Are you a “let me tinker” person or a “just make it work” person?
See, I think there are two core types of WordPress users…
- The people who actually like tinkering with their WordPress site. They enjoy trying different themes. Testing out that cool new plugin. Adding little code snippets to get that perfect functionality.
- The people who just want their WordPress site to work so that they can focus on creating content and attracting visitors. There’s no “joy” in WordPress. It’s just a tool to help reach an audience.
If you count yourself in the latter group, StudioPress is about to drop a service that is going to make your dreams come true.
It’s called StudioPress Sites. It’s an all-in-one WordPress solution based on the Genesis framework. All-in-one means it covers everything from hosting, to security, to one-click installs of OptinMonster, Beaver Builder Lite, and more.
Think of it as a middle ground between hosting/tinkering with your own WordPress site and using a completely managed system like Rainmaker.
Basically, StudioPress Sites aims to remove the technology barrier to WordPress, leaving you free to focus on creating content and growing your audience.
Take a look at StudioPress Sites
StudioPress Sites Covers Your Hosting
Figuring out hosting can be hard. If you’re a beginner, you know what I’m talking about. If you’ve already earned your WordPress stripes, try to remember back to when you were launching your first site.
Wouldn’t it be nice to have someone just hand you an already working WordPress install, instead of having to figure out:
- What hosting is
- Which WordPress hosts are reliable
- How to install WordPress once you bite the bullet and purchase hosting
StudioPress Sites does that. It sets you up with WordPress-optimized hosting that scales to handle traffic spikes.
While the process of getting started with WordPress is simple if you’re already familiar with WordPress, I think beginners will greatly benefit from such a simple system.
You Get Access to 20+ Powerful Genesis Themes
Here’s the best part – because StudioPress Sites comes from, well, StudioPress…you get access to the Genesis framework.
If you’re not familiar with Genesis, it’s basically a WordPress framework built on a rock-solid foundation of SEO and performance. SEO and performance are two of the biggest things you need to focus on for any WordPress site, so having one framework take care of both is actually pretty dang awesome.
StudioPress Sites even ups Genesis’ already stellar SEO features with advanced schema control, XML sitemap generation, robots.txt generation, asynchronous JavaScript loading, enhanced Open Graph output, breadcrumb title control, AMP support, and more.
All in all, you should have a technically optimized, quick-loading site.
And as an added bonus, you also get access to 20+ of StudioPress’ best-selling Genesis child themes.
When you consider that Genesis itself costs $59.95 and most Genesis child themes are at least another $40, those are no mere throw-ins.
Security and Some Other Managed Hosting Features
If you’re familiar with managed WordPress hosting, you know that quality managed WordPress hosts almost always handle updates and add extra layers of security.
It’s no different with StudioPress Sites – you get intrusion detection, malware monitoring, DDoS protection, and other security goodies to keep your site safe.
And, perhaps most important for security, StudioPress Sites automatically updates your WordPress software and plugins. Given that most hacked WordPress sites are running out-of-date WordPress software, this will go a long way towards keeping your site safe.
One-Click Installs for Certain Plugins
StudioPress Sites makes it easy to install certain key plugins. Currently, that list covers WooCommerce, Design Palette Pro, AMP, Beaver Builder Lite, OptinMonster, AffiliateWP, Soliloquy Lite, Easy Digital Downloads, Restrict Content Pro, Ninja Forms, WPForms Lite.
There are also promises to add more plugins.
To be honest, this is the least intriguing feature. Installing a plugin listed on WordPress.org is already trivial even if you’re a beginner. But if you’re interested in saving a few valuable mouse clicks, StudioPress Sites can do it for you, I guess.
Will StudioPress Sites Let You Tinker?
Here’s what I’m really liking about StudioPress Sites. While it’s set up to put WordPress on autopilot and remove the need to tinker, it doesn’t seem like it’s going to forbid you from tinkering.
You’ll have FTP access and can install your own themes and plugins. You can also tinker with your theme by adding custom CSS. And if you want to install a Genesis child theme outside of the 20+ included themes, you can still do that.
One of the main issues I had with Rainmaker (another offering from the same company as StudioPress Sites) is that you couldn’t install your own plugins. I understand why Rainmaker made that decision, but it was never for me.
StudioPress Sites seems to have found a nice middle ground. You don’t need to tinker. But if you want to tinker, they’re not taking that ability away from you.
How Much Does StudioPress Sites Cost?
Time for the million dollar question – how much is all of this convenience going to cost you?
Currently, if you go month-to-month, you’re looking at either $27 or $37 per month. If you’re willing to splurge on the annual plan, you’ll save some money on the monthly rate.
When you consider that you’re basically getting managed hosting as part of the deal, those prices are more than fair. You may still need to pay for some premium plugins, but you have the majority of your site’s costs bundled up into one affordable rate.
Should You Go With StudioPress Sites?
Will I be going with StudioPress Sites for my next project? Honestly – no. I’m a tinkerer. I enjoy the chaos. I want to dig into my site, handle my own hosting/updates, and deal with it when things go wrong.
But I’m weird. So let’s talk about you.
If you’re not like that, if you’d rather ignore the technology and just write blog posts, market to visitors, and maybe sell some products, then I think you should seriously consider StudioPress Sites.
StudioPress has rightfully built itself a name for quality with Genesis. Now, that framework is packaged up and made easy for beginners, while still offering significantly more flexibility than Rainmaker (not to mention being much, much cheaper than Rainmaker).
If you want to put WordPress on autopilot, I think it’s absolutely worth considering for your website.
Learn More and Purchase StudioPress Sites
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