With 24% of the Internet being powered by WordPress sites, it’s perhaps the most easiest and popular blogging and website CMS on the Internet.  Yet, because there are so many sites that use this platform, it’s highly susceptible to hackers and malicious software being installed that can turn into a complete nightmare for your business.  A hacked WordPress website can result in big costs, literally and figuratively that can impact your budget, lead generation goals, user experience and revenue.

Besides the obvious financial cost of having to compensate developers for resolving your website issue, the focus here is to highlight a few other major costs of a hacked WordPress website and the impact it will have on your brand.  The goal is to make you aware that it can happen to any website and how you can take preventative measures to better secure your content.

3 Big Costs of a Hacked WordPress Website

#1 Vital information lost

From blog content, customer/membership information, to sales pages and high-quality videos, all of your data can be wiped clean from a single hacking experience.  The loss can be catastrophic, irretrievable if you do not have a proper backup system in place where you regularly save your files and data.  What’s worst is this data can be used for malicious intentions, causing more damage and problems for your business.  Data breaches are serious and can spiral into legal battles if not handled expeditiously.

Don’t put this type of strain on your business…protect your site.

#2 Precious time spent getting the problem resolved

A hacked website will push a chunk of your goals back, taking time away from needed projects and marketing objectives that are geared towards growing your business.  It’s a huge distraction and adds undue stress to you and your team members.  In fact,

“This leads to a minimum of a half of a day of cleanup, which adds cost to whatever project they are doing, and delays it a bit,” WhatArmy Service Director Chad Lord said, “Depending on the degree of infection, things can take longer and can hold up time-sensitive projects.” (Source:Business2Community)

Therefore, a hacked site can breed frustration, precious time lost towards fulfilling projects and deadlines, and money lost due to unproductive employees.

#3 Missed opportunities in revenue, lead generation and new visitor experience

The primary goals of your website is to showcase your brand, capture new email subscribers to grow your list, share valuable content that’s optimized for search visibility, and generate new sales…just to name a few.  The longer you’re offline due to a hacked situation, the more chances missed for achieving these goals, all crucial to your bottom-line.  It also leaves a negative impression for new visitors landing on your page…they may not understand what’s going on, yet a first impression is usually a lasting one.

Therefore you are losing revenue and tampering with your brands reputation by being hacked.  Take proactive measures to ensure your site is kept safe to keep your business running…smoothly!

How to Prevent from Being Hacked

Now that you have a clear understanding of the pitfalls to a hacked website, here are a few tips to help safeguard your site to prevent this malicious act from occurring:

  • Keep your WordPress software up-to-date – This includes your site in addition to your theme and plugins you use. Some hosting providers will automatically update your software, however, if you manually have to perform these updates, be sure to remain current to maintain optimal performance
  • Install the WP Antivirus Site Protection or the free version of Sucuri.net.
  • Be sure to backup your WordPress site regularly, including the database and files
  • If you’ve already been hacked, visit WordPress’s FAQ page…this resource provides an excellent check points on the steps to take if you’re in this situation. See if any of these actions help you to recover. Our team has fixed hundreds of hacked WordPress websites, contact our team for help. You can sign up for our monthly WordPress optimization plan and we will fix your hacked WordPress website right away or fill out the contact form and someone from our team will help you with your WordPress problems!
  • If the problem still persists, contact your hosting provider

Conclusion

Your website is your brand’s biggest asset.  It is the hub to your content strategy, lead generation, brand awareness, SEO, and sales transaction.  It’s crucial to take the steps necessary to keep it secure and take initiative for safeguarding your site.

For complete assurance in your website functioning at its best while meeting the goals, needs and objectives of your business, it is ideal to leverage a team that specializes in WordPress for ironing out kinks, protects your site, runs weekly performance checks, and offers around-the-clock monitoring.

Much success!