WordPress Common Mistakes You Need To Avoid

WordPress is one of the best tools when it comes to website and content creation. It is the most popular platform to build a website around the world. These days, WordPress powers almost 40% of the world’s site. Though it is the most straightforward website creation tool and content management system (CMS) available today, you can still make mistakes as you navigate your journey in your website creation.

Either you are new in website building and do not have the necessary advanced skills, or you are already an experienced one; you can still stumble and commit mistakes along the way. Mistakes are part of your whole experience, and they are bound to happen as you grow and move your way in the creative process.

While you cannot altogether avoid mistakes, getting familiar with the most common ones can help you avoid issues in your WordPress website. If you have already experienced some, it is wise to remember it and learn how to avoid these mistakes in the coming days.

In this article, we rounded up some of the common mistakes done in WordPress that you need to avoid.

Common Mistakes You Can Avoid While Using WordPress

1. Failing To Make A Backup

You are new to WordPress so you might be thinking that it is too early to have a backup for your website. However, this is the common misconception that can often compromise your site.

Doing daily backups should be part of your best practices. The internet is not a perfect place, and you might encounter many problems that can threaten your website. Should your site experience this, it may lose some files or contents. Having a backup can minimize this effect and help you bounce back faster. Though your hosting provider can automatically do backups for you, it would be better to install backup plugins to avoid losing your hard works.

2. Using of The Wrong Platform

Some people may get way too excited about building their site that they tend to choose the wrong WordPress platform. What you have to remember is that WordPress has two types of platform – WordPress.org and WordPress.com, which differ in setup and design development.

WordPress.org is the platform for self-hosted websites that have more advanced features while WordPress.com is for those who are just starting in their website development journey. It is essential to understand the differences between the two and identify your need before you start building anything. 

3. Paying Too Much For Your Need

Often, you get too thrilled to start building your website and say yes to your hosting platform in paying too much for what you need. As you begin your site, hosting companies may offer you many add-on services that you don’t need. Do not give in to these offers easily. Should your website need to expand or should there be a need for them, you can just easily purchase these add-ons from your hosting provider. Buying them ahead on will only cost you more than you should, and you’ll not be able to maximize what you paid for. 

4. Installing and Using Too Many Plugins

Plugin overload is another common mistake website builders make. Having a plugin is an essential part of your WordPress website; however, installing a lot can affect your site’s performance.  Installing and using too many plugins can slow down your website.

Your site’s performance is one of the most crucial factors in your website’s success. How fast your website loads is essential on your customer’s user experience (UX) and can affect your ranking in search engines.

5. Occasionally Changing Themes

Designing a website is more complicated than you imagine it would be. Finding the best theme for your website can be a bit overwhelming. While, experts always advise newbies to use themes that are clean, and well-organized, some are just too excited to try all WordPress themes they can find. Changing your website theme as often as you can, can affect your website performance as it makes your site run slower.

Part of building your website is that you want your audience to create recognition with your brand. Should you are doing changes on your theme too often, people will not associate your brand to a specific design.

6. “Admin” As A Username

When starting in WordPress, it will provide you with a username using the default and most common username – “admin”. Some beginners or even some seasoned ones leave this username as it is, which is one the most common mistake you can make. Not only it is universal; it can one create your account easily accessible from hackers.

Change your username to make your WordPress account unique. It must replace it for your WordPress website security. Leaving it out on your default username can pose a threat to your site as hackers, and cybercrime bots can easily guess it.

7. Weak Passwords

If you create an account online, having a weak password is something you need to avoid altogether. Failing to use a strong password in your WordPress account can compromise all of your hard work. Together with “admin” as your username, a weak password is a complete recipe for hackers or cybercriminals to infiltrate your account.

To make a robust password that can avoid the risk of quickly getting hacked, you must have uppercase and lowercase letters, numbers and even special characters included. It would be better also if you can change your WordPress password from time to time to make it less susceptible to any attack.

8. Opting Not To Perform WordPress Updates

If you are keen on cybersecurity tips, you will know that failing to keep track of software updates can be a grave mistake. The same principle goes with your WordPress account.

While the old version of the platform, plugin or even themes you are using still works, it is a must to implore updates on your WordPress. These updates do not only fix bugs in the platform but also include security features that are vital to keeping your WordPress website safe.

9. Forgetting About Google Analytics

These days, to reach success in any of your online efforts, it is a must to analyze data. Data is crucial for your business, as it allows you to improve your website. Google Analytics can help you understand your visitor’s behaviors, analyze your traffic, and lets you create good content.

10. Failing To Include Contact Form on Website

Building a connection with your customer does not only mean posting content and donning some social media efforts. Your website features like a contact form can help establish a connection and build a relationship with your audience. However, many WordPress users tend to forget to include a contact form on their website even though it is an integral part of your site. It offers a simple and easy way to let your visitors contact you.

11. Not Doing Mobile First

When you build your site, it is crucial to make it responsive in all possible screen sizes. One of the essential screen sizes you should not forget is for mobile devices. Many people are now moving on to mobile devices. Some have even wholly ditched their laptop and desktop to rely on smartphones, tablets and other mobile devices entirely. If your website is not entirely responsive for mobile devices, they’ll abandon your site and move on to your competitors.

12. Getting Free Themes From Unknown Sources

Not all glitter is gold which also means that not all free is right for you. You can find a ton of free downloadable themes on the internet today, and some users download these without thinking of possible consequences. Many new WordPress websites face security threats, challenges, and even downfall, mostly because of these free themes.

Most of the free themes can come without any support. There is no assurance about the quality of codes used in these themes. Some can even contain malicious code that hackers can use as backdoors to exploit your site. 

Final Thoughts

Building a website is not as easy as taking a walk in the park. As you move along and as your website starts to grow, there are mistakes you cannot altogether avoid. If you commit one, do not let it define you and completely abandon your efforts in your website. Use your WordPress mistakes to learn new things. Take note of things that went wrong so you can avoid repeating the same mistakes in the coming days. Doing this will not only let your website develop faster but will help you achieve your site’s full potential.

Author Bio:

Maricar Morga worked as a marketing professional for almost a decade. She became part of the biggest real estate company/mall operator in the Philippines and handled concerts, events, and community service-related activities. One of her activities became a nominee in the ICSC Asia-Pacific Shopping Center Awards 2018. Leaving her corporate job for good to pursue her dreams, she has now ventured in the path of content writing and currently writes for Softvire Australia and Softvire New Zealand. A Harry Potter fan, she loves to watch animated series and movies during her spare time.