When WordPress was first released, it was a platform that was primarily used by numerous bloggers to voice their opinion. Today, the popularity of the platform soars high and is being used by many renowned brands like Sony, General Motors, CNN, Reuters, and even the Official Star Wars blog.
There are many reasons why people choose WordPress when creating their website. For instance, take a look at some of the interesting facts:
- It is used by more than 23% of the top 10 million websites in the world
- It has an overwhelming collection of free themes (about 30,000) to choose from
- It provides the users a wide range of plugins (37,559 plugins)
- It has 51 translations are available
Even eBay, which is one of the biggest online retailers in the world, uses WordPress. That is only one of the many eCommerce websites powered by the CMS. However, what exactly are the reasons that make it a popular choice for eCommerce websites? Here are some pointers, which will give you a better perspective.
Doesn’t Require Special Training
WordPress is a universal platform with a standard dashboard. You won't need a lot of time just to get the hang of using it. However, you will need basic knowledge on PHP and MySQL to understand how to use it effectively.
Luckily, WordPress is an extremely user-friendly platform. This means that there is no need for you to be an expert in coding. Even if you just browse through some tutorials online, you can easily get an idea about how to install, configure, use, and manage your website. Whether you're a beginner in website creation or a professional web developer, WordPress is easy to use for any skill level.
It's free!
Compared to other eCommerce website tools, WordPress doesn’t levy a monthly fee on the users. This encourages new developers on the block to build their websites without burning a hole in their pockets. They only need to shell out extra cash for something that they can’t do without. This may include a one-time purchase of certain eCommerce plugins, domain names, themes, and more.
However, the basics are all free of cost and if you want nothing but a very basic eCommerce website, then you need not pay for anything at all except for the domain name and hosting services. Also, let’s not forget that WordPress is Open Source and you can either improve the existing source code or change it to customize the website without paying extra.
Vast Collection of Plugins and Themes
Ask WordPress fans what they like the most about the CMS and they are most likely to shout ‘Plugins and Themes’ in unison!
This is because there are several interesting plugins available on WordPress. These plugins are incredibly helpful in setting up an online store of your choice. With features and functionalities ranging from sales and inventory management, customer reviews along with payment methods, WordPress offers a great user-experience and variety. You can take your pick from WordPress shopping cart Plugins, WordPress SEO plugins, WordPress landing page plugins for advertisement and so on and so forth, which cater to the requirements of eCommerce websites.
There are also several eCommerce-specific themes available on WordPress, which can be used for eCommerce websites. Although WordPress does offer default themes, if you are not particularly happy with them, you can choose from a wide range of themes to instantly give your website a complete makeover.
Additionally, many of the themes on WordPress are responsive. This makes the websites developed on the platform mobile friendly. What more can an online shopper want but a great experience while shopping from any mobile device?
Multiple Payment Gateway Options
WordPresss provides users with the option of a number of pre-installed payment gateways. These include, but are not limited to:
- Paypal
- Google Checkout
- Bitcoin
- Authorize.net
- 2CheckOut
These are all reliable getaways, which provide a secure online shopping experience for the customers. There are also provisions for providing alternative payment options to customers. With SSL certificates and these payment gateways, you can build up the credibility of your website and give your customers a sense of security while making transactions.
Immensely Safe and Secure
Another point which adds to the popularity of WordPress is that it focuses on the security of its users.
Whether it is downloading a theme, a plugin or using a widget, you can be assured of enhanced security measures provided by the CMS. This is a result of constant updates and the fact that ever since the release of WordPress version 3.7, it has an automatic update feature that further adds to its security measures.
SEO-Friendly
As mentioned earlier, WordPress started off as a platform for bloggers and till date, it retains SEO-friendly features. This makes it easier for eCommerce website owners to get organic traffic to their websites. Make it a point to deliver high-quality product information and everything else will fall in place.
Accommodates Multiple Users
More often than not, eCommerce websites are created and managed by a group of people and not individuals. WordPress knows this and makes it easy for you to assign different roles for different people in the group to run the website. For instance, you can assign roles to multiple users such as Super Admin, Administrator, Editor, Subscriber, Contributor and Author on your website. Each role has specific levels of ability and some have more control than others.
Get Support from the WordPress Community
Do you have a query related to the development of your eCommerce website? Need advice for the best plugin that will work for you? Want suggestions on the theme chosen by you? How about getting some help on making changes in the existing code to customize your website?
For all these questions and any other query, you can join WordPress forums. These forums consist of an extensive WordPress community and the members will lend you all their support.
Having stated all the reasons, you can safely bet that WordPress is indeed one of the most robust platforms to build an eCommerce website. If you still haven’t given WordPress a try yet, I believe that these pointers will offer some much-needed motivation to develop your next eCommerce website on the platform. Cheers!
on
Hello,
This is very informative and helpful.
Thank a ton.