WordPress websites you can update yourself

Why WordPress for a service business?

WordPress suits most service businesses because you can add a page for every service and every area you cover, edit it yourself and move it to another host whenever you like. The software is open source and free. You pay for hosting, a domain and any paid plugins.

The trade off is upkeep. WordPress, its themes and its plugins need regular updates, and a site that is left alone becomes slow and easier to hack. We cover that further down.

Option	WordPress (self hosted)	Website builders such as Wix or Squarespace
Who owns the site	You, on hosting in your name	The builder hosts it on their platform
SEO control	Full control of URLs, titles, schema and redirects	Good basics, less control
Features	Thousands of plugins, plus custom code	What the builder offers
Speed	Depends on the build and hosting	Set by the builder
Upkeep	Needs updates and backups	Mostly handled by the builder
Moving later	Easy to move to another host	Harder to move off the platform

What is included in a WordPress website?

Each WordPress build includes a custom design on a lightweight theme, a page for each main service, tap to call on every page, spam protected forms, SEO plugin setup with an XML sitemap, speed work and training for everyday edits.

• Custom design built for your brand, on a lightweight theme.
• A page for each main service, plus service area pages where they help.
• A tap to call number at the top of every page and one clear next step.
• Forms with spam protection that go to the right inbox.
• An SEO plugin such as Yoast set up, with titles, schema and an XML sitemap.
• Call and form tracking with Google Analytics and Tag Manager.
• Speed work: image compression, caching and help choosing hosting.
• Training and short videos for everyday edits.

Fewer plugins, faster site

A common cause of a slow WordPress site is too many plugins and a heavy theme doing jobs the site does not need. Each plugin adds code, and each one is something else to update. We start with a lightweight theme, use the block editor that ships with WordPress, and add plugins only where they do a real job. The result is a site that loads quickly on a phone and has less to break.

Bookings, stores and integrations

We can connect a booking tool to your service pages and send form leads straight to your CRM or email tool. If selling is the main job, we may point you to Shopify web design instead. Connecting forms to your CRM means leads do not sit in an inbox nobody checks.

WordPress maintenance and security

An unmanaged WordPress site is a security risk. WordPress’s own hardening guide lists attacks on old and outdated plugins and software as one of the two most common kinds, and some owners only find out when Google shows a warning. Maintenance covers updates, backups, security setup and health checks, and we agree what your plan includes before we start.

• Updates. WordPress core, themes and plugins, applied and checked so they do not break the layout or forms.
• Backups. Regular backups, so a bad update can be rolled back.
• Security setup. SSL, strong passwords and two factor login, user accounts with only the access they need, and removal of unused plugins and themes.
• Health checks. Forms, call tracking, PHP version and site speed.

The website maintenance checklist lists the checks in more detail, and our WordPress SEO guide covers the settings that help a WordPress site rank.

Already have a WordPress site?

We can take it over. We review the theme, plugins, hosting and security first, then tell you plainly whether it needs fixing or rebuilding. If a rebuild makes sense, our website redesign service keeps your URLs or redirects them, which protects the rankings you have.

What affects the cost of a WordPress website?

After a free audit, we tell you the price before any work starts. The cost depends on how much work your business needs, and hosting, domain and paid plugins are separate and paid by you to those providers.

Start with a free audit

We will check your current site for speed, security and the things that cost you calls on a phone. Request your free audit and you will have it within 2 business days. Free audit. No obligation. No hard sell.