Google’s John Mueller responded to a Reddit question about migrating an SMB site from Wix to a self-hosted WordPress environment. He shared his thoughts on this specific scenario and discussed the benefits and drawbacks of managed and self-managed WordPress for SMBs.
Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMB)
SMB stands for small and medium-sized businesses, and what those sizes mean varies; there are several definitions.
Small businesses are defined as those with fewer than 100 employees. Medium-sized businesses have 100 to 500 employees, and some definitions put the figure as high as 1,000.
WordPress hosting, both managed and self-hosted
Managed WordPress hosting is a hosting environment in which the web host handles all technical aspects of hosting a WordPress site.
The managed hosting company handles security, caching, Content Delivery Networks (CDN), security, updates, and backups.
This allows an SMB to focus on its core business rather than hiring an in-house web developer to maintain site security and updates.
The trade-off for letting the web host handle the technical details is that the host restricts which plugins can run on their environment in order to maintain host security.
In a self-hosted environment, the web host is in charge of backing up their sites and keeping everything up to date.
The trade-off here is that a self-hosted environment gives a business more freedom to use whatever solution is required, including their own custom-developed plugins, which means hiring or training someone within the company to handle maintenance and security chores.
Managed WordPress hosting is more expensive than self-hosting, but it is less expensive than hiring or training someone to handle technical issues.
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A small business is switching from Wix to self-hosted WordPress
The Reddit user who asked the question explained that a neighbor was switching from Wix to a self-hosted WordPress environment.
They stated that the current Wix website performed admirably in terms of page speed and ranking.
The person starting the discussion noted:
“…his current website scores a 98 in SEO on lighthouse, and clients tell him all the time that he is the first local company that pops up in results.”
It is not unreasonable to believe that the SEO who is developing the self-hosted WordPress website for the SMB is fixing something that does not need to be fixed.
It appears that the company is doing well on Wix.
Wix, according to John Mueller, is suitable for SEO
Google’s John Mueller responded to the question by first addressing the issue of Wix and SEO, followed by a discussion of self-hosting a WordPress site, which is what the company was in the process of doing when it switched from Wix to WordPress.
Mueller said:
“Wix is fine for SEO. A few years back it was pretty bad in terms of SEO, but they’ve made fantastic progress, and are now a fine platform for businesses. The reputation from back then lingers on, but don’t be swayed by it.
What they’ve done in recent years is really good stuff, including making it trivial to have a really fast site (as you see in the Lighthouse scores — admittedly, speed is only a tiny part of SEO).
If Wix works for them, and they don’t need more, there’s no reason to switch.”
John Mueller advises SMBs against going self-hosted
Mueller went on to say that a self-hosted WordPress environment might not be a good idea for a small business that does not have a dedicated web support team.
It’s important to remember that Mueller’s response was given in the context of a discussion about a specific SMB with limited web support transitioning from a high-performing Wix site to an unmanaged WordPress environment.
Mueller responded:
“In particular, do not move to something self-hosted.
Hosting a site yourself comes with a million tiny hassles, and a business without a dedicated support team will struggle doing the right things, and end up getting hacked + have to invest a ton to improve infrastructure over time (speed, security, functionality).
Some people like the challenge, but if your neighbor likes running a non-IT business, then they should not run their own server (eg, host WordPress themselves).
I know running WP yourself is still somewhat popular, but for a SMB that has other things on their mind, it’s absolutely a bad thing to do.
There are hosted & managed WP setups, they cost money, but they do these things for you.
Wix also does all of this for you. Squarespace, etc – similarly.”
Google’s John Mueller Participating On Reddit
Is it better to use managed hosting or software as a service?
Companies such as Wix and Squarespace provide a Software As A Service (SaaS) approach, in which the platform is completely optimized for businesses, with the goal of making it easy for businesses to get online and run their businesses, with the technology part getting out of the way so that the small business can focus on their business.
Managed WordPress hosting accomplishes the same thing for businesses that choose a WordPress solution, but with some limitations.
Because of their highly optimized improved SEO and page speed capabilities, Wix may have an advantage over managed WordPress hosting.
Because page speed and, to a lesser extent, SEO is dependent on the WordPress template and plugins used, a managed WordPress host has limited influence over SEO and Page Speed.
One thing is certain, as John Mueller pointed out, if Wix is working for a small business, there is no reason to switch to a different platform.
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