Back in early 2023, we decided to set up GSF Creations (now Circular Design), a nonprofit web design agency that would specialise in supporting other nonprofits and local businesses to improve their digital presence. As we went about having our first conversations about what such an agency would look like and what it would do, we pretty quickly decided to focus on building and designing websites with WordPress.
WordPress, for those not familiar, is an open source platform to build websites. WordPress powers almost 50% of the internet, meaning every second website you visit is probably a WordPress website. We believe there are great reasons to love WordPress and thatโs why weโll usually encourage using it too. In this short article, we want to give a few reasons why.
WordPress is Open Source
As a nonprofit web design agency fighting for a better world by building better websites, the ethics that underpin our business are hugely important to us. Thatโs why weโre huge fans of the fact that WordPress is open source software. Open source means that the code behind is publicly available โ anyone can go in and see how itโs working.
This is not the case for most digital software. Apple, Microsoft, Facebook and most other private companies that host digital services fiercely guard their code. Not only does this go against the spirit of collaboration that we believe in, but it also makes it impossible to know what theyโre up to, who theyโre tracking, and what theyโre after. WordPress, on the other hand, is part of what we call the โdigital commonsโ โ nobody owns it, itโs publicly shared, much like Wikipedia. We think thatโs just fab!
WordPress is FREE!
Another reason we love WordPress is that itโs free. A lot of the clients we work with have pre-existing sites on Wix, SquareSpace or another similar provider. Whilst offering easy-to-build websites, these come at a hefty price โ and one that keeps growing. Their monthly subscriptions add up and it usually costs a couple of hundred pounds, or more, for each website you want. WordPress, as part of the digital commons, is free.
Thereโs no charge for using WordPress and there never will be. The only costs associated with hosting a website on WordPress are that you need to buy a domain name and purchase your own hosting space. But this is the case no matter where you host your website. The efficiency and usability of WordPress means it will save you a lot of money versus one of its privatised competitors.
Anyone can use WordPress
Thereโs always a big upfront effort needed to create a beautiful new site. However, with WordPress, once youโre happy with your site, maintaining it over the long run is easy. Much like SquareSpace or Wix, most WordPress sites are built with a โvisual builderโ, meaning you can literally drag-and-drop elements on a page. At the other end of the spectrum are websites written with code. Whilst this ultimately offers the greatest flexibility, this usually isn’t necessary. And if you donโt happen to have this skill set in-house, youโre going to be pretty reliant on sourcing coders (usually at a cost!) for every small change you want.
At Circular Design, we offer training sessions to our clients so theyโre empowered to take ownership of their new WordPress website. This makes it easy for them to update text, upload a new blog, or check the analytics of the site. But, of course, our WordPress website designers and developers are always on-hand to help with anything from cosmetic changes to more technical support to make sure everything is fully functional.
WordPress is customisable
Our WordPress website design services make sure your site is customisable. Being open source makes it easy for WordPress to interact with all manner of digital solutions out there. There is an army of people creating new connections and integrations โ thatโs the power of the digital commons! For instance, WordPress has its sister-software WooCommerce, which is a much more flexible (and cheaper) rival to the likes of Shopify. There are millions of solutions out there, enabling WordPress to integrate with mailing software, analytics, accounting packages, event organisation, membership sitesโฆ the list could go on!
WordPress is sustainable
WordPress itself is a very light software that supports sustainable website development and sets us up to build planet-friendly sites. But the other great thing about WordPress is the fact (as mentioned earlier) that you have the freedom to choose your own website hosting platform. There are hundreds of providers out there, but this gives us the opportunity to select one that aligns with our values and runs on renewable, local energy. Weโre delighted that all the websites we host at Circular Design are powered by renewables!ย Check out our very own sustainable and secure website hosting services.
So, thatโs it! Five great reasons to LOVE WordPress! If youโre a small business or nonprofit looking to build your website or improve your digital presence, donโt hesitate to reach out to us. Weโd love to chat!
