The story of two WordPress-es: Part II

BY CHRISTINA GWIRA

Last week, I introduced you to my world as a web designer. For over five years, I’ve used WordPress to create websites for my clients: from mom and pop operations, to universities and government organizations. There are two different types of WordPress platforms: both have their pros and cons. In today’s article, I’ll be sharing with you the platform that I personally use; WordPress.org.

I have to clarify the difference between the two platforms, even though the same company makes them, and they have the same name. They are starkly different in nature. For starters, with one, you need a monthly subscription; for the other, a budget host will suffice in the short term. Let’s take a look at how the self-hosted WordPress solution could help – or hurt – your website presence.

Benefits of WordPress.org

Quick Points:

1. You can install and download the platform for FREE
2. There are thousands of themes and plugins available
3. You can customize plugins, themes or even the WordPress code itself!

WordPress.org is an open-source blogging software. You can download the code for free and install it with a variety of hosting companies. The possibilities that can come about using the open-source version of WordPress are limited only by your imagination! There are hundreds of thousands of themes available – both free and paid – that you can use for your website. If you have coding knowledge, you’ll be able to edit and further customize your theme.

The same goes for the plugins available for WordPress.org. The WordPress.org Plugin Repository has different types of plugins that allow you to take appointments, create a question and answer forum, online community or e-commerce store, all FOR FREE. The codes for these plugins are also readily available for you to modify if you have the knowledge to do so.

You will need to provide your own hosting and domain name for your WordPress.org website. Reputable web hosts support WordPress at very decent pricing points and plans.

Challenges of WordPress.org

Quick Points:

1. You bear 100% responsibility for your site
2. You may need to hire a designer or developer to assist you with your website
3. There is a possible learning curve

The great number of themes and plugins that are available for the open-source version of WordPress leaves a lot for you to manage. You need to actively keep the WordPress platform, plugins and themes up to date to ensure that you website doesn’t suffer a security breech. With a large selection of themes and plugins available, the onus is squarely on you to ensure that the providers of these add-ons are credible and have products that won’t create havoc on your website.

In addition to the above, you may need to invest in hiring a designer or developer to get your dream website off the ground. Again, you will need to make sure that the professionals that you hire are credible and up to snuff before paying a deposit for a faulty website.

Having a bad host will make running your website a nightmare. Hosting can vary from a dollar a month to anywhere in the hundreds of dollars per month depending on the type of website that you are trying to build. You will need to make sure that the host you will use for your website will be able to handle your WordPress website with ease and security.

Final thoughts

WordPress.com is best suited for your business if:

• You are looking to setup a blog for free or with a minimal investment
• You do not want to deal with monthly or yearly hosting fees
• You do not want to think about the technical aspects of your website

WordPress.org is best suited for your business if:

• You are comfortable managing some of the technical aspects of your website
• You need a free e-commerce solution for your business
• You are concerned about SEO, analytics and tracking results on your website