Why Would I Care About WordPress?
If you want a website that you can manage yourself, you should take a look at the platform that is used by most of the internet.
WordPress is a free, open source content management system (CMS). In just over 10 years, it has grown to the point where it is used by more than 34% of all websites. It is the most popular blogging system in use on the web at more than 76 million websites and is used on over 60% of all websites run on a CMS.
Sites such as TechCrunch, NBC Sports, CNN, CBS Radio, TED, UPS all run on WordPress.
WordPress separates content from presentation meaning that the look and feel of sites can be changed and enhanced without having to worry about corresponding site content.
WordPress also allows users to publish new content without any special software from any browser over any internet connection.
WordPress Ecosystem
With this ubiquity, there are a ton of resources out there: WordPress developers, WordPress tutorials, themes, plugins, integrations, etc.
WordPress Themes
WordPress uses themes to package its presentation functionality. There are over 2,300+ free themes in the WordPress repository alone.
In addition to free themes, there also exist a variety of premium themes, such as the Genesis framework which we use. Premium themes can provide enhanced functionality such as:
- Airtight Security
- Performance (Speed)
- Search Engine Optimization
- HTML5 Markup (future proofing your site, ensuring cross-browser compatibility)
- Mobile Responsiveness
WordPress Plugins
WordPress plugins extend the functionality of the platform in small feature modules. There are over 55,000+ free plugins in the WordPress repository alone.
In addition to those, there are also premium plugins which provide enhanced functionality at a cost. We use a number of these plugins in our sites as they are often better supported and more robustly built out than some of their free counterparts.
WordPress Community
Another great thing about WordPress is that there is a very robust community. WordCamps (informal, community-organized events that are put together by WordPress users) and WordPress meet-ups about across the country and around the world. These events are typically free or at very low cost.
Due to the open source philosophy at the root of WordPress, WordPress users and professionals have an innate tendency to help each other and share knowledge.
There are scores of WordPress online communities as well.