Disadvantages, weaknesses, and cons of WordPress
«In anything that has a certain strategic sense, one must first ask»
Once we finished our post on the advantages of WordPress, we were left feeling that it might seem excessively biased or self-interested. Nothing could be further from the truth, so we have decided to write this second post about its disadvantages, although you will see that in most cases, these are limitations, not purely negative aspects. A technology is neither good nor bad; it can simply be suitable or unsuitable for a project. It's about weighing the elements and deciding if this technology is right for my project. Not everything is black and white, but it's crucial to accurately identify the needs of a digital project to make the best decisions. And one of the most important is the technological foundation you will use to build your site. Let's get started:
Risk of infection: The WordPress CMS is quite vulnerable. This is due to two main reasons: the first is that websites are composed of external plugins, which we have not developed ourselves and over which we have no control regarding who programmed them, if that module has security holes, or if it is being updated as it should. And secondly, the fact that it is a technology shared by millions of websites makes it very attractive to hackers. Thus, if they manage to find a security hole in a plugin, they get the key to access thousands of websites. For example, the Panama Papers scandal was uncovered "thanks" to the vulnerability of a WordPress site. And although it is impossible to prevent an infection or attack 100%, there are ways to minimize them: secure passwords, hiring a good server, always having the themes and plugins original and constantly updated, etc. If you have a WordPress, it's very important to make constant updates and security improvements. If you can't do it in-house, we recommend hiring a maintenance service from a good agency specialized in WordPress.
Unoriginal websites: The vast majority of WordPress websites are built from templates and themes. Based on an already functioning website with a certain design, it is adapted to the corporate image of the client, and their content is uploaded. This enables the production costs of websites to be significantly reduced, but at the same time, it has generated a type of website that is very common and mundane, making it possible to browse a bit and find a website that looks 99% like your company's. If design and originality are important to you, then you should know that it is also possible to create 100% custom-designed, tailor-made websites with WordPress. However, make sure that if you hire this service, it is paid for and executed accordingly, as many agencies offer something that is not what it seems.
Professional intrusion: The great accessibility and apparent ease with which one can set up a WordPress have enabled many people without much prior knowledge to venture into creating their websites, or even to do so for friends, family, and acquaintances. It can be a good solution if you're just starting and don't have a big budget, but it's not a good solution for a company that is committed to its online project and wants to convey a good corporate image. Would you ask an architect or your computer-savvy cousin to design your house? Exactly. In our experience, we have encountered hundreds of clients who have asked for our help after a non-professional person has executed a web project very poorly or even left it halfway through. This will represent a huge loss of time and money, so weigh it beforehand. In web pages and digital marketing, going cheap can turn out to be very expensive.
Limitation of features: Before creating a website, you need to define what its objectives, structure, and functionalities will be. Depending on the level of difficulty of those functionalities, and especially their unique and special features, using WordPress might not be the best option. This technology is great if we want a cheap and nice website that performs well 4 standard things. If we want it to perform 20 customized things, WordPress won't suffice, and it's possible that the project won't be completed, or end up being a very unstable and slow website. In those cases, it's better to opt for custom development, in which case we always recommend using the most standard PHP technologies possible (Laravel, Symphony, and similar, avoiding Javascript-based websites if we want to work well on SEO).
Not suitable for large E-commerce: While WordPress has a fairly complete e-commerce system named WooCommerce, it also has its limitations. Consider that it's not a pure e-commerce system, and it won't perform well if you have more than 500 products, if you have installed 40 more plugins (especially translation ones), or if you want to program many specifics in the catalog or purchase process. In those cases, it's better to opt for pure online store technologies like PrestaShop or Adobe Ecommerce (formerly Magento). An online store with WordPress is fine for local businesses opening their first online store, and hybrid websites that have a significant corporate part, incorporating an online store part but it's not the most
