Why You Should Use DNN For Your CMS Instead of WordPress

WordPress is probably the most recognizable name when it comes to website platforms. However, this does not mean it is necessarily the best. In fact, here at webmarkets, we have a variety of reasons for picking DNN as our website CMS (content management system) of choice over WordPress, Wix, or any of the other platforms available to choose from. 

Here are some of the cons of using WordPress for your CMS, as well as the pros of using DNN that are why we choose DNN here at webmarkets. 

Cons of WordPress

Vulnerable Plugins

While one of the biggest benefits to using WordPress as your CMS is that there are many plugins available. While it’s great to be able to find plugins to customize your website just how you want, there are some serious downsides to WordPress’ abundance of plugins. 

For instance, many of these free plugins suddenly lose any level of support, which can lead to broken parts of your website design and management, or even worse, leave your website vulnerable to being hacked. 

Plugin Functionality

Again, having many different plugins like WordPress does can be a great thing. However, plugins frequently do not necessarily work correctly together. It can be incredibly difficult to find plugins that work correctly with the rest of your website. Not only do you have to find plugins that work with others you already have installed on your website, but also with the coding you have on your site. 

This process of finding plugins that work with the rest of your website’s installed plugins and coding can not only be frustrating but also time-consuming. 

Updates Cause Issues

Even once you find plugins and coding that work well together upon installing, it is not guaranteed that these will remain functional forever. In fact, WordPress updates can frequently cause individual features or your entire website to break. Troubleshooting these issues as they arise can be incredibly frustrating, time-consuming, and cause you headaches trying to restore your website to full functionality again. 

Lack of Support

Another huge issue with WordPress arises when something goes wrong and you need support to troubleshoot and fix the issue. No one to speak to if there is a problem with a free plugin or theme. This can result in a great deal of time spent troubleshooting. Suddenly "free" isn't so free when it takes up a lot of time and causes a lot of stress. 

Blog Platform Turned Site Builder

A downside to using WordPress to build your website is that it did not start as a site builder initially. Instead, it was designed as just a blog platform that has evolved into a site builder as well. This means that many of its features and functionality were not created with building a website in mind.

Lack of Updates

With WordPress, any software updates are also the responsibility of the actual developer. However, most of the time, updates are completely forgotten about. This leaves your website both vulnerable and out-of-date. 

Built on Templates

WordPress is a platform built on templates. What this ultimately means for your website is that it looks cookie-cutter. By using these templates, it also means there will be a link at the bottom of your site to the WordPress theme. This can be harmful to your company’s brand in a couple ways. It shows that your brand and aesthetic is not actually unique to your company, but is instead from a premade template.

Pros of DNN

SEO

Unlike WordPress, which is SEO Ready with the right plugin installed, DNN is built to give you full SEO control from the platform itself. This means you have the tools you need for success right from the start and do not need to install anything additional.

Designed Specifically For Building Websites

While WordPress started as a blog platform and has become a site builder, DNN was designed specifically for building websites. This means you do not have to worry about any features or functionality being created with anything other than website-building in mind.

User Friendly

Another huge advantage of DNN is how user friendly it is. No matter what your level of expertise or experience using a CMS is, DNN makes running and managing your website simple and streamlined. This is a huge advantage to you because it means considerably less time devoted to troubleshooting and resolving issues with your website. Instead, you can spend your time concentrating on the things that really matter with running your business and managing your website. 

Not only is it great for general users, but also for developers. This means DNN really offers the best of both worlds. No matter what side of site management you are looking for out of a CMS, DNN has you covered. 

Ongoing Updates

DNN offers ongoing updates to its core software. This is a huge advantage when selecting a CMS for a couple reasons. Firstly, this ensures that its core software remains up-to-date. This also means that DNN’s core software remains secure. Unlike WordPress’ plugin vulnerability discussed above, by offering ongoing updates, DNN is able to keep ahead of potential security issues. For these reasons, DNN’s ongoing updates to its core software are great for your website. 

Support

While you may find yourself without needed support with WordPress, DNN offers wonderful support. Here at webmarkets, anytime we or a client has an issue, DNN is incredibly helpful and responds quickly to our requests for support. 

Many Plugins Available

Like WordPress, DNN also offers a variety of plugins so that you can find the right ones to fully customize your website exactly how you need to. 

Efficiency

Using DNN as your CMS over WordPress is hugely advantageous for you and your business in terms of efficiency. Efficiency is incredibly important for running a business. After all, time is money. 

Thanks to DNN’s interface, it is possible to quickly make the same changes you might on WordPress but in only half the time. With WordPress, you constantly have to go into the back end in order to make updates then go back out to the actual website in order to see it live. Instead of this cumbersome process, with DNN updates are all in one place instead of two separate ones. 

Website Security

DNN is incredibly secure. Unlike WordPress, which is known for its frequent lapses in security, with DNN you do not have to be constantly worrying about the security of your website. By utilizing DNN, you make yourself considerably less vulnerable to hacking and security issues than you do with WordPress.