You don’t have to be a blogger or a developer to know about WordPress. You might not know what it is exactly, but you would have certainly heard about it. Or at the very least seen the WordPress monogram at the bottom of some web pages. Simply put, WordPress is a platform that allows you to manage and create online pages or websites.
I have noticed it often enough on websites that I now know the logo by memory. Today, I can hardly open a website that isn’t created using WordPress. Before figuring out exactly what it is, I could swear it was in cahoots with my Cox high speed Internet. Because every site seemed to have been made using WordPress.
What is WordPress?
You might be wondering why it is so successful given that it is just a content management system. WordPress was one of the earliest platforms to make website development easy. When it as launched, website development was a technical affair.
So you could only design a website if you had the technical knowledge and abilities of a developer. But WordPress made it so that people without technical knowledge could create websites as well. That was a huge advantage for many people who wanted websites but couldn’t afford the high prices.
That revolutionized the internet into what it has become today. Now, with a little time spent on learning the platform, anyone can create their website. Or blogs. Or anything they want.
12 Reasons Why WordPress Is So Influential
Without getting too technical, let’s discuss facts about WordPress. With this awareness, it might be easier to understand the significance of WordPress. The internet, as we know it, wouldn’t have existed without the power of WordPress. Some go as far as saying that WordPress is the booster that the internet needed.
Help Is Easily Available
Reduced Development Costs
Comprehensive Platform
Efficiency Is Integral
Plugins for Everything
Optimized for SEO
Free to Use
Capable of Quality Output
Most Popular Platform
Even More Popular CMS
Global Presence
WordPress Offers Two Platforms
#1. Help Is Easily Available
The first fact about WordPress that you should know is that the WP community is huge. Running into a problem and needed some guidance is normal. Being a part of the community of WP users, its easy to find help. Chances are that you might even find help from someone in your neighborhood. So there is no need to worry.
If you ever get stuck somewhere and can’t figure it out, help is easy to find.
#2. Reduced Development Cost
WordPress enjoys many users. Which means that there is an excess of developers who can create websites using the platforms. This works out great for someone who is looking to hire a professional. When there is a high supply of something usually the prices are lower. Which is also the case with WordPress developers.
#3. Comprehensive Platform
WordPress is one of the most comprehensive platforms available. In fact, if one person was to work on developing the platform, it would take them 151 years. But of course, there is an enormous team working on the project. It doesn’t mean that it would take nearly as much time to build a website using WordPress.
#4. Efficiency is Integral
WordPress is a platform developed primarily by volunteers. There isn’t much profiteering in a project that is offered to consumers for free. But since its development, the platform has grown like wildfire. But efficiency has always been at the heart of the operation.
Which is why the entire platform is run by less than 1000 people. That kind of efficiency is something that the likes of Amazon can never achieve.
Also Read: Adding WooCommerce Plugin to Your WordPress Website
#5. Plugins for Everything
One of the reasons why WordPress is so successful is because of its plugins. A plugin is a software patch that can allow you to do more with your website. Plugins can improve your security level, or even offer better menu designs for the webpages.
You can select from a range of 55,000 plugins for just about everything. And the best part is that most of them are free. Some might cost you a little.
#6. Optimized for SEO
One of the biggest advantages of WordPress is that the platform is already optimized for SEO. Once your website is ready, you need to worry about getting it to rank higher up in Google searches. A website designed with WordPress is predisposed to work with Google’s Algorithms.
#7. Free To Use
Yet another major advantage of using WordPress is that it is absolutely free to use. Don’t worry it’s not like “Free” apps where you download for free but pay for use. WordPress platforms are actually free. Meaning if you build your website yourself, it’s not going to cost you.
#8. Capable of Quality Output
Just because the platform is free, doesn’t mean that it lacks in quality. The opposite is true in fact. 14 percent of the Top 100 websites were built using WordPress. Disney, CNN, even Microsoft use WordPress as the basis of their websites.
#9. Most Popular Platform
Did you know that WordPress is responsible for a little over one-third of the internet? Yes. Over 34 percent of the websites that are currently on the internet today are made using WordPress. That is impressive on its own. But keep in mind that there are hundreds of other platforms as well. So WordPress’s market share becomes that much more impressive.
#10. Even More Popular CMS
As Content Management Systems (CMS) go, WordPress stats are even more impressive. The poplar platform accounts for nearly 61 percent of the market share. With the next highest share of Drupal, with 5.1 percent. Can you see the difference?
#11. Global Presence
Since it is the most widely used platform in the world, it needs to be available in multiple languages. Initially, the platform was only available in English. But today the entire platform is available in more than 60 languages.
#12. WordPress Offers Two Platforms
WordPress owner Matt Mullenweg decided to launch another platform after the success of his first one. While the first one is called WordPress.org the second is called WordPress.com. The first platform will always remain free. But the second one is not. In fact, Mullenweg uses the second platform to make contributions to the free .org platform.
Conclusion
WordPress has truly revolutionized the way we experience especially with fiber internet. Its versatility has made it the most popular platform in the world. The plugins allow you to easily add any feature you might want on your website. Including plugins to optimize for “near me” Google searches.