
Cool! Your site's live. Now what?
Just like a car, your website requires maintenance to keep it running smoothly.
WordPress, theme authors, and plugin developers regularly release code updates. These updates can include new features and bug fixes along with plugging security holes that may arise now and then. Keeping everything up to date helps keep your site secure.
Sites that don't get updated often can pose security risks that allow hackers to get into your site. And believe me - they will take full advantage of that security hole!
Your best defense as a website owner is keeping things updated to the most current version and making sure to back everything up on a regular basis.
Newer versions of WordPress include an auto-update feature that lets website owners update their sites automatically - without lifting a finger. But enabling auto-updates can pose just as much risk as not updating at all. This is because sometimes an update can cause your site to break and you may not even know it since the updates happen unattended.
Now imagine multiple updates causing several issues at the same time! It can be a royal pain to fix the mess it all ends up creating. And it could cost you a pretty penny!
My advice is to do updates manually every few weeks. It's actually pretty simple but it can be time consuming and tedious. If tech isn't your thing or you simply don't have time to babysit your website, Midnight Rebel Digital can help!
What's the difference between a maintenance plan and a managed WordPress Site?
Some hosting companies offer "managed" WordPress plans and that means they will keep your site updated for you. The problem is that they don't always update all plugins if there's not a one-click update available.
If they encounter an issue when updating something, they'll often just roll back to the previous version and you're left to figure out what to do next. You're also responsible if there's ever an issue after updating and that often means hiring someone (like me!) to fix it for you.
On the other hand. . .
MRD maintenance packages include updating WordPress, the themes, and all the plugins your site is using. Should an issue arise, we won't just roll it back - we'll actually fix the problem. Occasionally, fixing the problem means finding a new plugin.
On rare occasions, we may wait to apply an update - such as when WordPress gets a major new release. We do this to ensure any little security and bugs are resolved before we go ahead and install the update.
In other words, we never leave you to fend for yourself.
The bottom line
Many people think they can get away with doing updates whenever they "get around to it" but that just makes it all the more time consuming and expensive to perform updates. It can leave your site vulnerable to hackers, spam, and malware, not to mention make things break when they do get updated.
Annual Premium Maintenance Plan
Save $900 by purchasing an annual plan. It's like getting 3 months free!
The annual premium maintenance plan works out to $225/mo
Or choose the monthly plan that's right for you
Basic
- WordPress Core UpdatesWordPress Core Updates
- Theme & Plugin UpdatesTheme & Plugin Updates
- Minor Bug FixesMinor Bug Fixes
- Bi-Weekly UpdatesBi-Weekly Updates
- Weekly BackupsWeekly Backups
- Daily BackupsUptime Monitoring
Premium
- WordPress Core UpdatesWordPress Core Updates
- Theme & Plugin UpdatesTheme & Plugin Updates
- Minor Bug FixesMinor Bug Fixes
- Bi-Weekly UpdatesBi-Weekly Updates
- Weekly BackupsDaily Backups
- Daily BackupsUptime Monitoring
- Uptime MonitoringSecurity Monitoring
- Troubleshooting OR Design Updates (up to 4/hrs per mo.)SEO Management
- Weekly Status Reports
- Troubleshooting OR Design Updates (UP TO 2/HRS PER MO.)
Advanced
- WordPress Core UpdatesWordPress Core Updates
- Theme & Plugin UpdatesTheme & Plugin Updates
- Minor Bug FixesMinor Bug Fixes
- Bi-Weekly UpdatesBi-Weekly Updates
- Weekly BackupsDaily Backups
- Daily BackupsUptime Monitoring
- Uptime MonitoringSecurity Monitoring
- Troubleshooting OR Design Updates (up to 4/hrs per mo.)SEO Management
Minor bug fixes means that if something goes awry as a direct result of an update that CRD performs, it will be fixed. All updates are done bi-weekly, as needed.