WordPress is a robust Content Management system originally designed as a blogging platform that has since evolved into a fully functioning CMS. WordPress hosts a greater number of websites than any other CMS on the web including yours. It is essential that you maintain your WordPress website with timely updates to all plugins, themes and WordPress versions. Following is a list of reasons why it is so important.
Security
WordPress is a free open source platform. This allows developers to extend its’ functionality by creating plugins and themes that integrate with the software. As the source code is readily available to the general public, it doesn’t take long for hackers to find and exploit security vulnerabilities. To counter this, the WordPress development team regularly provide security and bug fix updates. Sometimes these updates are rich with features and new functionality, mostly they fix bugs and security vulnerabilities. So neglecting to update WordPress means you are not only taking a risk on being hacked, you may also be missing out on new features / improvements that create a better online experience.
Speed
New releases can often come with the ability to improve the speed of your website. Speed is an important factor in SEO and improvements in page loading times can play a huge role in reducing bounce rates and keeping your visitors engaged. Keeping WordPress updated will ensure you’re receiving maximum performance benefits.
New Features
Every major release of WordPress includes new features tailored to improve the user experience. Past improvements include the ability to easily include embeds in text and video widgets, a redesigned plugin directory, and inline link editing via the visual post editor. Updating WordPress will only improve your ability to add new content to your site.
So, What’s Next?
With the recent release of WordPress 5.0, it is now more important than ever to keep your site up to date. Always backup database and your site before updating WordPress and don’t neglect updates. The longer you wait to update to the next version of WordPress, the more you put your site at risk to be exploited by hackers or experience significant issues or bugs if your site is multiple versions behind the latest release.
Thankfully, Hickman Designs offers maintenance plans to ensure all websites I design are backed up and updated, and thus, secure and easy to scale over time. For more information about our website maintenance services, please contact us today!
