When we are reviewing our recommendations with clients on web design and development the most consistent word that is brought up these days is WP or WordPress.
WordPress is simply a content management system originally developed for blogging that has evolved into a tool used to publish and manage websites. Let me stress, it is a tool, not always a complete solution to building and growing your website and online efforts. Below we have listed the key talking points on this topic and how Commit Marketing uses WordPress.
WordPress themes have become popular and have saturated the market leading some to believe they are a complete solution to their search for a website.
Some pass them off as a custom website… not cool.
WordPress Themes or Templates can be utilized to serve the basic needs of some businesses but usually turn into a website that cannot grow with the business or with the times. Purchasing a theme is quite easy and affordable but how do you make it your website and not a template? The good news is that with some basic knowledge of web design and navigating through a user-dashboard you might get it off of the ground… but then what? Now this is the good part, it’s live and well it looks quite professional. When you’re just starting out or are in need of just a basic website we sometimes suggest them and implement them into our projects. At Commit we are transparent with how we are utilizing WordPress because we want to be recognized for the projects that we actually design and develop.
It starts with understanding that a theme or template is the work of a developer with no target market or specific client in mind. I could go on for days about how a theme can dilute your branding efforts online but I will skip that for now. The overall issues we see at Commit are the amount of limitations and complications with the use of multiple plug-ins. Plug-ins are used when you’re looking to add functionality to a basic cookie-cutter website that may not handle the additions. We’ve found that when many pre-coded plugins are trying to work together issues seem to arise more frequently. We are not haters over here but lets say we use them selectively usually when we have basic needs.
Yes, Commit Marketing utilizes WordPress as a backend platform allowing for the custom websites we design to be easily updated by our clients. Basically we don’t use templates very often, we design custom websites that are developed with our own code that integrate the user-friendly editing capabilities of WordPress. Using WordPress as a tool and not as a crutch leads to cohesive, creative web solutions that support branding efforts and allow for efficient and easy updates. It is important to remember that WordPress is a tool meant to handle the content of your website. That being said, sometimes wordpress isn’t enough. That is why Commit Marketing also uses CMS systems such as Expression Engine, Mezzanine, and Craft.
Contact us and we can review your current website and leave you with our recommendations for any updates that can be made to further improve and target your website goals.
