WordPress migration: Benefits and drawbacks

It seems that every day dozens of UK companies are looking to carry out a WordPress migration. But there are benefits and drawbacks of migrating to WordPress, so it’s not always right for every business.

WordPress’s market share varies quite widely according to the source you choose to believe. But with estimates ranging from 38% to 70%, it is still undeniably the most popular website content management system (CMS) and sits way ahead of its competitors. It has consistently been voted the best CMS for several years.

Because of its popularity, it typically comes at the top of the list for consideration. If you’re currently thinking of moving your website to a new CMS, here’s what we consider the benefits and drawbacks of migrating to WordPress.

As a bit of an aside, it’s important to note that we’re talking here about WordPress.org, the powerful software that’s “self-hosted”. It’s different from WordPress.com, which is hosted by WordPress and is far more limited in its capabilities.

The benefits of a WordPress migration

1. Great for SEO

WordPress has a simple URL structure and so the search engines – including Google – have always loved it.  The coding behind WordPress is simple, allowing the search engines to easily index websites built on it. On top of this, there are some popular SEO plugins that assist even more, and which you can easily manage in-house.

2. Extremely customisable

Because it is so widely adopted, there are thousands of add-ons – called plugins – available for WordPress. Most of them are inexpensive or free, and they perform all manner of powerful functionality, such as e-commerce, form processing, social media integration, forums, galleries and slide shows, and much, much more. There are limitless ways that the software itself can be customized, so you can produce a unique design that perfectly reflects your business branding and portrays your company values.

3. Easy to use

WordPress is widely considered to be the most user-friendly CMS. It is quick and simple to manage, and doesn’t require extensive knowledge of coding for managing the content. It is easy for your marketing staff to publish new posts and pages, add and resize images, or edit existing text. Your IT employees will be able to handle the backend operations, such as updating plugins and updates to the WordPress software. So, you won’t need to pay a third-party company for the day-to-day management of your website.

4. It’s free

WordPress doesn’t tie you to a bespoke CMS requiring monthly or annual maintenance fees. If your current website is built on a custom CMS, then you are almost certainly paying each time there is an update. Whether it’s a simple security patch or a major update to the software, you have to pay for your supplier to do the update for you. WordPress is free, open-source software and they don’t charge for it. Of course, you do need to carry out a certain amount of updating and maintenance with WordPress. But there are no fees for the WordPress software upgrades. Some large companies can handle the upgrade process via their IT department, although many prefer to outsource it to a specialist agency, in case of any issues.

5. WordPress has a built-in blog

WordPress was originally built as a blogging platform, so it has excellent blogging capabilities. Blogs are great because they add content to your site. And when you add a blog post, WordPress also adds other pages to your website too. Additional pages, in the form of archives, categories, and tags are all automatically added to your website, and the search engines will index these. Not only that, but search engines also like regularly-updated websites, and blogs are the simplest way to achieve this.

6. Longevity and scalability

WordPress websites are highly scalable. You can extend the functionality when you need to, by adding new capabilities. You may want to incorporate e-commerce later on, perhaps using WooCommerce, or expand to add a community forum or a social networking application. And as long as you put in place sufficient hosting, it can handle huge amounts of data, without any compromise in performance. So you can continue to add pages, posts, images, and media almost indefinitely. This gives your WordPress website a reassuring longevity, allowing it to continue to grow and develop over time.

7. Access to developers

Due to its widespread distribution and popularity, WordPress benefits from a vast developer community. Many more developers and coders are proficient in WordPress than in other content management systems. Companies can feel confident basing their websites on WordPress, knowing they will always have options in the future.

The drawbacks of a WordPress migration

1. Cost

The very act of migrating your website to WordPress is going to cost you. If you have a large or complex website, as many SMEs and larger enterprises do, then it is a serious undertaking to migrate to WordPress. You may be able to undertake it in-house if your staff has the necessary expertise. But it is more likely that you will need to work with a WordPress developer, and one that has experience in carrying out WordPress migrations. There are many automated CMS migration services on the market, but more often than not, some customization will be required. The extent of any adaptation or tailoring will depend on the complexity of your site.

2. It’s time-consuming

A thorough and “proper” WordPress migration is time-consuming. It has to be efficiently planned and executed, with time allowed for the almost inevitable snagging and debugging. Contingency plans are vital to a successful WordPress migration. It may take weeks or months from scoping to final implementation, so you need to ensure you have the necessary time to invest in a WordPress migration.

3. It’s complex

A WordPress migration is not a straightforward task. It is a complex project and needs to be approached thoroughly and systematically. For it to go as smoothly as possible, you may want to use a company with experience in managing WordPress migrations. Some WordPress migrations are simple, but for business-critical websites, a professional approach guarantees success. An experienced agency will be adept at anticipating and overcoming the typical bottlenecks and issues that such a large IT project often encounters.

4. WordPress is not the best at everything

Although it’s the most popular website software, there are some applications where WordPress is not always the best option. It’s great for corporate sites, e-commerce operations, and content marketing purposes. However, some of WordPress is built by volunteers. Aspects such as translation of the admin area, for example, are not professionally outsourced and volunteers can add their own translations. For global operations, where employees in other countries manage the website in languages other than English, then the quality of translation can sometimes be lacking.

Conclusion

As you can see, there are both benefits and drawbacks of migrating to WordPress. But with fewer drawbacks, and with the widespread popularity of the system, it seems WordPress offers the best option in most cases. Certainly, if your website is crucial to your company, the time and budget needed for a WordPress migration always represent a sound business investment.

Having trouble with your current CMS and considering the pros and cons of migrating to WordPress? Schedule a meeting with our expert, Amy, today to discuss how Angry Creative can help make your transition smooth and successful!