Top 7 Reasons Why WordPress Is The Best CMS

I can’t even begin to count the number of times that I’ve heard someone ask the golden website question, “What platform should I use to build my website?” Now don’t get me wrong, I totally get it… Wix, Weebly, ShowIt, SquareSpace, Worpress, the list goes on. So, which platform are you supposed to choose and why? In my opinion, WordPress is the best option – read on to find out my top 7 reasons why WordPress is the best CMS!

Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links, which means I may earn a commission if you click them and make a purchase. This is at no cost to you and I only share products that I use and love myself.

So, which platform are you supposed to choose and why?

To be clear, let’s start by defining CMS. A Content Management System (CMS) is a software application used to create and manage digital content. It includes everything having to do with your content – database tables, admin panel, and front-end display. Each of the platforms listed above is a type of CMS.

They offer a number of different features that are displayed in a variety of ways, but the basic concept is the same… they manage all of the many files and systems that work together to create your website.

Some of these platforms are super user-friendly with drag and drop builders, while others appear overwhelming at first glance. A few have free starter plan options while their counterparts require payment up front for twelve months, a major commitment when you’re first starting out!

With so many factors to consider, making the decision with which one to move forward with can be quite a feat. Especially when there’s a major learning curve involved no matter which option you pick. If you’re the kind of person just needs some direction, here’s my advice.

Build your website using WordPress!

It may not be as user-friendly right out of the box but once you get comfortable with the basics and familiarize yourself with the WordPress dashboard, there’s no stopping you.

Without further adieu, here are my top 7 reasons why WordPress is the best content management system (CMS) on the market today.

Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
Scalability
Market Share
Community
Themes
Plugins
eCommerce

Keep on reading for more detail on each of the reasons!

Reason #1 – Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

The term ‘search engine optimization’ aka SEO is often thrown around in a very general manner. It’s something that people know is ‘good’ but aren’t sure exactly what it involves or why it will help their website. Allow me to explain.

SEO is the process of getting your website in tip-top shape on both the technical side and user experience, so that search bots can understand the purpose of the site and ultimately direct traffic there. When done properly over time, your SEO efforts will result in getting your website to move up the Google search engine results pages (SERPs) – ideally to that coveted first page.

While SEO techniques can be applied to any website platform, WordPress stands out amongst the competition due to the fact that there are no limitations on what you can accomplish. For example, platforms like SquareSpace give you a very small number of fields that you can choose to fill in (or no) for your ‘SEO’. That’s it.

WordPress on the other hand is 100% customizable. So whether you are a beginner who just wants to fill out the basics, an intermediate user who takes advantage of plugins (we’ll discuss these shortly), or an expert developer who is ready to implement custom coding, WordPress is the answer for you. You won’t have to upgrade your site or move everything over, all of the tools are built in and ready for you to utilize as needed. It’s pretty incredible!

When it comes to SEO specifically, there are a number of built in tools that allow you to be successful with on-page website optimization. If you prefer more insight and easy customization, I recommend taking advantage of the Yoast SEO Plugin (more about plugins later). It will help you easily cover these basic SEO factors and more:

Page and post title
Page and post meta title
Page and post description
Page and post meta description
Media filenames
Media titles
Media file descriptions
Media alt text
Featured image settings
Keyword ratio for the content
Word count (automatic tracker)
Internal and external link checking
And so much more!

If you want your website to rank among the leaders in the industry, would you rather be limited to the basic options or have all of the tools available at a simple click of your mouse?
For more information on SEO, check out my blog post ‘What On Earth is SEO and Why Do I Need It?’

Reason #2 – Scalability

As your business grows, you need a website on a platform that has the ability to grow with you! WordPress has the capability of handling hundreds of millions of page views each month. If you’re wondering if WordPress can handle your needs, the answer is yes. WordPress can literally do anything you need it to. I’m pretty certain that you’ll be shocked by the number of websites around the world that are powered by WordPress (we’ll talk about this a little later.)

The real question here is not if WordPress can handle your needs but rather, if you have the ability to login and make the appropriate changes on your site in order to increase scalability or if you’ll need to work with a professional developer to implement your long-term plan and make these changes happen.

Reason #3 – Market Share

“WordPress powers 30% of the world’s ten million largest websites and over 60% of all websites using a CMS.” Source: W3Techs: Usage of Content Management Systems for Websites

Here are three reasons why WordPress’ market share matters to your business and website:

Reliability
With so many businesses relying on the framework that the good people at WordPress have created, it’s safe to say that they’re going to continue developing the platform in a way that will support your long-term business goals. Whether you enjoy the new features or just feel safe knowing that you don’t have to worry about them going out of business next month and your site disappearing, WordPress is here to stay!

Vendor support
Organizations around the world have dedicated their businesses to supporting the WordPress platform. Either through the development of themes, plugins, or done for/with you services – there are a number of vendors waiting to help you create the perfect online home for your business. Find comfort in the fact that if you need it, help is available!

They care about their reputation!
This statement might seem a little selfish on WordPress’ part, but it actually helps you in the long run. Customer service is a must in their overall growth strategy. This is because they want to maintain and even grow their current market share. In order to do this, it’s absolutely vital that WordPress keeps their customers happy!
[hint: wordpress customers = you!]

Reason #4 – Community

Since we’ve talked about market share, you already know that pretty much everyone and their brother has a website built on WordPress, but I want to give you a little insight on the community surrounding this project.

There are websites, facebook groups, networking groups, courses, etc. – all devoted to building a website in WordPress. Literally too many communities to count. Here’s why this is important:

If you need help, there’s someone available to help you – 24/7
Literally no matter what you need in terms of WordPress, there’s someone out there who has an answer. If you’re just starting out I suggest finding a Facebook group for beginners where you’ll see answers to the most common questions and may even find a little relief knowing that everyone starts with the basics when it comes to the WordPress learning curve. As you grow your expertise and get a little more comfortable,

Many developers (for themes and plugins) offer support
Knowing that there is a team of professional developers ready to answer your questions is incredibly helpful! This type of expert support is often found with a paid membership or paid theme/plugin.

Networking events!
I mentioned the amount of associations that are focused on WordPress website development, but one of the awesome pieces of this community is the face-to-face networking events that take place around the world. Check out WordCamp to find out when the next event is happening near you! There are lots of other ways to engage in the WordPress community – whether you’re a mommy blogger or professional developer for a large organization, there’s a networking event out there that will fit your individual needs. While you’re there, you will learn tips and tricks of how to find the best strategy for your website development project and meet incredible like-minded individuals.

Reason #5 – Themes

A WordPress theme is a collection of template files that helps determine how your website will look and feel. Don’t let the word ‘template’ scare you. Most themes can be customized to fit your liking. Using a pre-built theme is the fastest way to get your website up and running quickly! Here are the basic factors you’ll want to consider when choosing a theme:

Do you like the way it looks?
Sounds simple but this is so important! A theme directly effects the way that your website will look and feel. The colors, fonts, icons, etc. It all matters here! While each of these factors can absolutely be customized, you’ll want to start with a theme that best fits your personal preferences.

Is it responsive?
A responsive website is one that will smoothly adjust to fit the size of whatever screen it is viewed on. It set up correctly, it will allow your website to be compatible for viewing no matter what type of device you use – desktop, laptop, tablet, smart phone, etc. While this may seem like a basic requirement, keep in mind that all templates are not created equally and you should make sure that whatever you choose is responsive. I would not even consider using a template that is not set up this way.

Does the developer often regular updates and support?
Committing to a template is a pretty big deal. Make sure that the developer is updating the theme regularly in order to fix bugs, offer new features, and more. In additional, check to see what support is included with the theme. Some developers offer a ticket system while others allow direct emails or comments within certain areas. If you end up needing help with something, you want to know that they are going to be there to guide you through the process and get things fixed!

How customizable is the theme?
I’ve already told you that WordPress is unlimited in terms of what it can do, but you should know that some themes only offer certain customization options within their basic framework. Unless you’re an expert developer and ready to insert custom coding, it’s important that you take advantage of any demo sites to do a quick walk through and see what can be easily changed and what cannot.

Is the theme a stand-alone product or does it come with other options?
Some developers offer a membership package that includes not only a large number of themes but constant support as well. One example of this is Elegant Themes. You get over 50 themes to choose from (which allows you to play with them a bit before committing to just one) and their support system is excellent. They’re literally there to answer any questions you might have and willing to walk you through the steps required to make whatever adjustments you have in mind. Other platforms like Envato Market (or ThemeForest) allow you to purchase individual themes with developer based support. They don’t come with anything other than what’s listed for that individual theme.

In my humble option, the Genesis Framework and all StudioPress themes are the absolute best in the industry! Excellent design, mobile-optimized, SEO-friendly, WooCommerce-ready, secure, clean code (not full of bloat) and optimizable out the wazoo! Plus, there’s an amazing community behind StudioPress, so you’ll never not be able to figure something out. If you’re looking for something a bit more feminine, check out Restored 316!

Reason #6 – Plugins

We’ve mentioned plugins a couple times before, so let’s dig in!

Plugins for a website are like aftermarket accessories for a car. Whether you’re trying to step up your design game or add functionality to your site, a plugin is likely your answer.

There are two basic ways to find a plugin to fit your needs. You can either search within your WordPress dashboard or do a quick search on Google. Here are a few things you’ll want to consider when doing your research:

Does the plugin offer the basic features that I need on my site?
There are so many cool plugins out there, but only install those that will add value to your site. This is important because they influence the load time of your pages and effect your overall user experience.

When was the plugin released and when was it last updated?
The actual release date is not a huge factor when determining if you should try the plugin on your site. The most recent update, however, can be super important if this plugin will add vital functionality to your site, as you want to make sure that the developer is staying on top of the WordPress updates for compatibility, fixing bugs as they are uncovered, and introducing new features.

How many people have downloaded the plugin?
You may be the first of many to discover the tool, but here’s why this number matters. If a plugin developer finds that their tool has a large number of downloads, chances are that they will take the time and effort to continue developing that plugin. They’ll make updates often and provide excellent customer support.

What review does the plugin get from users?
Reviews are absolutely biased but can give you very helpful insight as to how the plugin has worked for users in the past. On top of what users are saying, you might check out how the developer responds to comments and concerns. Are they helpful? Do they ignore issues or fix them? Do they provide solutions or suggestions for their users?

Is the plugin free or paid?
Most plugins have a free version and then an option to upgrade to the full paid version. If you are trying something new, I recommend doing a quick Google search to find a recommended plugin that is most likely to fit your needs. Once you’ve found one, try the basic version. Kind of like test driving a car, you need to know if you’re going to like how it looks and functions when actually installed on your site. If you love it but need the premium features, go ahead and upgrade!

The great thing about WordPress plugins is that you can use them as needed. If you try something and then decide that it doesn’t fit your needs or you find something that works better, go ahead and deactivate the old plugin or uninstall it. For those that you decide to utilize on a more permanent basis, be sure to keep them up to date by manually accepting updates or putting them on an auto-update schedule. This will help you keep your website secure and functioning at the highest level.

Looking for a list of great (and necessary) plugins? Check out my Resources page for my top picks!

Reason #7 – eCommerce

If your plans include opening some type of online store, WordPress is the most compatible choice for any eCommerce platform. Many themes will have eCommerce solutions built in to make setting up your online store super easy. Others will require you to enter custom code, which can often be difficult if you want to maintain the same aesthetic that you chose the theme for originally.

Here’s a quick list of the most popular eCommerce plugins that are compatible with WordPress:

WooCommerce
Easy Digital Downloads
Shopify
MemberPress
Shopp

Again, so many choices! Wondering which factors you must consider when choosing an eCommerce plugin for your WordPress site? I can help.

Customization options
What exactly can you do to customize the online store on your website? Checking out seems simple enough, but will your website provide an online chat to help customers walk through the purchase process or prompt the customer with call-to-action buttons? Increase the number of conversions that your website sees (and improve your bottom line) by implementing the top eCommerce software!

Implementation of artificial intelligence
Will your customers be able to choose an automatic renewal options or support a subscription model? Know what you want to offer your customers and what types of purchase they’ll be making, prior to choosing which eCommerce software you will use.

Is it mobile friendly?
Making a purchase on a website is often much easier than a mobile device, simply due to the size of the screen that you’re working with. Make sure that whatever you choose, mobile compatibility is a main feature that is focused on through constant development. You do not want to limit your customers to making purchases via desktop/laptop only!

What type of built-in analytics will they offer you?
From the first stage of growth to scaling into a large organization, you’ll need data on how your website (especially your eCommerce platform) performs. You will want to know how your site visitors behave, what causes them to actually click on ‘purchase’, and what changes you can make to improve the process and increase conversions.

eCommerce may not be the first feature that you build into your website at the beginning stages, but it will likely become the most important. Why? Because this is what brings in actual income! This is what converts a visitor to a customer. Whether you have products or services available for purchase, having an eCommerce system built into your website will help ease the sales process and improve your sales.

And it all circles back to WordPress.

Of all the topics we’ve discussed here, one thing remains the same. WordPress is the best answer, the best solution, for all of your website needs. It will take some time to go through the learning curve but I promise, once you get comfortable, you’ll be beyond thrilled that you made this choice to build your website on WordPress.

One important note to keep in mind – if you choose to build your website with WordPress, make sure you’ve got a solid plan for keeping it up to date! WordPress is an amazing platform with lots of great (free) optional extras, but all those extras (i.e. themes, plugins, etc.) need to be kept up to date. For more information, check out my blog post on ‘How to Update your WordPress Website in 8 Easy Steps’.

Whether you’re just getting set up or are an established website developer, I’d love to learn more about your project and the tips you’ve learned about working with content management systems along the way. Please leave a comment below! Do you still have questions about why you should choose WordPress as your CMS or want to know how to implement one of these steps on your own site? Go ahead and Ask Blue!

Top 7 Reasons Why WordPress Is The Best CMS