WordPress is one of the most popular open-sourced web publishing tools.
In fact, according to Techjury, currently, over 455 million websites are using the WordPress platform.
But no matter how easy it is to set up a website on WordPress, you will have to make sure you regularly update and maintain it.
What is a WordPress Care Plan?
Imagine if you were running a high street store, you would need to hire someone to handle daily maintenance and repair tasks of the infrastructure, an accountant, and other experts to ensure your store is well taken care of and running smoothly.
Now, imagine your website as a high street store that requires regular maintenance and repair to ensure that it runs as smoothly and efficiently as possible.
Why is Having a WordPress Maintenance Plan Important?
Typical Care plans include:
• Regular security checks
• Uptime monitor
• Regular backups
• Plugin and theme updates
• WordPress core updates
• Monthly reports
All of these tasks are essential for your website’s smooth functioning and efficiency, and consequently, your business.
Regular Security Checks
Just as a high street store is susceptible to threats from unauthorised intruders, your website is also in danger from hackers and other software security threats. An attack on your website leaves important information, including client details, available to hackers.
You may be wondering why anyone would want to get into your website. However, hackers do not particularly need a reason to hack a website, and every online business is equally at risk from hackers. Thus, you need a care plan, that includes regular security scans to keep your website safe and secure.
Uptime Monitor
How would you know if your website went down for any reason? Many website owners are unaware that there website is not displaying. Your visitors are very unlikely to let you know and may assume you have closed the business!
Having a care plan that includes uptime monitoring will put your mind at ease and notify you if your site goes down.
Regular Backups
You have to be prepared for unforeseen circumstances. You never know when there may be a disaster looming that could result in the loss of your on-site data. Therefore, you should always have a backup stored in an off-site location or in the cloud, allowing you to restore your website quickly.
Even if your website gets attacked, you don’t have to worry about setting it up from scratch, as you can simply restore it using the backup you have saved. Several companies offer cloud services to clients. However, with a proper WordPress care plan, you will not need to hire another company as regular backups are included in the plan.
Plugin and Theme Updates
Have you recently noticed your website has become slow or the design looks different in some way? Well, it’s probably because you have errors due to having and old version of a plugin, theme, or even WordPress core itself.
A slow website for instance can be harmful to your business in many ways. Most importantly, though, it means that your website will not rank well on search engine results pages, and you may lose clients who turn to a competitor’s website instead of waiting for yours to load.
WordPress Core Updates
Apart from keeping an eye on your plugins and theme it is of vital importance to keep your version of WordPress up to date.
WordPress core updates don’t occur on such a regular basis as those for the plugins and themes but when they do you must take note and act accordingly. Failure to do so is an open invitation for a visit from an unscrupulous bot with less than desirable intentions!
Monthly Reports
Your monthly report will keep you updated on what functions were performed, updates made, and the finding of security issues, and so on. You will know exactly what the WordPress maintenance plan is doing for your website and how you are benefitting from it.
Final Word
You can easily find a WordPress care plan to suit your needs. These plans ensure your website is well-maintained, secure, and updated at all times, which will help it perform better, show better SEO results, and help retain clients by improving user experience.
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