Getting into WordPress
16 July 2010
It’s taken long enough for us to get around to using WordPress. Better late than never though.
We decided to opt for WordPress as a CMS because a number of clients had asked whether we develop WordPress websites and themes.
At first it wasn’t something we wanted to pursue, but after some investigation we decided it was a good idea. It’s relatively easy to get a website up and running, theme creation isn’t too difficult and it’s written in PHP – our favourite server-side HTML embedded scripting language.
First impressions
After downloading and installing WordPress, we had a little play around to get a general idea of how it performs and what can be done. We were really impressed with what we saw.
The team think it’s brilliant. It’s just as easy to use as the FarBeyondNow CMS (our bespoke CMS solution). There are tons of plug-ins to download and you can get a basic website up-and-running in next t0 no time.
Our new website is powered by WordPress and our portfolio website will also be powered by WordPress.
Who is it best for?
WordPress as CMS won’t suit all situations. We think it’s suitable for clients who are looking for a basic content driven website. This means you need to have the time and commitment to making regular updates, plus you need to have a lot to say about your business. If your products or services don’t change that often then a content driven site probably isn’t best for you.
How long does it take?
You can be up-and-running in less than an hour. However, that is only if you want to settle for the default theme, don’t need any special plug-ins and want to use WordPress as a blog.
If you want a custom theme with custom templates then that will take more time to design, build, install and test. We’d say anything from a week to a couple of months depending on how complicated the theme design is and how many templates are required.
Custom Themes and Templates
We can tailor WordPress to your company branding by creating a custom theme. This is more than just changing the fonts, picking colours and adding a logo. Almost anything is achievable.
Templates for page types help to add some variation between sections and pages. We have about 5 or 6 templates for our site. By having various page templates, we can prevent your site from being too predictable and keep visitors engaged.
