How to create a website for an organization with several subsidiaries with WordPress?

Creating a website for an organization with multiple subsidiaries can be complex. Indeed, this complexity increases particularly when the organization offers distinct services. For a group of companies, it may be essential to adopt a common design or maintain certain similarities. Multiple organizations may wish to share resources or efficiently manage different websites. WordPress offers various options that make it easier for an organization to create and deploy a website, without draining resources or making management more complex. This article explores the different solutions offered by WordPress. Our advice will allow you to manage several websites via a single administrative dashboard. Before the end of the article, we will examine the advantages and disadvantages of each option , to help you choose the most suitable for your needs.

The standard approach to website creation for an organization

The traditional approach to creating a website for an organization is to develop a separate website for each subsidiary. This strategy, although widespread, presents several significant challenges.

High development cost

The first major challenge is the cost associated with developing and maintaining multiple sites. The need to design each site from scratch results in considerable costs in terms of time and financial resources. With each subsidiary requiring its own development cycle, costs can quickly become prohibitive. This is especially true for organizations operating on a limited budget.

Management complexity

Another significant problem lies in the management of these sites . Managers must juggle different administrative panels to update or modify content. As a direct consequence, this makes the process tedious and prone to errors. This dispersion of management efforts hampers operational efficiency and can lead to content inconsistencies between different websites.

Security Challenges

Safety is also a major concern. Managing multiple sites means dealing with multiple vulnerability vectors. Therefore, this increases the risk of negligence and security breaches. A successful attack on one site can simultaneously affect that specific entity, damaging the reputation of the entire organization.

In summary

Issues related to development costs, management complexity and security challenges suggest the need to reconsider this approach. Indeed, with web development tools such as WordPress, this can be relatively easy.

The different website creation options for a WordPress organization.

WordPress offers a variety of options for organizations wanting to grow their online presence. Indeed, thanks to its numerous tools and those developed by its vast community, creating a website for a group of companies becomes an accessible and flexible task. Let's take a closer look at three main options that WordPress offers businesses:

1. WordPress Network (WordPress Multisite)

WordPress Multisite is a built-in feature that allows you to manage a site collection from a single WordPress dashboard. Once activated, it allows you to create a network of sites under a single domain or under different domains.

Benefits

• Centralized management: Manage all your sites from a single admin panel, simplifying maintenance and updating content.
• Sharing themes and plugins: Install themes and plugins once so they're available across all sites on the network.
• Cost Efficiency: Reduces operational costs by minimizing the need to maintain multiple separate WordPress installations.

Disadvantages

• Technical complexity: setting up and managing a Multisite network can be complex for novice users.
• Customization Limitations: Subsites share the same themes and plugins, which may limit individual customization.
• Database duplication. Although WordPress Network offers management from a panel, there is no real connection between the content.

With the right expertise, leveraging WordPress Network for your business becomes very easy. Contact us if you need assistance. Would you like to know more about WordPress network? Check out this blog post from Prositeweb .

2. WordPress REST API

The WordPress REST API allows developers to build applications using WordPress core as a backend. It offers the ability to access, manage and publish WordPress content through standard HTTP requests, facilitating integration with other applications and services. It is an ideal solution for creating Headless CMS. Indeed, if you want to create a website for an organization, you can use WordPress as an administrator panel and deploy the sites under different domain names.

Benefits

• Flexibility: Allows easy integration with other systems and technologies.
• Application development: Ideal for developing web and mobile applications using WordPress as a content management system.

Disadvantages:

• Requires development skills: Effective use of the REST API requires an understanding of web development principles.
• Security: Exposes your site to potential vulnerabilities if the API is not properly secured.

At Prositeweb, we can support you in your website development process with the REST API.

3. WordPress Plugins

Here are some examples of alternative plugins to WordPress Multisite:

ManageWP

ManageWP is a service that allows you to manage multiple WordPress sites from a single dashboard. Indeed, it offers features such as:

• one-click updates,
• backups,
• security monitoring,
• and performance optimization for multiple sites.

Although it is not a plugin per se, it is an online platform that connects to your sites via a Worker plugin.

MainWP

MainWP is an open-source solution that allows users to centrally manage multiple WordPress sites. It offers a single interface from which you can:

• update plugins and themes,
• publish content,
• and manage backups for all your WordPress sites.

It’s a one-stop solution; because it installs on your own WordPress hosting. Therefore, this giving you full control and increased privacy.

InfiniteWP

InfiniteWP is another platform designed to simplify managing multiple WordPress sites. It allows administrators to update plugins, themes, and WordPress from a single dashboard. InfiniteWP also offers additional features through paid add-ons. In the paid option you have, for example, backup management, security and performance monitoring.

Conclusion

Each option WordPress offers for creating a website for an organization has distinct advantages and disadvantages. The choice between WordPress Multisite, the REST API or the plugins will depend on the specific needs of your organization, your budget, and your technical skills. Careful evaluation of each option will help you determine the best strategy for effectively growing and managing your business group's online presence.