Regularly Audit Your WordPress Back End
This article was published on August 29, 2024
Categorized in: B2B Digital Marketing
With digital marketing, it is easy to think that the activity involves the strategic formulation of the plan and then implementing the plan. While that is true, there’s another piece that people don’t always think of, and this includes other marketing professionals! The actual technical health of your website matters, and when the website doesn’t function properly for whatever reason, it negatively impacts the performance of the digital marketing.
Digital Marketing Performance Depends on a Properly Functioning Website
One of the places we have seen where this is lacking is in the backend of your website, particularly with WordPress sites. While it’s generally a good thing that WordPress is open source, this can also pose some complications. The proper functioning of a WordPress site is basically dependent on regularly maintaining the back end.
What this means will depend on the website itself. Some websites are designed with plugins. This means that everything needs to be updated, from the PHP database, to the version of WordPress, to the plugins themselves. Even the theme that is used (if applicable) will need to be updated.
Out of Date Websites Affect Performance and Leave You Vulnerable
While having so many options is surely an asset when it comes to WordPress, it can also cause problems if the site isn’t well maintained and things fall out of date. What problems can it cause? Here’s a list of some of them:
- Security. If things fall out of date, it can leave your security vulnerable. Hackers, bots, etc are adept at looking for vulnerabilities. Out of date versions make you vulnerable and new versions often contain security fixes from previous versions.
- Performance. Site performance is also affected when items are out of date. Something that seems “harmless”, like site speed, can negatively impact even your SEO performance.
These are just a few of the main issues that could surface. The bottom line is that keeping a website up to date is crucial.
Perform Regular Audits to Check the Back End
Sometimes, we will encounter a website that hasn’t been updated in a while. We’ve seen everything, from a website needing one or two updates, to being very behind with multiple updates needed. It is much better to stay on schedule and handle the updates as they arise. If you are working with a developer, he or she should put your website on a regular maintenance schedule. If they aren’t doing it naturally, you should suggest it.
Also, checking the backend isn’t just about updates, it’s about making sure everything is functioning as it should. This includes performing regular site speed checks, checking for security issues or manual actions, and in general, making sure the backend is up to date.
Updates are important to do, and it is a good idea to check the backend of your WordPress site on a regular basis. The updates need to be done on a regular basis. If you do that, it will help your website perform at its best, and will also help your digital marketing as a whole.
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About the Author: Brick Marketing President, Nick Stamoulis
Nick Stamoulis is a digital marketing expert and President of Brick Marketing. With 25+ years experience, he specializes in solving complex digital marketing challenges through SEO, content marketing, social media, PPC, email marketing, SEO for AI (GEO) and conversion optimization.
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