Response to WordPress bashing

I keep up with many blogs from companies in the journalism industry, and I saw this one the other day and just had to write a response.

I know that TownNews provides content management systems and the WordPress is a competitor, so of course there’s going to be smack-talking about your rivals. But I still disagree with many of the assumptions Bob Strupp makes.

Strupp says WordPress is not a good long-term solution for news organization because:

1. Key staff members leave. Tell me something I don’t know. There is turnover in every organization. What does this have to do with anything. With any system, you are going to have to train the new people on how to use it. WordPress is simple to use and teach. Many people know it, so if you lose an employee, the next one should have no problems figuring it out or finding someone to teach her.

2. Plugins are not often updated. Most of the plugins I use are updated on a regular basis, especially when WordPress releases a new update. The trick is to be selective in your plugins. Use as few as you can (which helps with performance speed as well) and use ones that are from legitimate sources. Just like you wouldn’t marry the first person you meet, don’t just install every plugin you see. Test drive a few. See what really works for you before you commit. That’s just common sense.

And you don’t need a lot of “programming muscle” to do it either. WordPress is great for those who are not very tech savvy. It’s got an intuitive interface that lets you know when things need to be upgraded or when they aren’t working anymore.

3. Strupp claims that because WP is free, it can’t help you earn revenue like their CMS system does. It seems to me that this is just a plug for their services. There are many kinds of ad management software and other tools and plugins you can use with WP to deal with advertisements and other money-making strategies like affiliate advertising and merchandise sales. Paying for a content management system might make things more seamless, but can they really guarantee you more money? Sounds like an infomercial to me.

4. Strupp goes on to using scare tactics about an imaginary “resident whiz kid” that will hold your “hostage.” No one will hold your stuff hostage. You are the one in control of your site. Follow proper security protocols, for your business AND your website. For example, when any key employee leaves….change the passwords. And if you need more work on your site, the WP community is so large that you can hire any number of freelancers to take over where your last one left off.

There will always be people who prefer buying a package deal from a flesh-and-blood salesperson and there will always be people who want to give it a go on their own. I know many newspapers that use TownNews and speak very highly of their service. But what if you have no start-up capitol? A three-person staff? A different business model? A desire to learn about technology? Give WordPress and shot and see if it works for you before you invest in something higher-priced. You’d be surprised at how much it can do.