How to Build an Awful WordPress Website Nobody Gives a Fig About

By Jini Maxin

Wish to screw up your WordPress website like never before? Wish to be on the Google hit list sooner than later? Wish to make sure zero visitors cross your website way?

Okay. It’s easy. Simply make sure that your WordPress theme is never updated. Choose to build your business website on WordPress.com. Never moderate comments and embed only poorly coded plugins. These tactics and more will ensure that you are on the path to building an awful WordPress website nobody gives a fig about.

#1. Image Optimization? What’s That?

Turns out this is one of the most typical errors WordPress websites commit. That is, using images that are inordinately large and heavy to load. Such images consume additional space in the server, which in turn, slows down the website speed significantly. Meaning, your website will take a century to download on the visitor’s browser. The end result: the visitor hops, scotch, and jumps to your competitor’s website in no time.

#2. Caching Plugins? I'll Figure It Out Later

For starters, caching plugins accelerate your website’s speed. Avoid them and you will have to deliver dynamically built pages for every visitor request. In short, by ignoring caching plugins, you are continually putting pressure on your server to build HTML pages, which are dynamic in nature, from the scratch using WordPress’s core code and site’s theme. This despite the fact that the HTML stays the same on every request.

Caching makes it possible to deliver static versions of HTML files to visitors, meaning, the server doesn’t have to dynamically create pages every time. By avoiding caching plugins, you are leaving the poor server to do all the heavy lifting, thereby guaranteeing your website takes ages to load.

#3. Darn With the Updates

Do WordPress updates give you the creeps because they could break your website theme and plug-ins? And if the developer doesn’t care a fig about it, why should you even bother about it in the first place? Sure, there might be security issues, but the changes that updates bring might rob you of the peace of mind you currently enjoy. And, it goes without saying that updating to WordPress 3.91 is too much of a hassle. Okay! No worries! Just be prepared because a hacker is waiting in the wings to break into your site.

#4. Any WordPress Theme Will Do

There may be hundreds of free WordPress themes, and all of them appear very cool. It seems developers have literally worked their backs off. So then why bother using paid ones if some really cool free WordPress themes are available for free. Fair enough!

It only means you won’t find any customer support if you face installation hassles. It also means that you’ve got loads of encrypted links in the footer, which in turn will screw up your Google rankings forever. And then you'll need to deal with loads of malicious code and links, never mind the SEO optimization part.

#5. Website Back Up? Nah!

You think your website is a fortress that no one can encroach upon? Hackers like Lisbeth Salander, the protagonist of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, are just a figment of the author’s imagination that don’t exist in the real world. So forget about the backup plan. No issues? Then don’t lose it when you lose all your data, because a patient hacker will always find his way through your security, no matter how strong it is.

#6. WordPress.com or WordPress.org? Who cares!

There’s a lot of confusion out there as in which WordPress is ideal for bloggers and which one is best for businesses and so on. However, you don’t want to waste your precious time researching and then end up building your business website on WordPress.com instead of WordPress.org. Just know the consequences. Essential plugins will be missing. Design and functionality modifications won’t be permitted, among many other things, on WordPress.com.

#7. What’s This Favicon Thing BTW?

A favicon is a teeny-weeny icon that appears alongside your website’s name in the list of bookmarks or in the address bar--it’s considered to be the identity card of your company. Sure, WordPress supplies you with a default favicon; however, you need to replace it with a customized favicon.

Too much of a hassle putting your company favicon in place? OK. Your brand image and engagement levels might just take a little beating. That’s it.

#8. Moderating Comments? No Time

For one, receiving comments on your blog is a big thing. You know that, right? However, what you do not know is that if you don't take the time to moderate them, your comments and visitors might just go away.

Another thing, do you end up publishing every comment that goes to your website because you don't know the difference between spam content and genuine content? No problem, other than Google cracks down on sites that accept comments with bad links. Also, visitors don't like spam content and may stop visiting your site.

#9. A Mobile Responsive Site Can Wait?

Since Google’s Mobilegeddon update, are you still working out the permutations and combinations of going mobile? Great! Just keep in mind that you cannot redirect mobile users to your desktop homepage--Google doesn’t approve of it. And, of course, it goes without saying, you will lose business.

#10. Google Analytics: Analysis Paralysis

Google Analytics can prove counterintuitive sometimes--spending too much time on it, they say, affects productivity. Nonetheless, if you avoid Google Analytics completely, you will never be able to optimize those keywords that might help you bring hundreds and thousands of visitors.

#11. Sticking to Poorly Coded Plugins

The most rewarding thing about having a WordPress website is that it comes with umpteen plugins--the more the better. However, be ready for a performance drop if you download them blindly. Some plugins come with poor codes, while others don’t sync with each other, not to mention those that come with rich-end functionalities which can cause unusual server load.

#12. A Cocktail of Categories and Tags

Sometimes you come up with categories and tags for every post, thinking that it will make navigation easier for your visitors. However, instead of making things easier, it might just complicate things. If you use them in abundance, know that visitors won’t look your way.

Final Words

Go on and commit these mistakes if you don’t really care for your Wordpress website, much less making profit from your business.