Website Security: Why WordPress is Safer Than You Think

Heard rumours that WordPress isn’t secure? It’s time to set the record straight.

Despite what you may have heard, WordPress is one of the most secure and reliable platforms, and is one of the most widely used globally.

WordPress continuously monitors its core system for vulnerabilities, and the dedicated security team rapidly releases patches to address any issues immediately. This proactive monitoring, paired with best practices, keeps millions of sites safe every day.

As with any platform, good management is key—security issues often arise not from WordPress itself, but from poor maintenance practices.

 

We take the guesswork out of security by actively managing and safeguarding your site. Here’s how we ensure your WordPress site stays secure:

How We Keep Your Website Safe and Secure

1. Cloudflare Integration for Advanced Protection

We leverage Cloudflare’s powerful Web Application Firewall (WAF) to block malicious traffic, including DDoS attacks and SQL injections. Cloudflare masks your server’s IP address, adds an extra layer of encryption with free SSL certificates, and ensures traffic is routed securely across its global network to prevent direct attacks.

2. Private, Dedicated Server Hosting

Your site is hosted on our private server at the Auckland Data Centre, ensuring you don’t share resources—or risks—with other websites. This helps us mitigate security vulnerabilities often associated with shared hosting environments.

3. Robust Security Plugins and Regular Updates

We use top-tier security plugins to monitor your site 24/7. These plugins provide firewall protection, malware scans, and login attempt limitations. We also ensure every plugin, theme, and the WordPress core is always up-to-date with the latest security patches.

4. Frequent Backups with Quick Recovery

We conduct regular backups to ensure that if anything goes wrong, your website can be restored quickly with minimal downtime. Our backups are stored securely, and we test recovery procedures to ensure smooth transitions when needed.

5. Clean Backend to Minimise Risk

A tidy backend isn’t just good for performance—it’s essential for security. We remove unused plugins, themes, and media files that could become security vulnerabilities over time. A lean site is harder for hackers to exploit and easier for us to monitor for potential threats.

Rest Easy with a Secure WordPress Website

With these security measures in place, WordPress becomes one of the most secure CMS platforms in the world. When managed properly, it’s a powerful, flexible tool that you can trust to protect your business.

Ready to make your website safer and more resilient? Get in touch and let’s talk about how we can secure your WordPress site!

BOOK A CHAT WITH US

 

 

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Why your website should be about your customers, not you.

In the world of web design, it’s easy for businesses to become hyper-focused on showcasing their products, services, and brand story.

However, one critical aspect is often overlooked: the customer. When visitors land on your website, they’re not there to read about how great your business is; they’re looking for solutions to their problems.

This is where a customer-centric website design comes into play.

Understanding Customer Intent:

To build a customer-centric website, the first step is to understand your audience’s intent. What challenges are they facing? What solutions are they searching for? Often, businesses make the mistake of crafting their websites as digital brochures rather than focusing on answering these vital customer questions.

Shift Your Mindset: Think Like a Customer:

Instead of thinking about your business from an internal viewpoint, put yourself in your customers’ shoes. When they visit your site, what do they want to achieve? Are they searching for specific information, products, or services? Your website should quickly and clearly guide them to those answers. In other words, your website isn’t about your business; it’s about how you can help them.

Streamlining the Customer Journey

At Merge Media, we prioritise making the customer journey as seamless as possible. This involves creating intuitive navigation, clear calls-to-action, and mobile-friendly designs. It’s about removing obstacles and providing a path that naturally leads to the solutions customers are looking for. For example, if your primary audience is searching for product specifications, they shouldn’t have to dig through a dozen pages to find that information.

Why You Need to Answer “Why” and “How”

When visitors land on your website, they often have two key questions: “Why should I choose this business?” and “How will they solve my problem?” Address these questions directly on your homepage or landing pages. By emphasising the benefits customers will experience, rather than just listing your offerings, you make it easier for them to see the value in choosing your business.

Personalisation is Key

Personalisation is another critical aspect of a customer-centric website. Whether it’s providing tailored recommendations, addressing the customer directly using inclusive language, or using customer testimonials, personalizing your content shows visitors that you understand their needs.

Our Approach to Customer-Centric Design

At Merge Media, we collaborate closely with our clients to craft websites that cater to their customers’ needs. Our process includes in-depth research into customer behavior and preferences, and we design websites that answer the “why” and “how” from the first click. We prioritize ease of use, clear messaging, and mobile optimization to ensure that visitors enjoy a frictionless experience from start to finish.

Creating a customer-centric website isn’t just about good design; it’s about building trust and providing real value to your visitors from the moment they arrive.

Let’s start building a site that truly resonates with your audience. Get in touch!

BOOK A CHAT WITH US

 

 

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Merge Media design beautiful branding across all media for brand consistency.

The Importance of Branding Consistency Across All Media

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In today’s highly competitive market, creating a strong and consistent brand is paramount.

Branding goes beyond a mere logo or tagline; it encompasses every aspect of how your business is perceived by customers.

One of the critical areas where branding consistency must be maintained is across all media, particularly on your website.

This article explores the significance of consistent branding and provides insights from industry experts on why it is essential for brand and business owners to establish robust branding before developing their website.

What is Branding Consistency?

 Branding consistency involves maintaining a uniform image and message across all platforms and marketing materials. This means that every piece of content, whether it’s your website, social media posts, signage, or promotional collateral, should reflect the same visual style, tone of voice, and core values. Consistency helps build recognition, trust, and loyalty among your audience.

Why is it important?

It Enhances Brand Recognition

Consistency in branding ensures that your audience can easily recognise your brand across various channels.  According to branding expert Neil Patel, consistent presentation of a brand increases revenue by up to 23% .

When customers see the same colours, logos, and messages repeated, it reinforces their memory and recognition of the brand. Neil Patel

Seth Godin, in “This is Marketing,” noted, “A brand is the set of expectations, memories, stories, and relationships that, taken together, account for a consumer’s decision to choose one product or service over another.” This quote highlights the role of consistency in building and sustaining consumer relationships and expectations.

 Strengthens Marketing Efforts & Supports Customer Loyalty 

Consistent branding creates a unified front for all marketing efforts. When your social media posts, advertisements, and website share the same design and messaging, it amplifies the impact of your marketing campaigns.  It also ensures that all marketing activities contribute to a cohesive brand narrative, making your campaigns more effective.

Branding consistency helps create an emotional connection with customers. When customers know what to expect from your brand, they are more likely to develop a sense of loyalty, leading to more referrals.

Why Consistency is Crucial for Websites

Your website is often the first point of contact between your brand and potential customers. Therefore, it is crucial that your website accurately reflects your brand’s identity.

If you would like some help with your branding or developing a brand guideline, get in touch!

BOOK A CHAT WITH US

 

 

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10 things to consider when setting up your business

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If you’re diving into the business world for the first time, the amount decisions you need to make can feel overwhelming. Where do you start?!

As a web and graphic designer passionate about helping my clients bring their visions to life, I’ve curated a list of 10 essential considerations to ensure your venture starts off the right way. From defining your brand identity to establishing a solid online presence, each step is crucial to laying the groundwork for your success.

When starting your business journey, here are a few things you need to do:

 

 

  1. Define Your Identity: Whether it’s choosing a business name or refining your brand identity, clarity is key. Reach out to Miranda at [email protected] for expert marketing guidance if you’re having trouble!

  2. Check the Companies Office Register: Ensure your chosen business name is available, distinct, and not too similar to your competitors. Click here to check now. If it’s available, register it!

  3. Is your domain name available? Check availability on Discount Domains and secure your online presence. Make sure it’s not too long so it’s easy to fit on your marketing collateral. If it’s available, buy it!

  4. Set up your email address: Now that you’ve purchased your domain name, it’s time to set up your business email address. If this sounds too technical, get in touch and our team can help!

  5. Decide on your budget: We have a range of customisable packages available, check them out here or contact us for a free consultation to discuss your individual requirements.

  6. Gather inspiration: Have a look around at brands and logos you like. What do your competitors look like? While we may be great graphic designers, we are terrible mind readers! It’s our job to find out your likes and dislikes, so we’re heading down the right track from the start. Compile and share a Pinterest board with us or gather images from Google so we can see your preferences and brand vision. Find out more about briefing a graphic designer here.

  7. Do you have a memorable brand and logo? Complete our branding brief form here so we have all the information about your business we need to start. Once that’s designed and finalised, we’ll supply your logo guideline you need for signage and documentation.

  8. Get your website up and running: Starting with your key words in mind, we’ll create a site plan and website that becomes your #1 salesperson. Fill in our website brief form so we’ve got all the info we need!

  9. Write great content: You have the option of either writing web copy yourself, or if you don’t have time (the the know-how), our expert copywriter can help with Google-friendly content.

  10. Set up a Google My Business listing: This allows you to feature on Google Maps and gather client reviews. This is important for search engine optimisation purposes.

 

We’ve done it all before and helped many business owners get set up and on their way to business success!

If you need further guidance, get in touch with Renee for a free consultation.

YES PLEASE! BOOK ME IN!
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Need more quality leads from your site? Here’s how we help.

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Merge Media Ultimate Website Checklist

A Website Lead Generation Document is a strategically designed digital asset on a company’s website, with the primary goal of capturing visitor information, such as names and email addresses.

Typically, these documents take the form of downloadable resources, such as eBooks, whitepapers, checklists, or guides, offering valuable content to visitors in exchange for their contact details.

Merge Media Ultimate Website Checklist

How does it work?

  • By Offering Value: The document serves as a valuable resource related to the business’s niche. It could be industry insights, how-to guides, or expert tips that address common pain points of the target audience.
  • Prominent Placement: The document is strategically placed on the website, often through eye-catching call-to-action buttons or pop-ups, enticing visitors to download the resource.
  • Opt-in Form: To access the document, visitors are prompted to fill out a short opt-in form, providing their contact information. This information is then stored in a database for future communication.
  • Automated Follow-ups: Once the information is collected, businesses can leverage automated email marketing campaigns to nurture leads, providing additional value and guiding them through the sales funnel.

What are the benefits of website lead generation?

  1. Builds Credibility: Offering valuable content positions your business as an authority in your industry, enhancing credibility and trust among your audience.
  2. Generates Quality Leads: By attracting visitors genuinely interested in your content, you’re more likely to capture high-quality leads who are potentially interested in your products or services.
  3. Nurtures Relationships: Automated follow-up emails enable ongoing communication, allowing businesses to nurture relationships with leads over time, increasing the likelihood of conversion.
  4. Data Collection: Gathering contact information provides valuable data for understanding your audience, enabling more targeted marketing efforts and personalized communication.
  5. Boosts Conversion Rates: Providing a tangible benefit in the form of a valuable resource increases the chances of visitors taking the desired action, whether it’s making a purchase or requesting more information.
  6. Enhances Marketing ROI: Targeted lead generation efforts contribute to a more efficient use of marketing resources, ensuring that efforts are focused on individuals genuinely interested in your offerings.
  7. Supports Content Marketing Strategy: The document becomes a cornerstone of your content marketing strategy, attracting and engaging your target audience while supporting your overall marketing goals.

In the era of digital marketing, a Website Lead Generation Document is a powerful tool for businesses looking to expand their online reach, capture high-quality leads, and nurture meaningful relationships with their audience.

By strategically implementing and promoting these documents, businesses can unlock a wealth of opportunities and take a significant step towards sustained success in the digital realm.

Want help to get more quality leads from your site?

We’ll help you plan, design, content write and implement your website lead generation document.

Check out our our own Merge Media Lead Generation page and get in touch if you need help with yours!

 

YES PLEASE! HELP ME WITH MY LEAD GEN

 

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Clear the cobwebs from your website. Here are 8 reasons why!

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Clear the cobwebs from your website. Here's why!
  • Is your website is still your top salesperson or have enquiries slowly started dropping?
  • Are customers getting frustrated because your contact details, products, services or prices are out of date?
  • Do your competitors now have a more exciting site than you?

In the ever-evolving digital marketing landscape, maintaining a vibrant and up-to-date website is crucial for so many reasons. Here’s a breakdown of why regular updates matter:

1. If you forget about your site, so will Google!

Google favours regularly updated sites and will boost a well maintained website’s visibility in search results. Regular updates signal to search engines that your site is active and relevant, positively impacting your SEO ranking.

2. Industries adapt and evolve, and so should your website

Regular updates reflect your commitment to staying current with trends, technologies, and best practices.

3. Give your customers a reason to return

No-one wants to see the same old thing every time they visit! Fresh content and updated images keep visitors engaged, interested and coming back again, fostering a loyal audience. Outdated information can also lead to confusion and frustration for potential customers. Are you prices, project pages and contact details up to date?

4. Updates keep your site secure

Regular updates include software patches and security measures, safeguarding your website against potential threats and vulnerabilities.

An outdated website is more susceptible to hacking and other security breaches.

5. Increased brand image and credibility

A well-maintained website with updated visuals and content contribute to a professional and trustworthy image…which reflects positively on your brand. It shows that you care about your online presence and value your audience’s experience.

6. Better Social Media integration

Updated content provides fresh material for sharing on social media platforms, driving traffic back to your website. Social media traffic is increasingly influential in search engine algorithms so making a strong social media presence beneficial for SEO.

7. Updates maintain your competitive edge

Staying ahead of competitors requires continuous improvement to ensure you’re staying ahead of them. Regular updates demonstrate your commitment to being a leader in your industry.

A modern and dynamic website is more likely to attract and retain users compared to a stagnant or outdated one.

8. It saves you money in the long run

Updating small bits and pieces regularly means you won’t be left behind or need to spend hundreds on a massive overhaul further down the track. Keep an eye on what your competitors are doing and do small tweaks regularly.

In conclusion, online digital marketing is dynamic and always changing so maintaining an up-to-date website is essential for success.

Regular updates not only improve user experience but also contribute to improved SEO, security, and overall brand credibility. By investing time and resources in keeping your website current, your business will stay in position for sustained growth and relevance in the online world.

We’re the experts in making your site your top salesperson so book your free 30 minute website content review with us here.

Book a website content review
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What are plugins and what do they do?

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A plug-in, put simply, is a piece of software that adds new features or extends functionality on an existing application.

When it comes to websites, these are paramount to ensuring functionality, improving speed and efficiency, and maximizing your customer’s experience. They can help your website be unique in the way it appears, ie the ability to use certain fonts that relate to your brand, help maintain your site’s security, ensure your site has the ability to be backed up and/or restored (god forbid your site ever gets hacked) and provide your website with great SEO solutions, plus much more.

How did plugins come about?

Early on in the timeline of the Internet, websites offered visitors a very limited experience. Most websites could only display simple text, a few still images and links. Plugins were born as a solution to overcome the limitations of early HyperText Markup Language (HTML), the standard coding language programmers use to create webpages. They very much helped to create a more engaging experience for site visitors. Since then, plugin usage has become a very important aspect of web design. There are now thousands of plugins that people can easily install and use on their websites.

Why you should use plugins

If you want the ability to expand the functionality of your website quickly and easily, then plugins are a no-brainer. Web designers can usually download and install them within minutes. Plugins are also need to be updated frequently, often several times per year, as they regularly offer performance and security improvements.

Some things to consider, if you are creating your own site…

When you download and install a plugin, you are relying on the third-party developer that created the program, to be legit. Some plugins are excellent and function exactly as described, while others are buggy, redundant, or lacking in security.

Security issues– Platforms like WordPress are widely regarded to being very secure, but when external sources – like plugins – are invited in, security can be compromised and leave the website vulnerable to hacking. Even some of the most widely used WordPress plugins, have suffered security flaws in the past.

Drain on resources – Every plugin you install adds “weight” to your website. Plugins consume processing power which can slow down your website and even cause it crash.

Conflicts – Sometimes plug-ins react badly with certain websites. They can clash with a CMS, website theme or even other plug-ins, particularly after the user processes an update.

Paid versus free plug-ins
Thousands of free plugins are available for download, however, they don’t offer much support to the user. Web designers that use paid plugins are more invested in providing good customer service and try to keep the programs bug-free and compatible with the platform they were designed for. It can take many hours of research to make sure that the plugins you’re thinking of downloading have good reviews and are not likely to cause you any headaches down the road.

That’s why at Merge Media, we are the best option for ensuring your website runs smoothly, with no major issues for you, as we have created numerous websites over the years with our clients’ trust, happiness and stress levels in mind!

VIEW OUR SITES

CONTACT US FOR A FREE WEB CONSULTATION

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Why we love our design sub-contractors

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Quality design sub-contractors are worth their weight in gold…

Here at Merge Media we are proud to say that we work closely with a wide range of professional and quality sub-contractors for many, if not most, of our web and graphic design clients.

We can either work directly with them or can refer them onto our clients, whatever is preferred. Interested in learning more? We’ve put together below, 4 important reasons why we use and refer to quality sub-contractors as part of our business:

1. Skilled sub-contractors provide the best expertise

Skilled sub-contractors will offer a superior service and provide expert advice and services, such as our SEO expert, David Partis from Website Optimisers. Furthermore, they have been working in a specific field for a number of years and have had ample opportunity to hone their skills. With there being so many aspects to website optimisation for example, such as SEO/Adwords etc, having an expert in this field to refer to, is paramount. We want to make sure that your website can not only look its best, but rank well in Google too.

Over the years, we have come to know our sub-contractors personally and we are proud of the amazing work they do, which in turn, has helped our business grow and achieve excellent results for our clients.

2. Increased productivity

Increasing productivity is one of the biggest positives of working with quality and trusted sub-contractors. Our time is therefore increased – being able to focus on what Merge Media does best – creating stunning websites, branding and graphic design. We can get your job done faster for you, without compromising on quality.

3. It is cost efficient & risk adverse

Hiring the best sub-contractors is often much more cost effective than bringing on new, full-time employees – so these cost savings also get passed onto our clients. Even more importantly, it also helps avoid risk by hiring a reliable and safe sub-contractor, with substantial, specialised, experience.

4. We love to support local, skilled sub-contractors

Being actively involved in our local BNI group, we love to support our local, professional sub-contractors where we can – it helps them out, as well as us. Being able to get to know some of our highly skilled local sub-contractors has been valuable to our business, as we can be confident going forward using their services, knowing that our clients will be receiving only the best and in turn, achieving excellent results for their own businesses.

What sub-contractors do we use?

Here are Merge Media, our main sub-contractors we work with are photographers, signwriters, SEO consultants, marketing consultants, copywriters and web developers to name a few. These are all highly important people that we refer to for our projects, ensuring they are also adding value to your brand.

Click below, to find out more about our latest project for Pohutukawa Coast Vets – where we have utilised our amazing sub-contractors to achieve stunning signage, photography and a well optimised website.

MORE ABOUT THIS PROJECT CONTACT US FOR A FREE WEB CONSULTATION
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The pros and cons of using a free website builder

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Website builders – what you should know…

Are you thinking of creating your own website using one of the many DIY website builders out there? If so, you’ll need to read this, as it may save you from any headaches down the line…

Your head may be swimming with all the different choices out there… so let’s get to the nitty gritty of it. It could ultimately save you time, money and stress by doing a little bit of research first, before you go diving headfirst into your web project.

Pros of using a DIY website builder:

  • SOME plans are free
  • Different plans & pricing to choose from (simple site to e-commerce options)
  • Responsive (easy to view on multiple devices) templates
  • Easy to build including ‘drag & drop templates

Cons of using a DIY website builder:

  • Free plans often have too many limitations to really be used as a proper working website
  • Your domain name may still have the web builder’s name in it. ie: http://www.carolescakes.wixsite.com
  • You may have their ads on every page
  • You may have the web builder’s logo on your site
  • The site may not support third-party apps, plugins or extensions (this limits you customising your site to how you want it to look and function)
  • Unless you are wanting to pay a similar amount per month to sites like Shopify, you will be limited with your site’s storage – ie some cheaper plans still only offer limited storage, so would only be appropriate for say showing off a student portfolio/blog/passion project etc
  • You may not have the option of moving to a faster server, if your website is loading too slowly

So putting it simply, it comes down to a few things…

  • Do you have a service-based or e-commerce site?
  • How simple or complicated is your site likely to be with regard to functionality?
  • How much time can you afford to spend creating your site?
  • Are you certain that your content is the best it can be (including copy writing, basic and more involved SEO)?
  • How confident are you that you have excellent quality, web-ready photographs and the appropriate digital web files to use (ie logos and other branding elements).

If you are adamant that you can build yourself a site from scratch, that is fast loading, easy to navigate, ranks well in Google and looks beautiful, then you probably don’t need to be reading this post!

However, if you are not 100% certain you can pull it off and quite frankly, don’t have the time, let the Merge Media team do what we do best – by building you an amazing website that will knock your socks off!

We are the experts… we have helped countless poor souls out there who have unfortunately run into trouble with building their own websites and have needed help to get back on track, and quickly!

Our custom built, WordPress websites not only have a versatile and easy to use theme, but they get results. We even offer basic training so you can hit the ground running and make any basic tweaks to your site, yourself (or you can let us take care of this).

VIEW OUR SITES
CONTACT US FOR A FREE WEB CONSULTATION
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How to create websites that work

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Websites that work – what does that mean?

If you’re wondering what aspects are vital for a well built and engaging website, keep reading!

Read more

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