5 Tips On Keeping Your WP Website Up To Date

Wazzup Pilipinas!

Having fun running your WP website? Well, that's great. It is hard to imagine a business or a company today that doesn't have its own WP website. Especially since social media growth and clever monetizations are so important. But, did you know that keeping your WP website up to date is absolutely essential? There are some key reasons why people bother to update their websites, and why you shouldn't skip on doing so yourself. So, let us take a look at how to keep your WP website up to date.

Why it is important to update your website

The first reason is safety. If your WP website is not up to date, you can forget about considering it safe. Sure, you may have some safety plug-ins installed and you may even have professional software working on your website safety. But, unless you update your website, and do so frequently, you cannot hope for it to be safe. WP developers are keeping track of flaws in WP websites’ safety better than any software or outside programmer ever could.

Keeping your WP website up to date is necessary if you want to keep it safe.

Alt: A photo of a mouse hoovering over a security icon. This indicates that keeping your WP website up to date is necessary for security.

Also, by updating your WP website, you will ensure that all the latest tools and addons are at your disposal. This will help your website be fresh and look modern.

Our tips on keeping your WP website up to date

So, now that we have a better idea on why keeping your WP website up to date is important, let us look at a couple of ways in which you can do so. A lot of people fear or struggle with WP website updates as there can be some complications. But, by following our tips you will ensure that your updates are successful and that your website runs fast and smooth.

Keep your WP website simple

First and foremost, you want to keep your WP website simple. One of the mistakes that newcomer Web designers often make is to over-complicate their website. This not only looks bad, but it also makes the website run poorly. And, which is quite important, it makes updating it a hassle. The more things you have on your website, regarding addons and plugins, the more difficult it is to keep them properly updated. And, once you do update them, there is no guarantee that they will remain compatible. This means that you will have to deal with each plugin upon update. Not to mention that you will have to do a complete overhaul from time to time, just to keep your complicated website in line. So, if you want to have an easy time keeping your WP website up to date, keep it simple.



The simpler your website is, the easier it will be to both update it, and manage it.

Alt: A laptop showing a website

Manage your plugins

What do we mean by "manage your plugins"? Well, simple. First, you need to keep track of them. If a plugin is not working, either fix it or get rid of it. Any plugin that you end up not using needs to be deleted. This is especially important to remember during website development as a lot of plugins and themes get tested. Do not let any residual junk clutter your website. Not only will it make updating it a hassle, but it may even leave weak points in your website that a hacker can take advantage of.

Backup before update

The risk that any update holds, especially a large one, is that it can make your whole website go haywire. Something that unexpected happens and the thing that is supposed to help you ends up hurting you. So, what are you to do? Should you lie down and cry? Well, you can do that. But it's not gonna do you much good. You can call a professional to solve your problem. But, even this is not the ideal way to deal with bad updates. So, how to deal with one?



Bringing back a website after a faulty update can be quite difficult without a backup.

Alt: Multiple lines of code describing a website.

What you need to do is to back up your website before updating it. This will give you a checkpoint to go back to if your website goes haywire. Usually, a plugin or an addon is not working well with the update and is causing a problem. With a few simple steps, you can find the troublesome plugin and update your website easily. But, this will only be possible if you first save a backup.

Test

Once you have updated your website, you need to make sure that it really runs smoothly. Simply visiting your home page is not enough to ensure that your website is really up and running after the update. You need to check each aspect of your website and make sure that it is running properly. This is especially important if you have multiple plugins and are running a large blog on your website. Make sure to use multiple computers for checking your website and try visiting it using a phone. It is also a good idea to keep a close track of your website for a couple of days after the update. If something is wrong, someone is bound to give you a heads up.

Regular updates

The final tip we have for you is to update regularly. At least once every two days you should check for new updates. This will keep your website not only running smoothly, but it can play a key role in keeping it safe. Imagine if you were only a couple of days late with your update. Well, those couple of days are more than enough for an experienced hacker to ruin you. Remember, a lot of WP updates are connected to safety. This is why it is absolutely paramount that you keep track of them and update regularly. Furthermore, with regular updates, you will keep your plugins running smoothly as they will not be so out of date that they become incompatible with WP.

Author Bio

Ben Jones has been a web developer and a prominent web designer with WP Full Care for many years. This has given him the necessary experience to help people develop and maintain their WP websites.

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