Why regularly updating your WordPress website is essential

If your website runs on WordPress, then regular updates are a really crucial aspect to the overall performance and functionality of the site. But when was the last time you actually did an update?

According to W3Techs surveys 87% of WordPress websites are using the most recent update, Version 5, but that still means 13% of sites are not using the most secure version of WordPress.

WordPress is an open source platform, so this means that anyone can contribute and add to the growing roster of plugins, upgrades and features. Developers from all over the world regularly research and tweak their code to ensure the best web standards are met and that any bugs are quickly recognised and rectified.

And did you know that the WordPress platform actually accounts for just over 40% of all websites on the internet globally? That’s 2 out of every 5 websites that exist using WordPress! It also holds over 60% market share when it comes to CMS (Content Management System) usage, making it one of the most popular website building and management platforms on the internet.

But this popularity is also what makes it a target for unwanted cyber attacks and security breaches, meaning hackers could potentially steal your sensitive information. Which is why it is crucial to ensure the latest update available for your WordPress website is installed.

• Security updates

Vulnerabilities and security issues are continually monitored, therefore with each new update enhancements to the overall security of WordPress will be made. This is especially important for eCommerce websites that handle sensitive customer information. The core WordPress development team now also digitally sign each update that is released, to ensure it’s authenticity and to help prevent hackers from trying to send out malicious attacks through each new version.

• Bug fixes

Developers from all over the world are always submitting new code and researching WordPress forums to help iron out any discovered errors. Because of the open source nature of the platform this is what allows the community of WordPress developers to identify any bugs that may occur and quickly help to solve them.

• Speed enhancements

With each new version comes performance enhancing updates to help make your site run even more efficiently. WordPress developers are always aiming to slim down their code in a bid to help increase site speed, which in turn helps SEO performance and overall Google ranking. Everybody wants a faster website, so ensuring the latest WordPress version is installed is a no brainer!

• Awesome new features

With each new update there is the potential for great new features that can make your experience of using WordPress even better. For example the latest switch over to the Gutenberg editor in the CMS has dramatically improved content management for many people and made content creation so much simpler by utilising a block format. And with over 58,000 Plugins available on the WordPress Plugin Directory, authors are constantly adding to this daily and updating the features available.

Now if you’re not particularly tech savvy, we know it can often be a scary thought to try and update your own website, just incase you inadvertently ‘break something’ or mess up your carefully curated theme. But WordPress is highly intuitive and because it is constantly being monitored by a global team of talented developers, you can be sure that any updates presented to you by WordPress are safe and easy to perform. And if you’re still not sure how to go about it, well that’s where we come in! As a highly skilled web development team Sequel have the experience and knowledge to safely perform web updates for you, ensuring everything about your website continues to run smoothly and the necessary performance and security updates are put in place.

So if you think your website is due a much needed health check, then get in touch now and we’ll see what we can do for you!