5 Ways Startups Can Use WordPress For Business Growth

 

Nowadays, using IT and the web is a near mandatory thing for businesses in all segments to succeed and sustain. Even if you own a start-up, having a functional website is a prime need. Without a solid presence online, you will get left behind in the race. However, picking the appropriate platform for building your small business website is also necessary. While there are many tools and frameworks, you can gain a lot by picking a tool like WordPress. This PHP-based CMS is a favorite with millions of businesses, and there are plenty of start-ups that rely on WP.

Why do small businesses often pick WP?

There are many reasons for small business owners opting for WP over other web development platforms. It is a free web development tool, to begin with, and that is ideal for entrepreneurs with a limited budget. They also gain from its huge arsenal of plug-ins, and the customization options are aplenty. On top of that, WP enjoys the support of a massive online community, and getting support for any issue is simple. So, it comes across as a viable web development tool for small ventures. However, they can gain by seeking the services of veteran WordPress web development services.

How to use WP to ensure the growth of your startup?

WordPress started its journey as a platform for blogging, and slowly it has evolved into a versatile and powerful web development platform. Before you pick it for developing your small business website, you have to know how it can be used in the best way to ensure business growth. Hiring a reputed WordPress website development company can be quite helpful in this regard as well.

Listed below are the ways to utilize WP to ensure the growth of your startup:

• Boosting your website’s search engine ranking- Your brand website will have to compete with several other similar websites to woo the target buyers, and the number of such online rivals will only grow with time. Unless your website is equipped with the newest and effective SEO measures, it may get lost in the crowd of similar websites fast. While WP is an SEO-friendly platform, you need to take some additional steps to boost the search engine ranking of your website. 

There are several WP SEO plug-ins, both free, and paid, that you can use in this regard. One ideal contender is the AIOSEO plugin. If you pick from other WP SEO plugins, make sure to check out their reviews and ratings. 

• Choosing the right layout, theme- Your brand website may have useful and updated content, but it may still fail to entice adequate buyers if the appearance is not up to the mark. Unless the website is visually appealing, target buyers will flock to rival company websites. The age-old saying of a first impression comes true here. The website homepage and overall layout have to be visually soothing. The color scheme has to sync with the niche of your brand as well.

The good thing is WP comes with oodles of themes, although the number of free themes is not huge. Still, you can pick a theme that is appropriate for your brand's website and then customize it in the right way. So, by choosing WP, you can address the aesthetic aspects of website building without fuss.

• Using promotions and offers- It is not a drastic new strategy to impress the target buyers, but using promotional offers does work. You will see so many entities using limited period discounts and flash sales online to attract target buyers. You can do the same for your small business website as well. When you choose WP for website creation, this becomes easy. There are a lot of WP plugins that can offer promotional sales for your customers. One ideal contender here is the TrustPulse plugin.
• Giving your users options to contact- To make your business succeed online, just developing an enticing website and offering big discounts will not be enough. You have to get feedback from the buyers. The website has to be laden with options for them to revert to you. In other words, you have to equip your website with contact forms. When you pick WP, using contact forms on the website is simple. There are plenty of plugins for using the contact form. You can use the registration form, payment form, surveys, etc. 
• Securing your WP website- While online shopping has made life easier for billions of people, there are certain loopholes involved. Web users are wary of data breaches and losing their personal information when shopping online. In fact, many such instances have taken place. If your business website is built with WP, enhancing its security level is easy. When your website is fortified with additional security measures, buyers will feel assured of using it. This will pave the way for business growth, eventually.

The nice thing about WP is that it has a lot of security plugins, both paid and free. You can pick from WP security plugins like WPscan and Wordfence. 

• Optimizing and compressing images well- No matter if your company sells kidswear or FMCG procured from vegan sources, using images on the website will be necessary. However, using too many images on your website can be detrimental to its growth. A website with too many images will have a bigger file size, and rendering time will be more, driving away potential buyers. In WP, you can use image compression and optimization plug-ins. These tools let you use images while reducing their size and retaining their quality. Pick from plugins like Optoimole or Imagify for good results. 

Do small businesses need to hire WP developers?

It is true that WP is a tool that can be used even by those who lack any skill in coding or web programming. In fact, it can be used by teenagers and those who have been late to using online technologies easily. Theoretically, you can set up your startup website without seeking the services of a WordPress development company. You may also be able to tweak it and choose a hosting service provider without facing any hiccups. However, in some situations, startup owners too can benefit from hiring WordPress development services in India.

Sometimes, you may be unable to figure out the nuances of tweaking the WP website. Picking the right plugin from a countless number of options can also prove to be tedious sometimes. The support of the huge online WP community and extensive documentation is there, but you may need things to be resolved quickly at times. With a little effort, finding a WP development agency matching your budget is not hard. You may also find skilled freelance WP developers who offer services at competitive rates.