Maintaining a WordPress Website

Introduction - What's Involved in Site Maintenance

There are two aspects to maintaining a site. The first is making sure the software running the site is up to date and that backups are kept current. The second is keeping content up to date, which may entail adding new content, deleting old content, or editing existing content. It may also entail additional backups. Each of these is addressed below.

Maintaining Site Software

There are three components to the software that runs the site: WordPress core files, themes, and plugins. Each of these receives updates. The updates address both functionality and security. Because of the security aspects, it is important to keep a website’s software up to date. As part of correctly done updates, a backup of the entire site should be done first. This will protect against the rare instance of an update’s breaking the site. If the site is static, that is, the content does not change or only changes a little, then the backups done as part of the updating process will generally be sufficient for overall site maintenance.

Maintaining Site Content

This is the second aspect of maintaining a site. The importance, and the amount of work or time it takes, depends strongly on the frequency, significance, and magnitude of site content changes. If a site, once built, does not change over time, then this aspect of site maintenance is moot.

Who Maintains the Site?

The three sources of site maintenance are the owner, the site builder, or a third party.

The owner can do all of it, possibly with some initial training. The owner can certainly maintain the site’s content, particularly since they are usually the source of additional content. However, the owner may prefer to have some or all of the maintenance done by someone else, permitting them to concentrate on their business, goals, or other activities.

In many instances the site’s builder will be willing to maintain the site. This will cover both the site software and site content. The owner would be expected to provide the content to the builder for incorporation into the site.

The owner and builder may prefer to have a third party do the maintenance.

Websites by KTS is glad to discuss maintenance of sites for owners, whether built by us or by others.

Have a site that needs maintenance? Want one? Contact us!

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Getting Ready for a Website

Planning

Introduction

This post will highlight some of the things that should be addressed in the run up to building your site. It’s written as though your site will be a business site, but the approach we’ll take and thinking we will need to do will translate readily to other types of sites. (In other words, if you are looking for something other than a business site just read between the lines.)

You may already have all the answers. If so, that’s great! You just need to be sure Websites by KTS has them too.

Be aware that some of the sections will have quite a bit of overlap. In some of the topics only short lists are presented, rather than full descriptions. They should be the basis for thinking about your site.

Your business identity

Let’s start easy: What’s the business’s name and how do you want to display it?

Do you have a unique value proposition? What distinguishes your business or your approach?

Do you have a motto or tag line? Can your unique value proposition be reduced to a motto or tag line that you want to use on the website?

Do you have a mission statement?

Existing resources

Do already have a website? Do you have a domain name? If not, any thoughts on what name you would like?

Do you have a developed corporate identity — colors, logos, etc. ?

Are there graphics available that should be incorporated in the website?

Do you already have accounts that will work with the website? Examples are email services like MailChimp or Constant Contact, payment gateways like PayPal or Stripe.

Limitations

Are there things that we have to watch out for?

Are you part of a larger organization? Should that be reflected on the website? Does the larger organization (and that can include franchise operations) restrict what you can do or say, how you can do it, and how you can discuss it? Are there restrictions due to regulations? Does your business involve certifications, registrations, or licenses?

Business goals

The business goals and the website goals will probably be closely related, but may not fully match. Things to think about as the business’s goals, especially for the website, include: Sales, Publicity, Marketing, and Visibility. See the Website Goals topic immediately below.

Website goals

Your website has the potential to fill many functions. Here’s a partial list:

Advocacy,
Discussion,
Demonstrations,
Pronouncements,
Local Sales,
Online Sales, and
Contact List Development.

Who and where are your targets?

Are you B2B, B2C, or both? Wholesale, retail, or both? Are you targeting a neighborhood, a region, or something larger? Are you targeting a particular (population) segment? Are you looking for a physical response to a store, an internet response , or both?

Level of expertise

Does your business possess expertise that should be showcased or emphasized?
Can it be showcased with posts/pages? Should it be done with regular updates or issued all at once? What issues should be taught, showcased? Should it use graphics, video, or audio?

Important distinguishers

What’s special about the business?

Here’s a list of some of the things that can distinguish your business from the competition:

An interesting business history
An interesting owner biography
People / staff
Service
Products
Experience
Size
Pricing

Which of these should be incorporated in the website?

Desirable type of visitor contact

How do you want your visitors to interact with you or the website once they are there? (Beyond buying stuff, which is in a different topic.)

Ask questions
Make appointments
Subscribe to an email list
Engage in conversations online – comment sections, chat capability
Not at all

Is content to be changed regularly?

Changes in pricing

Changes in what is available
Changes in what is on offer
Seasonal impacts
(Note this is not the same as adding content such as new blog posts, videos, etc. It is more along the line of keeping information current.)

Are offers to be made?

Discounts

Specials

How to provide? Email, web announcement, printable coupons.

Will there be limited availability of the offers, for example by how they are announced (such as email subscribers only) or quantity or time available.

Will the offers be set up to be limited time or quantity?

(The selections here should vary with the type of business and the business targets.)

What should and should not be posted?

Prices
Specific services
Current inventory
Expected inventory
Owner names
Staff names
Email addresses
Physical addresses
Phone numbers
Clients, customers, subscribers, members
Testimonials

Note that some of these items are probably mutually exclusive. It’s not likely that you don’t want to have any way for a visitor to reach you, for example.

What other web presence is there and is it owned?

Do you have an existing website? Is the new project a rebuild/replacement, or being put in along side the existing one? Do you own a domain name for the new website?

Here are some more to think about, both do you own any, and do you want to create any:

Yelp
Google or Bing pages
Instagram
Pinterest
Facebook
Youtube / Vimeo / other video

Utility of graphics, images, photos, videos. Special content

Are photos appropriate? Are they available now? Will more be needed? Who will take them?

Will photos or other graphics be changing or expanding over time?

Will there be before and after images? (Or text, for that matter.)

Should video or audio be included in the website?

Does it seem like galleries will be a factor? One or many?

Is there other special content that is likely to be needed, such as recipes, maps, etc.?

E-commerce

Will you be selling on the site?
Taking orders, but filled In Real Life? And if so, at a store, delivered, or both?
Taking reservations?
Do you have any of the necessary accounts for e-commerce, such as PayPal, etc.?

Site maintenance

How do you anticipate having the site maintained? This includes managing software updates (WordPress, themes, plugins, and backups), updating content, and generating new content.

By the site owner (you)
By Websites by KTS
By another entity

This will affect the need for training before turning the site over to you, if that’s what will be done. It will also affect how it will be hosted on the internet.

See additional notes on maintenance needs.

Closing Thoughts

There are a lot of things on this post. Many will apply to your website, some may not. There may be things that are not here that we will need to consider. That is very much in line with the approach outlined here and on the About page. It is also what our tagline, “I’ll ask questions, then build you the right site!” is all about!

Reach out by phone or through the contact form on “Contact us to GET STARTED” and let’s build you the right site! You don’t need the answers before we talk, only after we’re done!

Getting Ready for a Website Read More »