For many years and counting, WordPress has reigned as the most popular Content Management System. In fact, if you’re planning to build a site, we urge you to try WP. It’s easy enough to be understood by the non-tech-savvy and flexible enough to be used by pros when developing a site. Not to mention, it’s completely free to use.
Due to its popularity, web hosts like HostGator have introduced packages specifically for WordPress users. These are called “Managed WordPress Hosting”. Of course, it costs more than a regular hosting plan.
The question is – is it worth the higher price tag? Here are the top five reasons why it is:
Maximum WordPress Performance
Here’s a quick fact: if you use managed WordPress hosting, everything on the server’s side is optimized and allocated for WP. Unlike other hosting options that support all kinds of platforms and apps, the infrastructure of managed WordPress hosting servers are completely dedicated to maximize WP’s speed even with a heavy volume of traffic. You no longer need to do your own optimizations such as caching and configuring a CDN.
Increased site speed is one of the main selling points of managed WordPress hosting services. For most companies, the managed WordPress package is already integrated with a CDN to maximize the speed of your site. Some companies offer dedicated hosting resources for a substantially higher price. In the end, just remember to look at your website’s needs and try not to overspend.
Improved Security
Building your site with WordPress using the traditional method is like a puzzle. You need to find and fit the right pieces together for a complete and functional website. However, finding the right plugins and themes can be tricky, especially if you want to maximize security. Remember, some integrations with WordPress may contain vulnerabilities and instabilities that could compromise the integrity of your site.
With managed WordPress hosting, professionals will be choosing the best plugins and add-ons that can help you achieve what you need from your site. This significantly reduces the likelihood of installing vulnerable or incompatible plugins.
Additionally, managed WordPress hosting services include security solutions that can help protect your site from hackers and other forms of cyber-attacks. Bear in mind that WordPress is a favorite target of hackers due to its popularity. If you truly value your hard work, then you should prioritize getting a comprehensive security solution that focuses on detection, prevention, and threat removal.
Automatic Backups
Although you can easily prevent most identified threats, it is difficult to protect yourself from new, unknown threats. This is why you also need backups to complete your web security. Backups provide an additional layer of security that can preserve all your hard work when all things fail. Usually, WP site owners create their own backups after significant improvements. But for a rapidly growing site, you need to make sure you always have the latest backup ready.
With managed WordPress hosting, you no longer have to go through the tedious process of creating backups every single night. You can simply focus more on building your content, optimizing your site, and marketing your blog as the host does all things security for you.
Automatic Updates
Apart from backups, WP site owners also need to make sure they’re running the latest version of WordPress. With managed WordPress hosting, you are free from the responsibility of updating your CMS over and over. This will be handled by the host, and it covers everything from your MySQL databases to the WordPress installation itself.
Although shared hosting plans may offer automated updates, it usually does not cover WordPress installations. Furthermore, keep in mind that your WordPress installation is not the priority of these hosting plans. Instead, they will prioritize maintaining server resources that will support most applications.
24/7 Support
Last but not least, managed WordPress hosting offers 24/7 customer support. A key advantage here is that these provdors will focus on WordPress-related issues. If your problem is about WP, then you’re essentially guaranteed that they have the right solution for you. You do not need to waste countless hours searching forums and other online resources.
Bear in mind that since they know your WordPress version and all of the integrated plugins, it’s easier for them to assess the problems that you may be having. This means you can recover faster from any fluke and maximize your site uptime. They can also provide you with expert recommendations to help you make the most out of WordPress.
