It turns out WordPress can also have the same problem and switching over may not make a difference. Later in this article I'll reveal the answer to the most common website problem I come across on a regular basis. First, let's make sure you understand a few things about WordPress.
When you talk about WordPress sites, there are two versions:
WordPress.com - Much like Blogger, you sign up for an account and can create a new site. WordPress takes care of the hosting. However, you are limited to the features and options that they provide. There are additional features available that require an upgrade.
WordPress.org or 'Self-hosted' WordPress - You can run a version of the same software used at WordPress.com for free on your own web hosting account, giving you complete control over your site and no limitations. You can use any theme or plugin you want, or customize your site to your liking.
Though the self-hosted version is Open Source and free to use, it does have some costs since you run the software on your own web hosting account. Prices for web hosting start at as little as $3 a month, up to thousands of dollars a month depending on resource needs. Don't forget about the domain name, another $10-15 annual fee. I recommend people spend a little more than $3 a month for hosting to get higher quality service, or you can start out with cheap hosting and as the business grows upgrade later. For more on web hosting please see this free guide.
It's important to understand the difference between the two. For example, going from a platform like Blogger to WordPress.com typically may not make much of a difference. However, converting a site from Blogger to self-hosted WordPress presents a new set of features and options not available in Blogger.
Another aspect of WordPress is that with the range of theme and plugins available, just about any type of website is possible. A picture sharing site, online bookstore, video tutorial site, forum, even a new social network; these are all possible with WordPress and the right add-ons. This is one of the main reasons why it's so popular, but it still may not be a reason for you to use it.
Earlier I promised to address the most common WordPress problem people seek help with. The questions come in various forms: "Should I convert my site to WordPress?", "How can I improve the look of my WordPress site?", or "What plugins should I use?" Usually after a few questions of my own I discover the real problem: lack of traffic and conversions.
Let's talk about traffic
It seems that some people believe that WordPress can somehow bring more traffic. While there are plugins and themes that can help engage your target audience, or implement search engine best practices, there's nothing WordPress can do directly to bring more traffic to your website.
There seems to be a myth that using WordPress will automatically rank your site higher in Google, thus bringing more visitors to your site. Years ago that might have been true, or so it seemed. What really happened is that WordPress had search engine features built-in almost from the beginning. If a poorly coded site was converted to WordPress, you might see a traffic improvement overnight, especially if the competition also had poorly optimized sites.
These days most website owners have become savvy to search engine optimization and WordPress has become the most popular website platform on the web. Chances are your site's competition is either using WordPress or has a search engine optimized website. So if everyone is optimized for search why should Google put your site ahead of the competition in the search results?
There's actually much more at play when it comes to ranking high enough in Google to get a significant amount of traffic. The point is WordPress isn't special anymore when it comes to Google. However, that doesn't mean you shouldn't take advantage of it. You can get traffic from several other places: social media, paid sources, email lists, joint venture partners and more.
So traffic can be addressed without having to switch to WordPress, but are there other reasons to use WordPress? Here's a better question you should ask yourself: What is the absolute single best thing for me when a visitor lands on my website? Not sure? Here are a few examples:
- They click an advertisement
- Buy at least one product
- Sign up for my newsletter
- Contact me for more information
- Like or follow the site on social media
- Other?
What is the absolute second best thing a visitor can do? What's the third? Make your own list of desired visitor actions and prioritize it.
Now look at your list. How does WordPress support these actions? Perhaps you can optimize for these activities by selecting the right theme, or installing a few plugins. Perhaps a free WordPress.com site is all you need.
Maybe you don't require WordPress at all. Perhaps you need better copywriting or ad placement, or a few customer testimonials. None of which doesn't require changing site platforms. You may be able to reach your goals with the website you already have.
And that's the answer to second part of the fundamental problem with websites: conversions. When you get traffic to your site, it needs to convert that traffic to visitor actions you define and prioritize.
The solution to the most common problem with WordPress and sites in general is sourcing traffic and doing everything you can on your site to make that traffic convert.
Site Design and Themes
You may wonder about the importance of having beautifully designed theme or entertaining your visitors with fancy effects. This would fall under conversions; sometimes a professional design will help conversions. Conventional wisdom says beautiful web design does matter, however I've also seen many cases where a crappy looking site sells products like hotcakes.
It's much more important to come up with your list of desired visitor actions first and get those optimized on your site than to think about a new design. Think about it. If you provide fitness services, which is better for your site: a custom WordPress theme crafted by a top designer, or a video of a customer talking about how you helped her lose 27 pounds in 6 weeks, with a convenient signup button just below? The latter is much more powerful and will convert more visitors than a fancy site design. And it costs less too.
Once you have your site optimized for conversions buy some traffic from one of the many sources online and measure the results. Tweak your calls-to-action to try and improve your conversion rates. This is how you should work on your site, instead of looking at site platforms or shopping for new themes.
Of course, this article didn't explain how to optimize conversions or where to get traffic. Those are topics for future articles; the main takeaway here is to focus on the real issues your site is suffering from. When you identify the true problems you know what to look for in solutions.
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