The power and customizability of WordPress can make it a little difficult to understand at first. People often think that WordPress is complicated simply because there are so many different customization options. From publications to pages, themes and menus, and much more, WordPress can be quite overwhelming if you try to assimilate everything at once. Read on to discover the many reasons why users find WordPress so complicated and how to overcome those obstacles.
Short answer? Yes, WordPress is easy for web developers to understand compared to most content management systems out there. As you know, technology is as easy to understand as its documentation, and WordPress has one of the best documentations you can find online. Another reason why WordPress beginners consider it difficult to use is due to the availability of thousands of free themes, and they are often confused about the right theme to use on their blog. One of the main reasons why WordPress may seem complicated is that it is an open source content management system (CMS). Essentially, this means that to create a WordPress site, you must first take the WordPress software and install it on your own web hosting. The people I work with (who never post here) are instructed (by moi) to make the blog's visibility private and create at least 4 posts and 4 pages before I help them with setting up the theme.
If they start with setting up the theme first and then choose a more complex and new theme like Sela, Edin, etc., and they address creating custom menus when they don't have published content, they're in the ditch in no time. No, you're not right; I'm upset because I think WordPress is too complicated. I can make a decent editorial, but I have no idea where it goes, who reads it or how I get it. There is a learning curve here that may be too busy to learn. There is some text next to this window that I don't understand at all. I'm willing to bet that if you've spent any time using the software, you probably feel the same way.
Even if you're a WordPress expert, using the software isn't without frustrations. As a consultant, what I find even more frustrating is the difficulty I have in recommending WordPress to many new users on the web or users with strict goals of launching their new business online. I mentor an accelerator class and 90% of students need to make their mark on the web. It sounds easy enough, but within a flood of learning business legal jargon, accelerator students can't get out for air to learn WordPress best practices as well. Frankly, they shouldn't have to.
In the end, there are simply too many moving parts for the newcomer to understand. Finally, if you're lucky, it only took you a month to get your site “up and running”, and you're still not 100% sure how the hell you did it all. Pray that no one asks you how you did those two columns on the homepage either. Here is a quick story about two lovely ladies looking to start a honey company. I stopped recommending Squarespace to them.
It's not a good feeling for me. I do not want to (try) to provide a solution in this case, but to present the question and collect feedback from people who reflect on this very situation. What would you do to make WordPress easier? I'm a big proponent of using WordPress, but I'm also paid to create web solutions and support commercial WordPress products. I think it's the private market's responsibility to help shape WordPress adoption for new users, not just community contributors.
My argument is that, as “consultants” and “WordPress experts”, we need to do a better job of incorporating WordPress to our customers. Commercial product creators must accept the same challenge and facilitate the software and onboarding experience if the context requires it. In the latter case, pay more attention to the main WordPress user experiences of the software and not to fork that into the unpretentious user. This is the most defining discussion coming up in a while, that will shape what WordPress is for the next decade.
There is a fast and furious debate about the promising WordPress REST API, and whether or not it will reach the core in the short term. These discussions are for 1% of 1%, but they send domino effects through the future timeline of our beloved software. In fact, I would say that this is the most defining discussion that has taken place in a while, that will shape what WordPress is for the next decade. If you're someone who doesn't live and breathe WordPress like I do, why do you care? You probably won't and frankly, why take on this cognitive load? My honey bee entrepreneurs don't care that they can make a website easy.
A famous internet entrepreneur doesn't care, as long as she can build an email list. Amazon drop shipping guy just wants good SEO and a place to sell his stock. While we discuss endpoints, people just want easy-to-use software that they can trust. A few days ago I was wondering the same thing.
I'm glad to see that I'm not the only one who thinks this way. Quite often I encounter business people who are confused about the terminology and requirements related to creating a site with a CMS. It's more of a “tech problem” than a “WordPress problem”.
How Do We Make WordPress Easier For Customers And Small Businesses?
Taking the approach of being a technology partner tends to produce better results and satisfaction for businesses; but this often requires additional resources such as training materials or even dedicated support staff.
Conclusion
WordPress can be intimidating at first glance due its vast customization options; however with proper guidance from experienced professionals or thorough research into its documentation anyone can become an expert in no time! The key takeaway here is that while there are many challenges associated with using WordPress as your CMS platform of choice; these challenges can be overcome with proper guidance from experienced professionals or thorough research into its documentation.
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