If you’re a business owner with a WordPress website, chances are you’re focused on running your business—not tinkering with your website. But did you know that skipping basic maintenance could lead to slow performance, security issues, or even your site breaking down?
The good news? A little regular upkeep goes a long way. Let’s look at the most common tasks that often get overlooked and why they’re important for your business.
1. Backing Up Your Site
Think of a backup as your website’s safety net. If something goes wrong—like a hack or accidental deletion—you can restore your site quickly. Without a backup, you might lose important content or customer data.
- Tip: Invest in an external hard drive that you can periodically back your website up to. Many hosts will let you download a .zip file to store offline.
2. Keeping Things Updated
Your WordPress site is powered by the WordPress core, themes, and plugins. These get updated often to fix bugs and improve security. If you skip updates, your site is more vulnerable to hackers or glitches.
- Tip: Check updates monthly, but refrain from implementing the first version of an update to allow the developer time to work through bugs.
3. Deleting What You Don’t Use
Old, unused plugins and themes may not seem like a big deal, but they can slow down your site and even become security risks.
- Tip: Go through your plugins and themes once a month and delete anything you’re not using. If you are unsure if your website is using the plugin, we can help!
4. Speed Matters
A slow website frustrates visitors and can hurt your search rankings. Things like oversized images or too much clutter can drag down your site’s speed.
- Tip: Use free tools like Google PageSpeed Insights to see what’s slowing your site down.
5. Keeping It Secure
Your website is like your digital storefront. A hacked site can hurt your reputation and scare off customers. Regular security scans can catch issues before they become big problems.
- Tip: A good hosting provider will have security built into your website, but you can lock down your site in other ways such as changing your login URL to further protect your site.
6. Testing Your Forms
Have you checked your contact forms or checkout process lately? If something isn’t working, you could be losing leads or sales without even realizing it.
- Tip: Make it a habit to test your site’s forms every month.