines because of the platform’s SEO-friendly features.
Several plugins from the WordPress dashboard are capable of enhancing your new blog’s searchability on the Internet.
Search Engine Optimization components for your site’s pages can also be controlled and customized within the platform, enabling you to choose which pages you want to rank high on search engine pages.
Aside from that, WordPress website codes are simple, straightforward, and constant.
This is one website feature that Google looks for when indexing your web pages, making your website rise higher in the search engine ranks.
12. Faster Speed Loading Time of Websites
Google counts the website loading time as another important factor in determining the ranking of a website, apart from SEO.
WordPress does not promise the fastest loading speed of websites built under their platform. However, they do offer a variety of plugins to make sites less bulky.
WordPress helps hasten loading time of sites by letting you specifically use cache plugins and CDN on your new blog site.
You can also play your part by ensuring that your WordPress-built website has a clean template and doesn’t have too many bulky or unnecessary plugins that may slow down loading time.
13. Availability of Several Support People
Need any help with using WordPress?
Don’t worry, as you will have lots of resources available from several WordPress users across the globe.
Lots of website owners use WordPress to power their respective blogs.
These people already formed a community that serves as a support group for any new blogger to turn to for WordPress issues.
Several support groups have created various articles, e-books, message boards, online tutorials, and blogs that serve as rich resources for anyone venturing out on using WordPress.
If you have any questions on any part of your website-building process, simply look out on the Internet and you’ll find all these key resources compiled by the enormous number of WordPress users across the Internet.
Chances are, you’ll have all the answers you need right at your disposal.
You also have the chance to become one of the support people themselves!
Once you’ve gotten the hang of WordPress, you can also help fellow new bloggers by joining groups and message boards to give advice on questions about WordPress blog development as well.
Wrapping it All Up
As you can see, there are truly several benefits of using WordPress as your new blog’s creation platform.
The main takeaway here is that WordPress is beginner-friendly and easy to use, making total blogging newbies confident in their ability to create a professional-looking blog even without prior experience in
doing so.
WordPress carries a lot of features that improves on the traditional way of website creation.
Features such as ease of use, easy customization, cost-effectiveness, website design responsiveness, and social network integration cannot easily be replicated by a blog created in the usual traditional way.
Moreover, the ample security features and availability of large resources and support groups make using WordPress even more attractive for new bloggers like you.
With all these being said, WordPress is an overall powerful tool that will take off the stress from website -building and help you focus on what really matters – the amazing content on your blog.
