WordPress is a great platform for building websites, but it can also be easy to make mistakes.
In this blog post, we will discuss some of the most common WordPress mistakes and how to avoid them.
We will also provide some tips for keeping your website running smoothly. So, if you are using WordPress, make sure to read this post!
Not updating your WordPress core
One of the most common WordPress mistakes is not keeping your WordPress installation up to date.
WordPress releases new versions regularly, and each new version includes security fixes and improvements.
So, it’s important to always update WordPress to the latest version.
You can update WordPress automatically by setting it to do so in the General Settings tab in your WordPress.
Not updating your WordPress plugins and themes
In addition to updating your WordPress installation, you should also regularly update your plugins and themes.
Like WordPress, new versions of plugins and themes are released regularly and often include security fixes and improvements.
Updating your plugins and themes is just as important as updating WordPress itself.
You can update your plugins and themes automatically by setting them to do so in the Updates Settings tab in your WordPress.
Not backing up your website
Another common WordPress mistake is not backing up your website.
Backing up your website is important because it gives you a way to restore your website if something goes wrong.
WordPress doesn’t include a built-in backup system, so you’ll need to use a plugin or service to create backups.
We recommend using the UpdraftPlus plugin, which is free and easy to use. Some other backup plugins are-
VaultPress (Jetpack Backup)
BackupBuddy
BlogVault
BoldGrid Backup
BackWPup
Duplicator
Each of these plugins offers complete WordPress backup for files as well as the database.
Not using a security plugin
WordPress websites are often targeted by hackers and malware. That’s why it’s important to use a security plugin to protect your website.
When it comes to securing your WordPress site, there are many great plugins to choose from. However, we recommend using the iThemes Security plugin.
It’s one of the most popular security plugins available, and it’s packed with features to help keep your site safe.
It includes a password strength checker, Two-Factor Authentication, malware scans, and more. It’s also regularly updated to ensure that it remains compatible with the latest WordPress releases.
So if you’re looking for a great security plugin, we recommend giving iThemes Security a try.
It’s free, and it offers a wide range of features to secure your website.
Not using a caching plugin
A caching plugin is a valuable tool for any WordPress site owner.
Caching static files eliminates the need to load these files from the server each time a page is accessed, which can speed up your website significantly.
The W3 Total Cache plugin is a good option that is free and easy to use.
Once you have installed and activated the plugin, you will need to configure it properly to get the best results.
The settings can be overwhelming at first, but there are plenty of resources available to help you get started.
With a little effort, you can greatly improve the performance of your website with a caching plugin.
Not using a CDN
A content delivery network (CDN) is a system of distributed servers that deliver webpages and other Web content to users based on their geographic locations.
If you want your website to load quickly for visitors from all over the world, then you need to use a CDN.
The best way to do this is to use a WordPress plugin like CloudFlare.
It’s a free service that will help you improve the performance of your website by caching your static files on its global network of servers.
Not optimizing your images
As a website owner, you know that speed is important.
Visitors are impatient, and if your pages take too long to load, they’re likely to click away before they even see what you have to offer.
One of the biggest factors in page loading speed is the size of the images on the page.
Large images can take a long time to load, particularly on mobile devices with slow data connections.
Fortunately, there are a number of ways to reduce the size of your images without compromising quality.
One of the best is to use an image optimization plugin like WP Smush.
It’s a free plugin that will automatically optimize your images for the web when you upload them to your WordPress site.
WP Smush automatically reduces the size of new images that you upload to your website, and it can also optimize existing images with just a few clicks.
As a result, it’s an easy way to speed up your website without any extra effort on your part. So if you’re looking for a way to improve your website’s performance, give WP Smush a try.
Not using a responsive theme
A responsive theme is a theme that has been designed to adapt to different screen sizes.
With a responsive theme, your website will look great on any device, from a desktop computer to a mobile phone.
Responsive themes are becoming increasingly popular, as more and more people access the internet from mobile devices.
If you want to make sure that your website is accessible to as many people as possible, then you need to use a responsive theme.
There are many great responsive themes available for WordPress, so you’re sure to find one that suits your needs.
Not using Google Analytics
Google Analytics is a free service that allows you to track the traffic to your website.
It’s a valuable tool for any website owner, as it can help you to understand where your visitors are coming from and what they’re doing on your site.
With Google Analytics, you can track things like the number of page views, the average time spent on your site, and the bounce rate.
This information can be very useful in helping you to improve your website.
If you’re not using Google Analytics, then you’re missing out on a valuable tool for understanding your website’s traffic.
Using too many plugins
As a WordPress user, you’re probably aware of the fact that there are thousands of plugins available for your website.
While plugins can be very useful, they can also slow down your website if you use too many of them.
Each plugin you install adds to the load time of your pages, so it’s important to use only the plugins that you really need.
If you’re not sure which plugins you need, take a look at your website and see which plugins are actually being used.
You might be surprised to find that there are a number of plugins that you don’t actually need. So if you want to speed up your website, take a look at your plugins and see if you can remove any that you don’t need.
Using “Admin” as your user account name
One of the most common WordPress mistakes is using “admin” as your username.
When setting up a WordPress website, one of the most important things to consider is your username.
If you use “admin” as your username, it’s easy for hackers to guess your login details and gain access to your website.
To avoid this, choose a username that is difficult to guess, and make sure to use a strong password.
Choosing a username that is easy to guess can make it easy for hackers to gain access to your site.
By taking these precautions, you can help to keep your WordPress site safe from potential security risks.
Testing your changes on a live site
When you’re making changes to your WordPress site, it’s important to test them on a staging site before applying them to your live site.
A staging site is a replica of your live website that you can use for testing purposes.
This allows you to test out new plugins, themes, and updates without affecting your live site.
If you make a mistake on your staging site, it’s no big deal, as you can simply delete the staging site and start again.
However, if you make a mistake on your live site, it can have a serious impact on your business.
So if you’re making any changes to your WordPress site, be sure to test them on a staging site first.
Blocking search engines (no indexing)
When you’re setting up a WordPress website, it’s important to make sure that your site is visible to search engines.
If you don’t want your site to be indexed by search engines, you can add a “noindex” tag to your site.
However, if you’re not careful, this can have a negative effect on your website.
If you block search engines from indexing your site, it will be very difficult for people to find your website.
So unless you have a good reason for blocking search engines, it’s best to leave this setting turned off.
Leaving comments open to spam
Another common WordPress mistake is leaving comments open to spam.
If you allow anyone to post comments on your site, you’re likely to get a lot of spam comments.
Spam comments can be very annoying, and they can also harm your website’s reputation.
Disabling comments altogether is the best way to avoid spam comments.
So if you want to avoid spam comments, it’s best to disable comments altogether or to use a plugin like Akismet to filter out spam comments.
Akismet is a very effective plugin, but it’s not 100% foolproof. So if you want to be absolutely sure that you won’t get any spam comments, it’s best to just disable comments altogether.
Hosting on a poor server
Hosting your WordPress website on a poor-quality server can have a number of negative consequences.
First, it can make your website slow and difficult to use.
Second, it can make your website vulnerable to hacking and other security risks.
Third, it can cause your website to crash, which can be very frustrating for your visitors.
So if you want to avoid these problems, it’s important to choose a good quality WordPress hosting provider.
There are a number of excellent WordPress hosting providers available, so be sure to do your research before choosing one.
Missing SEO settings
If you’re not careful, you might miss some important SEO settings when setting up your WordPress website.
For example, you might forget to add a meta description, or you might forget to add alt text to your images.
These are small details, but they can have a big impact on your website’s SEO.
So if you want to make sure that your website is properly optimized for search engines, it’s important to double-check all of your SEO settings before launching your website.
Not changing the default permalink structure
WordPress has a number of different permalink structures that you can use.
The default permalink structure is not very user-friendly, so it’s important to change it to something more user-friendly.
When setting up a new website, one of the first things you need to do is choose a permalink structure.
A permalink is the unique URL for a specific blog post or page on your site. By default, WordPress uses a simple permalink structure that includes the date and title of each post.
However, there are a number of other options to choose from, and it’s important to select the one that’s best for your particular site.
For example, if you’re running a news site, you might want to use a permalink structure that includes the date and category of each article.
On the other hand, if you’re running a personal blog, you might want to use a permalink structure that includes the title of each post.
Whatever option you choose, be sure to do your research and select the one that will work best for your website.
Not using a child theme
When you’re customizing a WordPress theme, it’s important to use a child theme.
A child theme is a theme that inherits the functionality of another theme, known as the parent theme.
Using a child theme is the best way to customize a WordPress theme without losing your changes when the theme is updated.
If you’re planning on making changes to a WordPress theme, it’s always best to use a child theme. That way, your changes will be preserved even if the original theme is updated.
Plus, if you make a mistake while editing your child theme, you can always switch back to the parent theme without losing any of your work.
Creating a child theme is easy–all you need to do is create a new folder and add a few lines of code to the style.css file.
There are also many free child theme plugins available that can do your job without writing a single line of code.
Once you’ve done that, you can start making changes to your heart’s content. Just remember to keep a backup of the original theme handy in case you need to revert any of your changes.
Not uninstalling unused plugins
If you’re not careful, your WordPress website can end up with a lot of unused plugins.
These plugins can take up valuable space on your server and can slow down your website.
Additionally, they can create security vulnerabilities that can be exploited by hackers.
So if you have any plugins that you’re not using, be sure to delete them from your server.
It’s also a good idea to periodically check your website for any unused plugins and remove them as needed.
FINAL THOUGHTS
These are just a few of the most common WordPress mistakes that people make.
Of course, there are many other mistakes that you can make when using WordPress.
But if you can avoid these mistakes, you’ll be well on your way to creating a successful WordPress website.
