As the internet is an ever-expanding universe, more and more issues arise from utilizing an outdated website platform. Some of the more popular platforms such as Magento and Laravel are constantly being subjected to security hacks, data theft, site stability, and outdated functionality. Other popular platforms such as WordPress integrate third-party plugins that can create a gateway for security issues. Many sites created in this platform utilize themes as their base structure and can feel dated over time. It is vitally important to always consider the web habits of users and the devices they are using to access the site. Responsive websites have become the standard web users expect and utilizing an outdated platform often doesn’t provide a user-friendly interface.
Platform providers are constantly making programming updates to address and correct uncovered bugs in the code. These platforms will occasionally make relatively minor changes and will designate corrected versions such as migrating from 2.0 to 2.0.1 for example. More significant updates will be labeled as moving from 2.0 to 2.5 while major coding improvements that often involve significant changes will go from 2.0 to 3.0. These updates correctly fix weak elements of the programming that make sites vulnerable to data theft or site stability. Making sure your chosen platform is the most current version is a great defense against a security breach and should be considered as often as new code versions become available.
Questions or concerns in choosing or maintaining the best platform for your web presence? Contact the web wizards at Active Web Group at (800) 978-3417.
Your website is your brand presented to the Internet as a whole. Making sure it is as updated as possible goes a long way in converting visitors to buyers or engaging them strategically. Fresh and timely language throughout the site can also help convert visitors through effective calls-to-action.
Many of these platforms are open-source which is a great way to give the world at large the ability to construct (program) meaningful plugins or add-ons that enhance site functionality. These plugins bolt into the base site and can give the site the ability to perform meaningful functions. An extremely popular example is WooCommerce. This powerful plugin converts a base WordPress site into an eCommerce site. This plug and play can greatly reduce the expense of adding that type of functionality from scratch. But, like most elements of a website, these types of plugins are also vulnerable to the same pitfalls of the main platform and should constantly be updated to the most current version. Another consideration is when a base platform updates, the functionality of each plugin must be carefully checked for compatibility with the new versions.
The Internet is a vast opportunity that will only continue to become more and more vital as our economy morphs over time. It would behoove a business owner to engage a qualified team of web professionals such as the team at Active Web Group to keep a diligent watch on the existing site and to implement updates whenever they become available. The disaster of a security breach has swamped many businesses and utilizing professional web experts can help you avert these increasingly common pitfalls. To update your website’s eCommerce solutions, give Active Web Group a call at (800) 978-3417.
