7 Common WordPress Mistakes Every Beginner Makes
If you are new to WordPress, take a look at these 7 mistakes every beginner makes and learn how to avoid them!
WordPress is a fantastic platform for bloggers, offering a user-friendly experience and endless customization possibilities. However, beginners often make the same common mistakes that can affect their website's performance and security. In this guide, we'll walk you through these pitfalls and provide tips on how to avoid them.
1. Forgetting to Back Up
It's crucial not to underestimate the importance of website backups. As a beginner you might make mistakes and delete or compromise your data. In such circumstances, having a backup ready to restore your website is invaluable. Without a backup, all your hard work could be lost. Therefore, it's essential to ensure your website is regularly backed up.
Keep in mind that many hosts offer backup solutions, either as part of their services or for an additional fee in the form of managed WordPress hosting. So, opting for a reputable hosting provider that does frequent backups is a good move if you don’t wa
WordPress is a fantastic platform for bloggers, offering a user-friendly experience and endless customization possibilities. However, beginners often make the same common mistakes that can affect their website's performance and security. In this guide, we'll walk you through these pitfalls and provide tips on how to avoid them.
1. Forgetting to Back Up
It's crucial not to underestimate the importance of website backups. As a beginner you might make mistakes and delete or compromise your data. In such circumstances, having a backup ready to restore your website is invaluable. Without a backup, all your hard work could be lost. Therefore, it's essential to ensure your website is regularly backed up.
Keep in mind that many hosts offer backup solutions, either as part of their services or for an additional fee in the form of managed WordPress hosting. So, opting for a reputable hosting provider that does frequent backups is a good move if you don’t want to worry about regularly backing up your data.
2. Choosing a Cheap Theme
Many beginners opt for free or relatively inexpensive WordPress themes from less-established companies. It's natural to want to save some money, especially when you're still in the learning phase. However, if you're serious about your project, it's crucial to select a high-quality theme.
When you're developing your website, you're investing not just money but also a significant amount of time. Time is a precious resource, so you should make the most of it. Therefore, choosing a top-notch theme can save you considerable time and effort. Whether it's troubleshooting bugs or customizing elements you're not satisfied with, a good theme can streamline the process. So, in many cases, it's well worth investing a bit more money.
3. Using Too Many Plugins
Adding specific features or functionalities to your website with a single click is super convenient. However, plugins are often the source of many issues in WordPress websites. They can negatively impact your site's performance and even conflict with each other. Therefore, it's crucial to exercise caution and select plugins thoughtfully.
Managing a WordPress website with an excess of plugins can quickly turn into a nightmare of constant bug-fixing and troubleshooting. Additionally, outdated plugins can introduce security vulnerabilities to your site.
We strongly recommend keeping your plugin usage to a minimum. Focus on installing only essential plugins, and ensure they come from reputable sources.
4. Overlooking Security
Due to its popularity, WordPress is an attractive target for various cyberattacks. Given that small and medium-sized websites are increasingly vulnerable to attacks, neglecting website security is not an option.
There are several basic security practices, including installing an SSL certificate, using strong and unique passwords, and enabling Two-Factor Authentication, which we have covered in a previous blog post. In addition to these, it's advisable to implement a custom WordPress admin URL and install a reputable security plugin to enhance your website's protection.
5. Neglecting WordPress Updates
The primary objective of releasing new WordPress versions is to enhance performance, functionality, and security. Keeping your WordPress core, themes, and plugins up to date with the latest stable versions is essential for maintaining a secure and efficient website. Outdated versions can introduce significant security vulnerabilities, making your site an easy target for malicious activities.
6. Neglecting Spam Protection
Over time, if you don't take the necessary precautions, your WordPress website may become a target for spam. However, there are proactive measures you can take to prevent spam comments, trackbacks, and protect your contact forms.
The first thing you need to do is adjust your WordPress Comment Settings to disallow the automatic publication of comments. Automatic publication can lead to an influx of spam comments, potentially damaging your website's reputation in the eyes of your visitors. It's essential to moderate and review comments before they appear on your site to maintain security and credibility.
7. Forgetting about Performance Monitoring
Your website's loading speed and overall performance are influenced by various factors that can change over time. It's crucial to continuously monitor your website to ensure it maintains optimal performance. Simply running initial tests and assuming your site will consistently perform well is not a wise approach. There are valuable tools like GTMetix and Pingdom available for testing your website's performance, especially after making significant changes.
Conclusion
While WordPress is known for its user-friendliness, beginners are bound to make mistakes. Therefore, it's essential to prepare yourself with the basics to avoid common pitfalls. We hope this blog post has provided you with valuable insights to help you sidestep these mistakes.
nt to worry about regularly backing up your data.
2. Choosing a Cheap Theme
Many beginners opt for free or relatively inexpensive WordPress themes from less-established companies. It's natural to want to save some money, especially when you're still in the learning phase. However, if you're serious about your project, it's crucial to select a high-quality theme.
When you're developing your website, you're investing not just money but also a significant amount of time. Time is a precious resource, so you should make the most of it. Therefore, choosing a top-notch theme can save you considerable time and effort. Whether it's troubleshooting bugs or customizing elements you're not satisfied with, a good theme can streamline the process. So, in many cases, it's well worth investing a bit more money.
3. Using Too Many Plugins
Adding specific features or functionalities to your website with a single click is super convenient. However, plugins are often the source of many issues in WordPress websites. They can negatively impact your site's performance and even conflict with each other. Therefore, it's crucial to exercise caution and select plugins thoughtfully.
Managing a WordPress website with an excess of plugins can quickly turn into a nightmare of constant bug-fixing and troubleshooting. Additionally, outdated plugins can introduce security vulnerabilities to your site.
We strongly recommend keeping your plugin usage to a minimum. Focus on installing only essential plugins, and ensure they come from reputable sources.
4. Overlooking Security
Due to its popularity, WordPress is an attractive target for various cyberattacks. Given that small and medium-sized websites are increasingly vulnerable to attacks, neglecting website security is not an option.
There are several basic security practices, including installing an SSL certificate, using strong and unique passwords, and enabling Two-Factor Authentication, which we have covered in a previous blog post. In addition to these, it's advisable to implement a custom WordPress admin URL and install a reputable security plugin to enhance your website's protection.
5. Neglecting WordPress Updates
The primary objective of releasing new WordPress versions is to enhance performance, functionality, and security. Keeping your WordPress core, themes, and plugins up to date with the latest stable versions is essential for maintaining a secure and efficient website. Outdated versions can introduce significant security vulnerabilities, making your site an easy target for malicious activities.
6. Neglecting Spam Protection
Over time, if you don't take the necessary precautions, your WordPress website may become a target for spam. However, there are proactive measures you can take to prevent spam comments, trackbacks, and protect your contact forms.
The first thing you need to do is adjust your WordPress Comment Settings to disallow the automatic publication of comments. Automatic publication can lead to an influx of spam comments, potentially damaging your website's reputation in the eyes of your visitors. It's essential to moderate and review comments before they appear on your site to maintain security and credibility.
7. Forgetting about Performance Monitoring
Your website's loading speed and overall performance are influenced by various factors that can change over time. It's crucial to continuously monitor your website to ensure it maintains optimal performance. Simply running initial tests and assuming your site will consistently perform well is not a wise approach. There are valuable tools like GTMetix and Pingdom available for testing your website's performance, especially after making significant changes.
Conclusion
While WordPress is known for its user-friendliness, beginners are bound to make mistakes. Therefore, it's essential to prepare yourself with the basics to avoid common pitfalls. We hope this blog post has provided you with valuable insights to help you sidestep these mistakes.