WordPress is a free content management system. It can be set up quickly and inexpensively, making it perfect for smaller-budget clients. Because of its efficiency and cost, WordPress is used by many people; therefore, there is lots of online support available.
There are hundreds if not thousands of free designs (“themes”) for you to choose from: see the WordPress free themes directory.
WordPress is relatively easy to learn, so people who aren’t Web designers can do some of their own site management.
WordPress is open source; many developers have built plug-ins that can add complex functions to your site quickly and easily, like shopping carts, membership systems to deliver premium content, event management systems, and dynamic forms. You can search the WordPress plugin directory to see if there is a plugin for the feature you want.
So what’s the downside? What you will trade, for all of the advantages listed above, is full control over the specific appearance of your site. It is perfectly possible to build custom themes for WordPress based on client design specifications; however, this will likely more than double the cost of your project. Customizing a prebuilt theme can be a good compromise.
Helpful WordPress links
- the WordPress free themes directory
- the WordPress plugins directory — prebuilt applications that can add function to your site
- New to WordPress – Where to Start
- Learn WordPress
Don’t forget to search Youtube; you can find some excellent WordPress tutorials there.