WordPress has always been meant to be used as blogging software, built to help bloggers set up their online blogs. However, it soon grew way past its primary purpose. Today, it is known worldwide as one of the best CMS (Content Management Systems) one can ever use, making it an incredibly popular solution.
WordPress offers its users intuitive and user-friendly interfaces, turning what used to be tough to do tasks into quick and simple ones. This kind of simplification made it popular among bloggers and even businesses.
That being said, WordPress doesn’t come without faults. Because it is an open-source platform, it is vulnerable to threats and a wide variety of other issues. For that reason, keeping WordPress plugins, along with the website itself, up to date is a must.
Here is why you must be updating your WordPress plugins and website:
1) Maintains Security
As mentioned, one of the problems that WordPress faces is security issues. As an open-source CMS solution, hackers also have access to it. This allows them to quickly identify any security problems that they can use to attack websites. An excellent way to combat this problem is to ensure your WordPress plugins and website are always up to date.
The main development team regularly creates patches that you should install on your WordPress. These patches address problems like bugs, loopholes, and vulnerabilities to maximize security as much as possible. Neglecting these updates will lead to security compromises which can be incredibly costly on your end.
2) Adds New Features
Apart from security enhancements, WordPress updates also come with improvements in features or even brand-new ones. For example, WordPress 5.6, introduced back in December of 2020, came with enhanced block editors for easier layout making. The update also enabled automatic updates for major core releases, along with a new triple-A default theme.
As you can see, updates can add new features as well as refine older ones. You should always keep your WordPress plugins and website up to date if you want to maximize these features and improve your WordPress experience.
3) Maximizes Performance
Many WordPress updates come with performance improvements. These improvements include more efficient coding that leads to faster load times, less usage of the resource, and other enhanced features. Knowing that speed is the name of the game when it comes to a website, updating your WordPress plugins and website is a must.
Any second or even millisecond cut down is worth it, and is incredibly valuable for your SEO efforts. Updated plugins and websites mean a responsive and snappy experience. This is something your visitors love to experience, leading to higher traffic and lower bounce rates. In time, search engines will notice this and will reward you with a higher rank!
Conclusion
If your WordPress website is due for an update, go ahead and update it as soon as you can. Doing so ensures that your website and plugins are secure, perform at their best, and are loaded with the newest features.
Before you click that update button, however, be sure to back up the website first. There’s always a small risk that something can affect the update, rendering your website useless and needing a fix. That backup will save you a lot of time should anything go wrong, so take that precaution before you carry out any update!
My IT Central is an IT solutions provider in Edmonton, creating innovative and tailored IT solutions across the country. If you are looking for IT support to help you maximize your WordPress website and more, work with us today!
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