WordPress is the most popular platform for development of websites and online stores, with over 4 million published e-commerce projects worldwide.

At DGTalents Marketing Agency we often get asked whether WordPress or WooCommerce are the best solutions when a business is building or updating their online store. In this article, we share what we most often advise clients before making their choice.

Keep in mind that the opinions and recommendations of developers, marketing, and SEO specialists regarding the best CMS platform often have their own subjective element, so always make sure you make an informed choice. 

The advantages of WordPress for online stores

Certainly, the advantages of WordPress far outweigh the risks and disadvantages when building a standard online store.

Popular and widespread CMS platform

WordPress is probably the first option you'll consider when planning a new online store. We're putting the most important but often overlooked advantage first - the ecosystem of developers and users who are constantly developing and updating WordPress as a tool for building and maintaining websites and online stores.

Why is it important?: You will always be able to find assistance, technical support, or answers to questions important to your online business.

You don't owe a fee for every sale

Some e-commerce platforms charge a percentage of the transaction amount that customers make when purchasing. WordPress does not charge such a fee, and the only such costs may be related to the payment service provider you use.

Why is it important?: Many startups or large businesses do not consider it fair to be charged a percentage of turnover, since the investment in creating and developing their online business is entirely at their expense.

WordPress is a free platform

Important note: This does not mean that you will be able to start your online business without any costs, but you will not have to pay an initial or subscription fee to use your online store. Of course, additional services such as hosting or a domain remain your responsibility.

Why is it important?: Some e-commerce platforms require a fee before you can even create your online store and start selling.generateincome.

Potential for online store customization

Our clients are often interested in the possibilities for their online store to stand out from other WooCommerce projects and not be made from a template, neither from a visual nor from a UX perspective.

On the one hand, in WordPress you can use and be inspired by thousands of ready-made themes, many of which are free. On the other hand, you also have access to the site's code, which allows for an even higher level of individual customization according to your specific requirements.

Why is it important?: You have a variety of ready-made solutions, but also enough flexibility to customize the look and functionality of your online store through site improvements.

Ownership and control of the online store

If you use WordPress, you will always be able to gather all your files and literally move your online store to another server, to another hosting provider, etc. You have full ownership of 100% of the information.

Why is it important?: Some e-commerce platforms will not provide you with this option, so you will be dependent on using them. They are usually web-based solutions with a focus on ease of use, but also with restrictions on switching to another solution. With them you don't have full access to the code and all files, but only to certain categories of data.

Flexibility in choosing a hosting solution

Many online store platforms have a ready-made hosting solution that you are required to use. However, resources can often be insufficient when your business is growing or during a period of campaigns, promotions, etc.

Why is it important?: Usually the issue is on the agenda during Black Friday when there is a peak in traffic to online stores. Some of them may find themselves with exhausted hosting resources and remain inaccessible due to overload.

SEO opportunities

A significant portion of your online store's traffic likely comes from search engines, where users ask questions and search for products. If your content and pages aren't optimized for search engines, you're missing out on the biggest sales opportunities to online shoppers.

Why is it important?: You have a large number of various SEO plugins and functionalities that you can test and use in optimizing your site, without being dependent on and limited by predefined settings in the CMS platform.

Integrations with marketing tools

When you are developing an online store, design and products are only part of the process. However, if you want to add functionalities, discounts, promo codes, automations, integrations with couriers, warehouse systems and payment services, you should again have a large enough choice, as is available in WordPress.

Why is it important?: The choice of a CMS platform and the possibility of integrations with all of the above becomes a business issue on which a large part of the operational processes in your company depend.

An example of our work: Luxnails is one of our marketing agency clients, for whom it is important to constantly improve their online presence and positioning without the need to reorganize their business and operational processes. Although our client launched a project to completely revamp their online store, it was important for us to keep WordPress and WooCommerce as a platform, already integrated with courier companies, a warehouse inventory system, CRM software and numerous automations in the online store.Learn more about the project and our work for Luxnails - the largest supplier of professional equipment for manicurists in Bulgaria.  

Disadvantages of WordPress for Online Business

WordPress also has its drawbacks, and whether they are a reason to choose another solution is up to you to decide. Here are some of the comments from our customers and the features that are important to inform them about:

The platform can be relatively complex to use

There are solutions where changes to the online store can be made with just 1-2 clicks without requiring technical administration experience. However, WordPress is not one of those solutions, as building, setting up, and optimizing an online store requires some experience with this CMS system.

Need for regular updates and protection

The responsibility for updating your content, plugins, themes, and security of your site is 100% yours. As we mentioned, this can be an advantage for businesses looking for complete control, but it requires an additional commitment to regular technical support for the online store over time. If you ignore these tips, you risk vulnerability to cyberattacks or incompatibility between the latest versions of plugins and tools and your website.

WordPress is not built for online stores

In 2003, WordPress emerged as a platform for creating and developing blogs, and in the following decades it was upgraded to a tool for creating websites, and later - online stores. Despite numerous changes, adaptations and improvements over time, the concept of this CMS did not have online sales in mind when it was designed.

WordPress plugins can cause problems

The previous factor is the reason for the development of many additional plugins that you can use on your WordPress site. On the one hand, this allows you to achieve almost anything, but on the other hand, it can load your site or cause conflicts with other settings and plugins used. All these additional solutions usually have different developers and are added gradually over time in order to upgrade the capabilities of WordPress. This is also one of the main differences compared to e-commerce platforms such as Shopify or Cloudcart, where one party is responsible for all improvements and upgrades of functionality.

Advice by DGTalents

First of all, we advise you to consult with a team that can advise you on all topics related to your online store - technical settings, administration, marketing, SEO, upgrade and support options, etc. The topic is important, as the choice will have a long-term effect on your business.

We generally recommend WordPress for building or updating online stores because with this choice:

• you are not limited and dependent on the website developer in time;
• you can easily and quickly find support and solutions to current problems;
• you can relatively easily and affordably upgrade your online store with various functionalities;
• Integrations with partners, suppliers, services, and marketing tools are often free and available to all users.

If you are just planning to build or redesign your online store, contact our team for a consultation and request a quote for work on your project..