Drupal vs. WordPress: Which One is Right For You?

Katherine White Chief Technology Officer

If you’re researching content management systems (CMS), you’ve probably come across Drupal and WordPress. These CMS platforms are two of the most popular systems that help organizations and individuals build and manage websites easily. But how do you know which platform is right for you?

In this guide, we’ll take a deep dive into the basics of each platform to help simplify your choice. Here’s what we’ll cover:

What are WordPress and Drupal?
Drupal vs. WordPress: Side-by-Side Comparison
Which is better: WordPress or Drupal?

Ultimately, finding the right CMS depends on your unique needs, web design experience, and budget. This guide cuts through the noise to deliver need-to-know information for these top platforms.

What are WordPress and Drupal?

Drupal and WordPress are both CMS solutions, which allow users to create and maintain robust websites. These platforms separate a website’s front-end content management from the back-end development process, allowing individuals with no coding experience to add new website content and make updates easily.

Drupal and WordPress are often compared to each other since they are both “open-source,” meaning they’re freely available for anyone to download and can be expanded with additional or modified code. Because of their scalability and flexibility, Drupal and WordPress are both viable options for organizations of any size.

Here are some usage statistics showing how often these platforms are used in comparison to other systems:

CMS usage statistics showing that 43.2% of websites use WordPress and 1.1% of websites use Drupal

WordPress Overview

Currently, WordPress is the world’s most popular CMS. Originally launched in 2003 as a simple blogging platform, WordPress now supports 43.2% of all websites. It’s a free and open-source CMS that many organizations use, like nonprofits and businesses. You can fully customize your WordPress website easily and quickly, with a variety of plugins and themes.

Here are some of the benefits of using WordPress:

WordPress features and benefits (described in the bulleted list below)

Intuitive and easy to use. WordPress is very user-friendly, especially for non-developers. It features an intuitive user interface and simple media management processes.
Quick installation. It’s possible to develop WordPress sites very quickly to test out new ideas, features, and approaches.
Flexible editing experience. The built-in Gutenberg editor and plugins that add additional types of Gutenberg blocks make it simple to visually create a wide variety of layouts for your content.
Robust extensions. WordPress’ third-party theme and plugin communities make it similarly easy to extend WordPress capabilities without custom development.
Support. WordPress has a massive global community thanks to its open-source network, empowering you to find support for any issue.
SEO optimizations. WordPress offers out-of-the-box SEO features such as optimized URL structures and simple methods to verify your site with search engines. You may also download SEO plugins like Yoast that offer SEO recommendations and redirect management.
Media management. The built-in media manager for WordPress is robust, intuitive, and extensible.
Integrations. If you use specialized systems to manage your email lists and customer relationships, chances are that these integrations already exist and are maintained by the tools themselves for WordPress.

Watch Kanopi’s webinar for more details about how to manage content in WordPress:

Drupal Overview

Currently, Drupal powers 0.9% of all websites and 6% of the top 10,000 websites. Although it’s much less commonly used, Drupal is still a viable option for various websites, including sites for government agencies, universities, and nonprofits.

The latest version, Drupal 11, was launched in August 2024. It offers a flexible framework with both out-of-the-box functionality and the ability to expand upon that platform with advanced features and community-contributed code.

Here are some of the benefits of using Drupal:

Drupal features and benefits (described in the bulleted list below)

Customized content modeling. Drupal offers the ability to customize content types, fields, and content presentation to meet any content strategy.
Easy control over user permissions. Drupal has a built-in access control system where you can create new visitor and administrator groups with granular permissions for anywhere from a few users to hundreds of thousands.
Multilingual functionality. Starting with Drupal 8, different versions of the same content can be presented in multiple languages out of the box.
Data management. Drupal’s taxonomy system is flexible and ideal for handling lots of content metadata.
Security. Drupal has a dedicated security team that evaluates widely used modules for any vulnerabilities.
Accessibility. Drupal is committed to aligning its back-end editing experience with WCAG 2.0 guidelines as much as possible, making it a great choice for users who need assistive technologies when creating content and maintaining sites.
Inline editing. For simple layouts, Drupal provides the ability to edit content while “looking at” your site. Keep in mind that as content gets more customized and complex, this is more difficult to use.
Customizable layouts. The built-in Drupal system for managing “blocks” of content for sidebars, footers, and other areas allows for detailed control over which pages and contexts in which the content appears. Additionally, it makes it easier to show the same, editable piece of content site-wide.
SEO optimizations. Free community modules extend Drupal’s core offering with human-readable URLs, XML sitemaps, advanced meta tags, and schema.org vocabularies.
Media management. Drupal ships with a robust Media Library for managing images, videos, documents, and audio files.
Integrations. Drupal integrates with a wide range of third-party applications including Google Analytics, Salesforce, and several social media sites.

Let’s compare the features of these platforms side by side for a clearer understanding of their benefits and potential drawbacks.

Drupal vs. WordPress: Side-by-Side Comparison

	Drupal	WordPress
Ease of use	Steeper learning curve for beginners or non-developers	Simple user interface that beginners can easily grasp
Security	Enterprise-level security and in-depth security reporting	More vulnerabilities due to the plugin ecosystem
Costs	Drupal developers can be more expensive to partner with	WordPress developers are typically more cost-effective
Deployment	More complicated installation process	More straightforward installation process
Performance	Built to load content-heavy sites quickly; offers caching out of the box	Overuse of plugins can slow load speeds; offers plugins to manage caching
Customization	51,000+ modules and 3,000+ themes	59,000+ plugins and 11,000+ themes
Support	Resources include forums, community documentation, training, professional services, and more	Resources include a community forum, tutorials, guides, and professional services
SEO Capabilities	Modules like Pathauto available to manage SEO	Plugins like Yoast available to manage SEO
Noteworthy websites	The State of Rhode Island Eye Recommend Penn State ACLU UNDP	Meta Salesforce Time Physicians for Human Rights Disney

Ease of use

In general, WordPress provides an easier admin user experience, although Drupal is coming close with its recent version releases. The WordPress interface is simple for even the most casual of users to grasp—there’s no need for a third party to step in. WordPress also has more ready-made themes available from sites like ThemeForest, which helps with cost and timeline barriers. For example, Avada is the #1 best-selling WordPress theme.

If you decide to use WordPress, it’ll likely take less time to find a great theme and set up a fully functioning site than with Drupal. Drupal themes do exist, but many Drupal websites use custom-coded themes or at least one that’s highly customized. This is why many Drupal users end up reaching out to developers to make their sites visually appealing and functional. Drupal has become the clear leader as an enterprise-level CMS platform for more complex projects.

While Drupal may require more technical experience and help than WordPress does, this can show in the end product. Drupal is a great option for companies that have more robust, design-heavy requirements, or a lot of customization.

Security

Whether your website hosts important organizational data or processes your constituents’ financial information, you need ample security and protective steps to ward off data breaches or hackers.

Both core systems have some sort of security measures in place. However, WordPress’ massive third-party plugin ecosystem introduces some risks that aren’t as prevalent in Drupal and its modules. Plugin vulnerabilities account for 55.9% of all known entry points of malicious actors.

Statistics showing how WordPress websites were hacked (55.9% were plugin vulnerabilities, 28% were other vulnerabilities, and 16.1% were brute force)

On the other hand, one of Drupal’s top features is its enterprise-level security and ability to provide in-depth security reports. This is a driving factor for why Drupal is often used by government institutions and other large, security-conscious organizations.

Costs

As open-source platforms, Drupal and WordPress are free to use. However, platform costs aren’t the only expenses to consider. If you need development or design support, you’ll have to consider the costs of partnering with a platform expert.

In general, there are fewer Drupal developers than WordPress experts, and Drupal experts tend to offer more specialized services. That could make the cost of working with a Drupal partner more expensive.

Another cost to consider is the price of the platform you choose to host your site. Complex Drupal sites may require more costly hosts, while many WordPress hosts are available for just a few dollars a month.

Costs that are common across both platforms include staff training expenses, maintenance and security support, and additional expenses for plugins or modules.

Deployment

Speed to market is another factor to consider when developing a new website. How quickly do you need to get your site up and running? In general, it tends to be faster and easier to develop a WordPress site and push it live, whereas Drupal’s development process may be more involved.

The migration tools you use or the software experts you partner with also play a major role in the timing of the installation process. Carefully vet your support resources to get more information about the timeline you can expect for getting your site live.

Performance

WordPress and Drupal each offer features to improve your site speed and ensure high performance. For example, Drupal offers built-in site caching tools, while WordPress has a variety of plugins that can help manage caching.

However, WordPress’s vast plugin and theme library present some performance risks. Using too many plugins or poorly designed plugins or themes can slow your site down.

On the other hand, Drupal is built to handle the performance needs of complex websites with robust data needs. Drupal’s built-in optimization features and enterprise-level capabilities support faster load speeds for large websites.

Customization

Thanks to their open-source code, both Drupal and WordPress have ample opportunities for you to expand and customize your CMS to your organization’s needs:

Drupal has 51,000+ modules that you can add to your core platform and 3,000+ themes.
WordPress has 59,000+ plugins to expand your core system and 11,000+ themes.

While WordPress is famous for its clean, consistent administrative interface, Drupal allows you to apply different administrative themes to your website or even use your public-facing theme as part of your site management and editing experience.

Support

If you’re looking for support or advice to manage your website, you’ll find plenty of resources available for both Drupal and WordPress. Since WordPress is much more commonly used, there are plenty of developers and resources available if you need help, such as online tutorials and guides. Drupal also offers forums, robust community documentation, and training support.

SEO Capabilities

Both WordPress and Drupal offer SEO features and extensions that can be integrated into the platforms to help with good search engine ranking. For example, Drupal’s PathAuto module is a great place to start—this module automatically creates user-friendly URLs for your content. In addition, WordPress’s Yoast plugin offers technical SEO suggestions, advanced XML sitemaps, and readability analysis.

Which is better: WordPress or Drupal?

Realistically, there is no best overall CMS, but it is worth it to explore the differences to consider which solution is right for your unique situation and needs.

Taking in the facts above, WordPress is a great solution with its wide range of plugins and extendability options. It’s easy to use, can be set up quickly, and offers a robust community of developers if you ever have questions or concerns.

However, if you are building a more complex site that will facilitate lots of important data or sensitive information, Drupal is a better choice for its high-security features. You can still expand and customize your system, but it might take a little longer.

Partnering with WordPress and Drupal Experts

Regardless of which option you choose, consider partnering with a dedicated website service agency, like Kanopi. Kanopi knows that all organizations and websites are different—they come with their own needs and have different goals. We can aid your journey by learning about your mission and developing the best website for your organization.

On top of helping you figure out the best CMS for your needs, the Kanopi team can:

Kanopi's Drupal and WordPress services (explained in the text below)

Offer experienced support. Working with an experienced developer is essential to give your site the foundation it needs to succeed. Kanopi’s team offers a wealth of experience in both Drupal and WordPress. Each of our Drupal team members has an average of 11 years of Drupal development experience and our WordPress developers regularly speak at WordCamp conferences throughout North America.
Promote a continuous improvement approach. Through this approach, we’ll ensure that your website is always up to date, working properly, and set up for long-term growth. This includes module/plugin upgrades, bug fixes, security patches, third-party integrations, and more.
Stay updated on industry trends, standards, and updates. Regardless of whether you choose WordPress or Drupal, our developers stay up to date with CMS trends by attending conferences and making regular contributions to both communities to help extend and maintain the systems.

For examples of our work, explore our past Drupal and WordPress projects. We work with clients across multiple industries, including healthcare organizations, universities, government organizations, businesses, and nonprofits. We can manage your Drupal or WordPress project at any stage, from migrations to full builds and support.

Our client testimonials speak for themselves—clients emphasize factors like our “honest and transparent” customer service, flexibility, inclusiveness, and “uncanny ability to understand [client] needs.”

Interested in partnering with Kanopi? It doesn’t matter what CMS you use—we would love to hear from you and get started with a customized plan to make your website the best it can be.

Additional Resources

Continue learning about Drupal and WordPress with the help of these additional resources:

4 Simple Steps to Migrate from Drupal to WordPress. Interested in migrating from Drupal to WordPress after learning about the platform? Start with this guide to streamline the process.
Using WordPress for Nonprofits: The Ultimate Guide. Interested in using WordPress for your nonprofit website? This guide has everything charitable organizations need to know about the platform.
The Ultimate Guide to Drupal Planning and Development. Want to take a closer look at the Drupal planning and development process? Kanopi’s ultimate guide is a great place to start.

The Donor Journey: Creating Smarter Digital Experiences

Allison Manley Director of Marketing & Communications

We’ve all heard the phrase: “Life is a journey, not a destination.”

Similar to the choices in our everyday lives, the decisions your donors make can impact how and if they decide to give to your organization. This is known as the donor journey.

Regardless of whether you’re a long term fundraising professional or you’ve just established your organization, “donor journey” shouldn’t be an unfamiliar term. It’s pretty self-explanatory—it describes how a potential prospect makes their way to becoming an official donor and an advocate for your mission. It includes everything from conducting research on your nonprofit’s website to promising continued support.

Understanding and refining your donors’ experiences enables greater mission outcomes. We’re here to tell you exactly what the donor journey entails and how you can create the most enjoyable experience possible for your supporters.

What is the Donor Journey?
Why is Donor Journey Mapping Important?
The Elements of the Donor Journey
How to Map Donor Journeys for Your Nonprofit

What is the Donor Journey?

The donor journey is a framework that fundraising professionals in nonprofits, higher education institutions, and other organizations use to better understand and engage with their supporters. It encompasses each stage of a donor’s relationship with your organization, from their first interaction to their continued support.

By mapping the donor journey, you can better track how and when your supporters engage with your organization, allowing you to uncover opportunities to strengthen those relationships.

Remember, your donors are one of your organization’s most important assets. They provide you with the essential funding needed to continue your meaningful work and serve your community. It makes sense that you do everything you can to recruit and retain them, and that starts with understanding their journey with your nonprofit.

Why Is Donor Journey Mapping Important?

Understanding the donor journey will not only help you track how and when your supporters give, but it’ll also provide some basis for why they donate. The more familiar you are with your average donor’s journey, the better you can engage with them and garner more support down the line.

Some of the key benefits of mapping the donor journey include:

The benefits of donor journey mapping, which are written below

Improved Donor Retention: Mapping out the donor journey helps identify key touchpoints where donors may lose interest or disengage, allowing you to address these issues and improve retention.
Enhanced Understanding of Donor Motivations: Mapping out the donor journey tells you what motivates your donors to give, helping you adjust your outreach to align with their motivations and values.
Better Groundwork for Predictable Revenue: By understanding the typical pathways supporters take, your nonprofit can anticipate giving and forecast revenue streams more accurately.
Clearer Pathways to Major Gifts: Donor journey mapping can pinpoint engagement patterns and touchpoints that often lead to larger gifts over time.
Optimized Fundraising Campaigns: You can identify what marketing messages and campaigns resonate most with donors, allowing you to pick the best types of campaigns and craft meaningful appeals.

Whether you leverage this strategy for its fundraising benefits or impact on your reputation, donor journey mapping is an essential part of your nonprofit digital strategy.

The Elements of the Donor Journey

What makes up the donor journey? Each stage may differ slightly depending on your organization and your supporters, but the donor journey will likely follow these elements regardless of your unique situation: Awareness, research, decision, appreciation, and repetition.

The basic steps of the donor journey that are written above

Donor Journey Step 1: Awareness

This is the very first step of the donor journey. Whether it’s through your website, a post from a friend on social media, or word of mouth, this is the moment that the prospect becomes aware of your organization and mission.

Without awareness, the donor journey never begins. To raise awareness and increase the likelihood of new supporters, follow these tips:

Optimize your nonprofit website for SEO to improve your presence on search engines.
Create supporter personas to better understand the type of audiences that engage with your organization.
Actively use your social media channels to give updates on your mission.
Update your website with recent accomplishments and major changes.
Keep your content human-centric to appeal to new supporters.
Get involved in local events, fairs, or speaking opportunities.
Collaborate with influencers, companies, or other nonprofits that align with your mission and have influence within your target audience.
Encourage existing supporters to fundraise on your behalf, leveraging their personal networks to spread awareness.
Consider paid advertising to promote your mission and tap into advanced targeting features, like how the World Wildlife Fund uses Google Ads to target mission-related terms:

Donor Journey Step 2: Research

Once someone is aware of the need for your mission, they’ll likely do further research to determine whether they want to support the cause and how they can do so.

This entire stage is about building trust. You need to give potential donors a reason to give to your organization and support your efforts.

First off, ensure your nonprofit website is optimized. This is likely the first place a prospect is going to look when researching your cause. Your website should be regularly maintained and updated to promote valuable content about your mission and organization. You can:

Use success stories and infographics to relay accomplishments and important metrics quickly.
Provide concrete metrics and data to back up your claims.
Practice transparency by being honest about where your funds go and by being open to answering questions.
Compile and share an annual report that summarizes your yearly accomplishments and progress.
Include testimonials from other donors or from specific community members you help.
Post compelling content like news stories and blog posts related to your mission online (content marketing costs 62% less than traditional marketing strategies, making this both a cost-effective and engaging strategy).

While you should always prioritize transparency, try to focus on the value you bring to the community and avoid being overly pessimistic. Too much negativity can make users less likely to donate.

Donor Journey Step 3: Decision

Now that your prospect is familiar with your organization’s work, they’ll show their intent in some way. This can be opting into email newsletters or following your social media accounts. They might even decide to make their first gift.

To encourage prospects to take the leap and donate, consider the following:

Make your donation form easy to find on your website. The average person’s attention span is a mere 8.25 seconds, so it’s key to include a link to your donation page within your menu or with a bright, eye-catching button.
Ensure the target action is prominently displayed in all marketing content, including social media and email. Incorporate CTAs like large buttons and easy-to-find links that send prospects to your donation form.
Make recurring donations a primary option. Within your donation form, add a simple box that supporters can check off if they want to give regularly. Alternatively, create an inspiring monthly giving page like the International Rescue Committee did. Either way, making recurring donations a primary option encourages your donors to become consistent givers:

Screenshots of the International Rescue Committee’s monthly giving page

Show the value of suggested donation amounts. Sometimes it can be hard to contextualize how a gift will help an organization. List a couple of suggested amounts as well as the direct impact they have. For example, tell supporters that a $100 gift will pay for 10 meals at your community homeless shelter.
Design your website with an accessible user experience (UX) in mind. Ensure that your nonprofit website is accessible to everyone, regardless of their location, language, ability, or device. This enhances the user experience and expands your supporter base. Learn more about this topic with our article on demystifying website accessibility compliance.
Feature matching gifts across your site. Donors often need a nudge, and matching gift research shows that 84% of donors are more likely to donate if they know that their employer will match their donation. Add a corporate giving page to your navigation menu and embed an employer search tool into your donation page to highlight this opportunity at a key point in the donor journey.

Donor Journey Step 4: Appreciation

Once the gift is made, this doesn’t mean the journey is over. In fact, this is the perfect opportunity to set the foundation for future engagement with a thank you letter and a summary of impact.

Showing donor appreciation is an integral part of the donor journey. Your supporters need to know how much their contribution has impacted your mission. Many donors stop giving because they simply don’t know what their previous gift did. Even so, more than 60% of nonprofits don’t thank donors properly.

Here’s what you can do to thank donors in ways that resonate:

Use your email solution to automate thank you messages to send as soon as a gift is made.
Take advantage of data automation to personalize each message with name and gift size.
If known, describe the specific impact the gift has made.
Include a “next step” in your letter, such as signing up for newsletters, reading a success story, or checking their matching gift eligibility to take their support further.
Follow up once the campaign is complete, and use data metrics to report on their gift’s full impact.
Add an option for donors to share their contributions on social media, further spreading awareness of your mission.
Create a thank-you video that features heartfelt messages of appreciation from staff or beneficiaries.
Use engaging formats for thank-yous, such as a digital greeting card with a mission-related illustration or a compelling image of a beneficiary, to demonstrate genuine gratitude:

An example of a donor thank-you eCard that says, “Thanks for your generous donation!”

Donor Journey Step 5: Repeatable

Ultimately, the final goal of recruiting new donors isn’t the gift itself. It’s the meaningful relationship you cultivate and its foundation for long-term support.

With the donor journey, you’ll be repeating the same cycle over and over again. However, that doesn’t mean you have to overhaul your website or marketing materials—but it is a good idea to review them to ensure they are fully up-to-date.

To keep donors on this journey, you’ll have to continue inspiring them with valuable messaging, update your website with the most recent accomplishments, and continue to build these important relationships. This is vital since a 10% reduction in donor attrition can yield up to a 200% increase in projected value. In other words, the higher your donor retention rate, the better!

Remember, your relationship should be built on open communication, not a marketing initiative. Welcome feedback, share successes, alert people to upcoming events, and show appreciation at each stage.

How to Map Donor Journeys for Your Nonprofit

The donor journey for your nonprofit will follow the basic elements above. But understanding the specifics requires some careful planning:

Define your key performance indicators (KPIs).

Make sure you’re tracking organizational success beyond fundraising dollars. Website visits, email opens, and more can all be helpful KPIs to track. Also, review benchmark data to see how similar organizations measure success and how your nonprofit compares.

Create audience personas.

Many marketing leaders use audience personas to understand their supporters and create targeted outreach strategies. Think of a persona as your hypothetical ideal supporter. Each persona should include demographics, personality traits, interests, goals of supporting your work, and barriers your organization can help them overcome.

Also, consider how they engage with your organization. Do they often check out your website for new updates? Do you interact with them on social media? Use this persona template below to help get started:

Isolate aspects of your digital user journeys that apply to the donor journey.

In an increasingly digital world, people primarily find out about your mission online. Make sure their digital journey on your website and across your online marketing channels guides their decision to give.

By understanding your nonprofit’s digital touchpoints, you can ensure a seamless experience and adapt to the fast-paced digital landscape. If you notice areas in which your technology doesn’t meet expectations, you might need a tech upgrade. That might mean purchasing new donation software, investing in a more robust CRM system, or enhancing your website’s functionality to better support user engagement.

Review the elements of an effective donor journey.

This enables you to note any improvement opportunities. Do you need more educational content on your website to support the research stage? Do you have a lot of supporter engagement but insufficient gifts? There may be a problem in the “decision” stage of your donor journey. Noting these elements will clue you into the touchpoints you need to work on.

You can also look for trends and metrics in your nonprofit database to find where donors fall off. This can indicate what improvements to make to your recruitment and retention strategies. For instance, you might notice your online donation form’s conversion rate or website’s bounce rate is low, signifying that you need to improve those pages to better support the research and decision stages.

Revisit, refine, and retest often!

Don’t stop after you outline your donor journey. Instead, continue reviewing how your supporters engage with your offerings and donate. Whether it’s due to new technology or the economic climate, the donor journey will change over time.

Pro Tip: To accurately flesh out the donor journey and apply its insights to your own organization, turn to a nonprofit technology consultant like Kanopi. By working closely with a professional, you’ll gain a better sense of not only how your supporters engage with your organization but also how you can use those findings to improve outreach and retention.

How Kanopi Can Help

At Kanopi, our expert web developers and designers are top partners for nonprofits. We’ve helped to develop over 150 active sites and launch their digital transformation.

Our continuous improvement team works closely with your organization to become familiar with your goals and supporter base. With thorough research and insights into the larger nonprofit and web industry, Kanopi can help you map out a donor journey and:

Create user personas to determine your nonprofit audience and come up with an outreach strategy that best targets their needs.
Design your website with the donor journey in mind to ensure it funnels prospects to your online donation page and is SEO-optimized.
Analyze your content strategy to enhance donors’ experiences when researching your cause.
Offer insight into the best ways your website can aid your donor journey.
Ensure your website follows accessibility and compliance guidelines.

For an example of our work in action, check out our project for Covenant House. As part of our work, we updated their donation processes, improved donor tracking, and created a detailed roadmap to guide their digital transformation. They experienced a 42% increase in transactions, 178% increase in new users, and 123% increase in sessions per user—just to name a few of the site’s notable improvements.

A screenshot of Covenant House’s homepage that inspires people to donate to help fight youth homelessness

Partner with us to start leveraging the donor journey for your own organization. We can help ensure your nonprofit marketing methods and website meet your needs and help you with your goals. Contact us here to learn more.

Wrapping Up

Mapping the donor journey empowers your nonprofit to refine every step of the giving experience. Knowing where supporters fall off allows you to proactively improve those steps and inspire supporters to stick around long-term.

With so many donors giving online, improving your organization’s donor journey all starts with a strong website. Make it easy to learn about your cause, find involvement opportunities, and ultimately donate. Remember, our team can step in to improve your website, whether you need technical assistance, design help, or a complete relaunch.

As you touch up your website, check out these helpful resources:

Drupal vs. WordPress: Settling the Long-Time CMS Debate. Need help deciding which CMS is right for your nonprofit? Check out our in-depth comparison of the two platforms.
Using WordPress for Nonprofits: The Ultimate Guide. WordPress is one of the most popular website builders available. Learn how to leverage the platform to drive donations, educate your audience, and enhance your digital presence.
Higher Ed Website Design: 12+ Trends and Tips for 2024. Higher education institutions need powerful websites to engage alumni, attract prospective students, and keep parents informed. This guide teaches powerful web design tips you won’t want to overlook.

2024 Web Development Trends

Shane Robinson Director of Solution Engineering

Don’t look now… but 2024 is already lurking around the corner. Among other more festive things, this means it’s once again time to peer into the near future and see what the upcoming year may bring to the world of web development. There are so many cool things going on in the “dev” world these days that it’s hard to encapsulate it all into the kind of singular, broad summary that initiates many of these posts.

If there is a connecting string, it’s that more parts of the user experience are becoming automated than ever before. Providing greater control over the editing experience not only saves creators time, but also allows both creators and developers to focus on key issues like accessibility, performance, and security.

Here are a few specific development trends to look out for in 2024:

More machine learning and web personalization

Machine learning will continue to gain traction in the personalized web space, thanks to its ability to analyze massive volumes of data on user behaviors and surface recommendations and experiences that suit users best.

More AI

With the buzz around artificial intelligence in 2023, we’ll likely see more use cases and integration with the web. AI models and systems will continue to be woven into personalization and the content editing experience.

For example, the ChatBot ChatGPT for WordPress plugin can build a complex understanding of your site content to engage with end users, providing relevant responses that are specific to your content, and the user experience.

(One note here: the key word here is ‘relevant’, by which I’m referring to technical relevance. For a discussion about AI’s capabilities compared to human writing, check our companion post: Top trends in content and design for 2024.)

On the Drupal front, projects like the ChatGPT and the OpenAI modules provide in-site help to editors for content generation, translation, assistance for SEO, and image generation.

More modular layouts

The rise of drag-and-drop editing in web development will continue to make life easier for editors.

Tools like WordPress Block Editor (a.k.a. Gutenberg blocks) and block patterns (a collection of blocks) continue to become more editor-friendly.
Content editing will continue becoming modular thanks to predefined blocks, blocks built for their site, and reusable blocks.
Drupal has put the power of flexibility into the editor’s hands with Drupal Paragraphs, Layout builder, and a suite of additional modules and hooks that allow developers to create a drag-and-drop editing experience.

More security — and continued privacy concerns

2024 will finally see Google officially move to block all third-party cookies within the Chrome browser. Stronger data protection measures like Google’s will inevitably lead to more enhanced, conscious cookie mechanisms and management.

Overall, we’ll see the web itself continue to adapt to become compliant with evolving data protection regulations, such as adhering to personal identity information (PII) policies. This includes publicly accountable organizations like educational institutions and government agencies (and their private contractors and suppliers) taking more steps to ensure their data remains in the country.

More mobile devices and better overall performance

Did you know that more people these days have access to a mobile phone than a computer? It’s true — and this number continues to grow. As more users in low-bandwidth areas require access to information, making sites fast and efficient across devices is more critical than ever. Mobile-first design will keep growing in 2024, as will content-first design and development — i.e. prioritizing meaningful content over flash and glitter.

More accessibility

In 2024, accessibility requirements across industries will continue to be in the spotlight. More industries than ever are realizing that being accessible to all audiences is incredibly important. For example, meeting your industry’s accessibility’s compliance levels and having clear on-site policies can mitigate potential liability.

Did you know that Shane is our very first Kanopi employee, ever? If you’ve enjoyed reading his post, please check out his other great works in our blogosphere, such as: Four Simple Steps to Migrate from Drupal to WordPress

Using WordPress for Nonprofits: The Ultimate Guide

Anne Stefanyk CEO/Founder

Interested in using WordPress to build your nonprofit website? You’d be in good company—60% of nonprofits globally use WordPress as their website’s content management system (CMS). Plus, some of the best nonprofit websites are built using WordPress.

WordPress can help your nonprofit create the engaging website it needs to connect with community members and supporters, raise mission awareness, and drive funding.

This guide will help determine whether WordPress is the right choice for your nonprofit and how to implement an effective WordPress strategy. Here’s what we’ll cover:

Is WordPress for Nonprofits the Right Choice for Your Organization?
Planning Your Nonprofit WordPress Website
WordPress Themes for Nonprofits
WordPress Plugins for Nonprofits
Examples of Nonprofits Using WordPress
How to Fundraise Effectively Using WordPress for Nonprofits
Content Tips for Your Nonprofit WordPress Website
Tips to Maintain a Healthy WordPress Website
WordPress for Nonprofits Resources

Let’s begin by exploring some of the advantages of WordPress and other CMS platforms.

Is WordPress for Nonprofits the Right Choice for Your Organization?

When choosing a content management system for your nonprofit, you might be deciding between several top platforms, such as Drupal and WordPress. How can you determine which option is best for your nonprofit? It’s essential to select a CMS that will support your long-term goals, so consider the following WordPress pros and cons before deciding.

Reasons to Use WordPress	Reasons to Use Drupal
User-friendly interface	Equipped to handle complex content needs
Simple editorial process and media management	Allows for more customization
More cost-effective to maintain	Offers a variety of user roles
Cheaper/easier to find talent to help with maintenance
Readily-available educational resources

Reasons to Use WordPress for Your Nonprofit Website

Many marketers and web professionals find themselves drawn to creating a new website using WordPress or switching to WordPress because of the following benefits it offers:

User-friendly interface. WordPress is renowned for its user-friendly backend that makes it easy for beginners to upload content.
Simple editorial process and media management. WordPress leverages the Gutenberg block editor, a user-friendly, flexible drag-and-drop site builder. Plus, the Media Library makes storing videos, images, and other content assets simple.
More cost-effective to maintain. WordPress is free to use, and many hosting providers offer free or affordable options for smaller nonprofits with limited budgets.
Cheaper and easier to find talent to maintain your website. It’s also easier to find developers to support your WordPress strategy ataffordable rates.
Easy to find educational resources. If you take a more DIY approach, it’s very easy to find development resources online because of the vast size of the WordPress community.

WordPress has broken away from past misconceptions that it’s merely a blogging platform and not meant to be used for large organizations with complex needs. Quite the contrary, WordPress is used by a wide variety of organizations, from nonprofits and universities to large corporations and government agencies.

Reasons to Use a Different CMS for Your Nonprofit Website

Despite the many benefits WordPress can offer your nonprofit, there are still a few reasons why you might lean toward another platform, like Drupal.

Nonprofits might use Drupal instead of WordPress if they:

Have complex content needs. Drupal’s Taxonomy module makes it easy to classify and organize web content, simplifying functionality for organizations with more complex data needs.
Need more customizability. Drupal’s content types and customizability are often considered the most flexible options on the market.
Want to create a variety of user roles. Drupal allows users to develop a wide variety of roles with different access levels and permissions, whereas WordPress only offers six pre-defined roles.

Of course, there are other CMS options besides WordPress and Drupal, including HubSpot, Squarespace, and Wix. However, WordPress and Drupal are the most popular options for nonprofits and are generally considered the most useful for building a strong online presence.

Still conflicted on which CMS is right for your organization? Take this quick quiz to help determine the right solution for your needs:

Find Your Ideal Nonprofit CMS

Take this quick 6-question quiz to determine whether WordPress or Drupal fits your organization’s resources, workflows, and development budget better.

Planning Your Nonprofit WordPress Website

After reviewing the advantages of WordPress vs. other CMS options, you might determine that WordPress truly is the right choice for your nonprofit. Next, your nonprofit should follow these steps to set up a powerful website that supports your mission:

Set goals

Any successful project starts with setting clear goals for your team. What do you hope to get out of your brand-new WordPress website? How will it support your ultimate goal to work toward your mission and create positive change in your community? Identify objectives and relevant key performance indicators (KPIs) such as:

Goals	KPIs to Track
Increase website traffic	Total number of visitors, bounce rate, click-through rates from sources like organic search and email
Spread mission awareness	New donor acquisition rate, unique users, geographic location of users, donor demographics, volunteer acquisition rate
Increase online donations	Online donation page conversion rate, online donor retention rate, average gift size

Website traffic goals: How many website visitors do we hope to have in our first six months? Or in our first year?
- KPIs to track: total number of visitors, bounce rate, click-through rate from sources like organic search and email
Mission-related goals: How many new donors, volunteers, or ambassadors can we recruit through our website? How can we use our website to spread awareness of our mission to new geographic areas or new demographics?
- KPIs to track: new donor acquisition rate, unique users, geographic location of users, donor demographics, volunteer acquisition rate
Online fundraising goals: How many online donations do we hope to facilitate through our website in the first year?
- KPIs to track: online donation page conversion rate, online donor retention rate, average gift size

Research your audience

Conduct audience research to learn more about the individuals you’re aiming to reach online. Start by building user personas. User personas are fictionalized representations of different audience segments. They include information like:

Demographic information about each group, such as their age, location, occupation, and level of tech-savviness
The user’s problem or what they need from your website
The user’s end goal or purpose for using your website
Possible barriers they may face and common concerns they have

Here’s a template you can use to design user personas for your website:

Example of a persona template you can use to understand your nonprofit website audience

Develop three to five personas for your primary audiences. Then, consider how you can design your website to appeal to the needs and motivations of each group. How will you use navigation, calls to action (CTAs), and messaging to meet each user’s needs? We’ll dive more deeply into optimizing the user experience and navigation in later sections.

Choose a domain name

Your domain name is the URL users will type in or click on to access your website. For example, if your nonprofit is called Ocean Guardians Alliance, your domain name could be oceanguardiansalliance.org.

Most nonprofits typically use the extension .org (short for organization), whereas .com is typically used by businesses and corporations.

When choosing a domain, consider pricing—a domain name is usually $10-$20 per year. You’ll also need to renew ownership of the domain name periodically. Domain names typically have a renewal period of a minimum of one year and a maximum of 10 years. Browse domain name registrars to find the right option for your organization.

Choose a host

A website host allows you to purchase space to house your website on the internet. Your host provides a server to hold your website’s files and make them accessible to everyone. Popular, trusted hosting platforms for nonprofits include:

Pantheon: Offers fast performance speeds, streamlined workflows, and advanced security.
WP Engine: WordPress-specific website host with proprietary WordPress caching, automated updates for plugins, themes, WordPress core, and PHP, and 24/7 support services.
Kinsta: Offers real-time chat support, high performance, and reduced load times with Edge Caching.

When choosing a website host, consider pricing, your website needs, and customer support services. Evaluate each platform’s features, such as bandwidth, security features, domain registration, disk space, and e-commerce functionality. Some hosts offer discounts for nonprofits, so look into available perks as you make your decision.

Select a theme

A WordPress theme is a set of pre-made templates and code files that work together to build a website’s front-end styling. When building your WordPress website, you can either select a pre-made theme or work with a WordPress developer to create a custom theme. We’ll explore the pros and cons of both options in a later section.

Design the user experience

The user experience (UX) is the way visitors interact with your website. It involves the links they click, pages they read, forms they fill out, and other ways they engage with your content.

Positive nonprofit user experience fosters stronger relationships with your online audience and greater engagement with your mission. Design a powerful UX by:

Implementing helpful CTAs. CTAs help visitors navigate your website by quickly finding pages and resources that they’re looking for. Create CTA buttons and links for your most important pages, like your online donation form or volunteer registration page. Make your CTAs prominent and eye-catching, with bright colors and bold fonts, to drive more engagement with your target actions.

Developing user journeys for each of your web audiences. The user journey involves specific steps audience members take based on their needs and motivations. Design user pathways for your primary audiences, such as donors, volunteers, corporate sponsors, and those looking for support from your nonprofit. Use specific CTAs that call out different audiences by name to make it easier for visitors to navigate. For example, check out how the Boys & Girls Clubs of America website leverages an “I am” CTA to let visitors choose the category that best fits their needs:

“I am” CTA on the Boys & Girls Clubs of America website

Prioritizing accessibility. Accessibility means all visitors can understand and use your website regardless of any temporary or permanent disabilities they may have. Better accessibility means a positive user experience for all visitors. Follow the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG), which include specific steps to take to improve your site’s accessibility. A few recommendations to implement are using strong color contrast, including alternative text for images, and ensuring your website is keyboard-navigable.

Test your UX before pushing your WordPress website live by running manual and automated accessibility tests and asking for feedback from focus groups.

Create wireframes

Wireframes are blueprints for key landing page layouts. Wireframes help visualize a website’s structure and ensure the user experience is optimized before inputting content.

Your wireframes should include space for images, page headlines, CTAs, and your main menu. Create wireframes for high-impact pages like your homepage, online donation page, blog, and event calendar.

Develop navigation

Navigation is the way visitors move through your website to find the pages and information they need. Effective navigation creates a smooth user experience and improves your audience’s impression of your website and your nonprofit in general.

Consider the following navigation elements and how you’ll incorporate them into your website:

Main menu: It’s typically recommended to include a limited number of main menu items to simplify your navigation and make it easy to understand. Carefully choose five to seven categories that make the most sense for your main menu items. Most nonprofits have menu items such as an About or Programs page, Impact Stories or Testimonials, Ways to Get Involved/Donate, News/Press, and Upcoming Events.
CTA strategy. CTAs are an essential part of navigation. How will you use CTA buttons, links, and text to drive traffic to pages that are essential to your mission, like your donation form?
Internal search functionality. If your website houses a variety of online resources, an internal search engine can make it easy for visitors to find the information they need. For example, a healthcare-focused nonprofit might include an internal database for doctors in the local community or common health ailments.

The keys to effective navigation are simplicity and relevance. Your navigation should be easy to understand and each page should be relevant to a segment of your audience.

WordPress Themes for Nonprofits

As mentioned, your nonprofit can use either a pre-built or custom theme to build your WordPress website’s front-end styling. Learn more about the pros and cons of both options:

Prebuilt themes for nonprofits

Prebuilt themes are not an ideal solution for most nonprofits due to potential limitations and lack of flexibility. They need to be monitored for performance and accessibility. However, they are easy to get up and running and very budget-friendly for smaller nonprofits.

Here are a few theme options that many nonprofits use to build their websites:

SeedProd

Drag-and-drop WordPress website builder with WooCommerce integration, spam protection, SEO support, and mobile-friendly pages.

Oxygen

Developer-friendly drag-and-drop theme with global colors, sticky and overlay headings, responsive control, scroll animations, and more.

Benevolent

A flexible theme designed with nonprofits in mind, featuring SEO tools, CTA buttons, and custom widgets.

Grassroots

A theme for purpose-driven organizations, with fundraising functionality, mobile-responsive pages, and logo, color, and font customization opportunities.

Most of these themes include some functionality for fundraising, CTAs, and other features nonprofits need to push their missions forward. However, pre-built themes offer limited customization capabilities and may not have all the features your nonprofit requires for your specific needs. Plus, they may not be as accessible, leading to potential usability issues for your online audience.

Custom themes for nonprofits

Most organizations will see the greatest success from their websites when they leverage a custom theme. Custom themes ensure that your website has all the functionality it needs and give your website a unique look and feel that can help distinguish your organization from similar nonprofits.

Work with a nonprofit website developer who specializes in WordPress. Kanopi’s experienced developers have helped develop custom-branded websites for nonprofits of all sizes and types. Kanopi’s professionals will research your unique audience and website needs to craft a theme and strategy that works best for your mission.

WordPress Plugins for Nonprofits

Plugins are tools that extend the functionality of your WordPress website by providing additional features. They are pre-built code packages that you can immediately incorporate into your site without additional coding needed.

When it comes to plugins, prioritize quality over quantity. Enabling too many could lead to security and performance issues if you’re using plugins that aren’t well-written.

Here are a few considerations to keep in mind when browsing plugin options:

Contributed vs. premium plugins

Contributed plugins are available for free through the WordPress Plugin Directory. They are typically created by members of the WordPress community on a volunteer basis. They are usually open-source, meaning that anyone can alter the source code for their unique plugin needs.

Premium plugins require a fee and are usually developed by professional software developers. Often, premium plugins have additional advanced features to assist with your goals. They tend to be more dependable when it comes to security and support.

Types of WordPress plugins

There are a few common categories of plugin functionality that nonprofits can consider, including:

Search engine optimization (SEO) plugins: Support SEO strategies with tools to add metadata to web pages and content, such as meta descriptions, page titles, and optimized URLs.
Security plugins: Help keep your website safe by monitoring for malware, blocking attacks, and sending security alerts. Security plugins are less necessary when you choose a secure hosting provider.
Performance plugins: Enhance site performance by improving caching, optimizing files, and streamlining your database. Similar to security plugins, performance plugins aren’t required when you choose a website host that prioritizes fast load speeds.

By working with a developer, you can understand the types of plugins that will best fit your website’s needs and which ones aren’t worth the investment.

WordPress plugin examples

Because it’s important to use plugins sparingly, look for tools that are recommended by established software developers. This will ensure you’re choosing plugins that help rather than hurt your site’s performance. For example, Kanopi recommends the following plugins:

ACF. ACF is a powerful, multi-use plugin for organizations looking to keep their sites as streamlined as possible. Developers can use ACF to create a wide variety of site features, such as customizable CTAs, media galleries, graphs and charts, timelines, and other advanced features.
Yoast. Yoast is an SEO plugin that helps organizations create SEO-optimized content to drive more traffic from search engines. Yoast offers suggestions to improve SEO performance, helps create a solid internal linking structure, manages redirects, and more.
Wordfence or Solid Security Basic. These are two of our recommended security plugins. They both help keep your website safe by stopping brute force attacks, offering secure login protocols, and scanning to detect vulnerabilities in themes and plugins.
PhastPress. PhastPress is a performance plugin that can manage all performance needs in one tool. It optimizes images, employs native lazy loading, and loads scripts asynchronously.

Our experienced developers have tested and used these plugins successfully on many websites, confirming that they will help optimize your site’s performance without compromising speed or security.

Examples of Nonprofits Using WordPress

Millions of nonprofit websites run on WordPress. Here’s a look at five examples, along with insights from Kanopi’s support services for each site:

Physicians for Human Rights

Physicians for Human Rights is a nonprofit that investigates and documents human rights violations while promoting medical ethics. Their website features a clean, professional layout, dynamic reports, and multilingual functionality.

Read the case study

Alameda County Community Food Bank (ACCFB)

The ACCFB helps connect those in need with different food sources. Their website offers a fresh, mobile-friendly interface, user-friendly pantry location map, and action-focused CTAs.

Read the case study

PEN America

PEN America is a nonprofit devoted to the advancement of freedom of expression in the United States and worldwide. The organization’s website features a modern, distinctive design, a robust news and updates section, and easy-to-navigate research and reports.

Read the case study

Catalyst

Catalyst prioritizes accelerating progress for women in the workplace. Their WordPress website includes interactive reports that can be translated into other languages, micro-learning, free online courses, and a robust research library.

Read the case study

First Tee

First Tee is a nonprofit that empowers kids with life skills and self-confidence through the game of golf. The First Tee website offers seamless access to member websites, a simple donation page, and compelling stories of how the nonprofit has supported children.

Read the case study

How to Fundraise Effectively Using WordPress for Nonprofits

In the digital age, making giving simple and convenient for supporters is vital to securing more donations. Using WordPress, you can grow your website into an efficient, secure online fundraising tool.

Promote online giving by taking these steps:

Add a streamlined donation page. Provide a simple, easy-to-use donation form for supporters to use. Ensure the form only asks for necessary information, like donors’ names, donation amounts, and payment information. Embed the donation form directly into your website so supporters don’t have to visit a third-party platform to give. And make sure your form is accessible and inclusive.
Offer a secure payment processor. A payment processor is a tool that manages donors’ financial information when they submit a gift. Your payment processor should include a variety of security features, such as PCI compliance, data encryption, and fraud protection. A secure payment processor keeps donor data safe, giving donors greater confidence in the giving process.
Consider plugin-based giving options. You can also use a donation plugin to manage your online fundraising. For example, the GiveWP plugin offers features such as customizable donation forms, donor management, and fundraising reports. This helps you keep track of giving trends and donor information to improve your stewardship efforts.

Make sure your payment processor can accept a variety of payment methods, such as credit/debit cards, ACH direct deposits, PayPal, Google Pay/Apple Pay, and other methods that appeal to your audience. This can make the giving process more convenient because donors can use their preferred payment method or the payment method they have on hand.

Content Tips for Your Nonprofit WordPress Website

After planning out your WordPress website and strategizing your online fundraising process, it’s time to fill your website with content. Your content is what brings your nonprofit’s mission to life online. It should align with your nonprofit’s values and mission while reflecting your branding.

Keep these tips in mind as you develop your website’s content strategy:

Write for the web. Writing for the web is slightly different than your nonprofit’s other communication platforms, like direct mail. Your web content should use simple, plain language and avoid jargon. Incorporate second-person words like “you” more than first-person pronouns like “we” or “our.” This keeps the focus on your supporters and constituents rather than on your nonprofit.
Develop an SEO strategy. SEO optimization helps improve your website’s rankings in search engine results. Follow SEO best practices like optimizing your pages and blog posts for specific keywords and using a clear internal linking approach to connect relevant pages.
Incorporate multimedia elements. Elements like video, images, and audio can help break up text blocks and provide visitors with multiple ways to engage with your site. Use photos that show people’s faces to create an emotional connection. Include video testimonials from staff members, volunteers, and community members to emphasize your nonprofit’s credibility.
Create a blogging plan. Your nonprofit’s blog is a great resource to share information about ongoing projects, programs, and campaigns. Consistency is key to maintaining blog traffic. Develop a blog posting schedule and assign team members to different roles, such as writing and photography. Coordinate with your social media manager to promote blog posts promptly.
Make your content accessible. Include alternative text for images, captions for videos, strong color contrast and bold lettering in your infographics, and other accessibility considerations that make your content easy to interpret and interact with.

Cultivate a tone of voice throughout your content that aligns with your nonprofit’s values and mission. For example, a nonprofit that supports children’s healthcare might use a lighthearted, playful tone, while an organization devoted to researching climate change solutions might have a studious, serious tone.

Tips to Maintain a Healthy WordPress Website

New data management and website security best practices and measures are created all the time. To keep your website healthy and secure, you must devote yourself to ongoing WordPress maintenance.

Here are a few continuous maintenance tasks to keep in mind:

WordPress for nonprofits maintenance considerations (listed in the text below)

Core updates: WordPress core is the foundation of the WordPress CMS. The WordPress performance team is constantly working on new versions of WordPress core that contain performance improvements, new security updates, and new features for WordPress users to take advantage of. Keep an eye on the WordPress core blog for updates and to know when it’s time for a core update.
Theme and plugin updates: Pre-built themes and plugins also receive updates from time to time for similar reasons—to improve features and offer greater security. Refresh your theme and plugins at regular intervals, such as quarterly, to stay up to date with new releases.
Caching: Caching is when a browser or server saves a version of your website to deliver faster loading times the next time a user visits the site. You can use different caching methods for your WordPress website, whether page caching, browser caching, server caching, etc. Determine which method will work best for your website and check in on the process over time, as your needs may change.
Data optimization: Your website’s data files will become more complex over time as you add new information and connections between data. Be sure to regularly optimize and simplify your database to reduce clutter. It’s easiest to work with a web development professional to thoroughly clean your website and ensure it’s optimized for peak performance.
Accessibility: Accessibility best practices continually evolve as new assistive technologies are released. Make sure to stay up to date on the latest accessibility guidelines and assistive technologies to make your website compatible.

The most effective way to keep your website healthy over time is to form a relationship with a professional web development team that can get to know your website and your nonprofit’s unique digital needs. Professionals like the Kanopi team stay up to date on the latest WordPress releases and best practices. We can work with you to understand your audience and enhance your website for optimal performance.

WordPress for Nonprofits Resources

Looking for more support as you dive into the world of WordPress? Here are some helpful resources to consider:

Read Kanopi’s blog for the latest updates on WordPress, content strategy, and other web design and development news
Watch WP 101’s tutorial videos to deepen your WordPress knowledge and troubleshoot common issues
Contact Kanopi’s WordPress team if you’re looking for a dedicated partner to support your WordPress development

WP-CFM: WordPress Configuration Made Easy

Miriam Goldman

Are you new to website development? Or do you want to develop smarter?

Maybe you fear breaking things on a live site and want to ensure your code works before launch day?

Local development environments to the rescue!

Simple and seamless configuration management

Configuration between local development environments and hosted environments can be a pain. These live within the database and cannot be version-controlled as code can. Additionally, while we can easily move databases from our live site to our development site, moving it in the opposite direction has consistently presented a challenge.

“Any time you have a content management system – like Drupal or WordPress – with configuration and content in the same database, you face certain challenges,” Hieb said. “Specifically, how to deploy the configuration side of that, but not the content side.”
Andy Hieb of ForumOne

Thankfully, Andy and the rest of the team at ForumOne created a solution. The free plugin allows developers to copy database configuration to and from the filesystem without the need to copy the entire database.

WP-CFM, or WordPress Configuration Management, utilizes JSON files and WP-CLI. Key site configurations, such as active plugins, number of posts per page, and what page is set as the homepage, can be contained within the code repository and help automate deployments.

Screengrab from Forum One's download for WP-CFM

Source: WordPress

The difference between local and hosted environments

What exactly is a local development environment?

Put simply, a local environment is a server that lives on your computer. You can get busy developing your website or any web application with it running full stack without worrying about hosting for the time being.

Whereas in a hosted environment, as the name suggests, you’re developing your website on the web with a hosting provider. Before you start to develop, you’ll need to choose a provider to host your site, such as any of our Hosting Partners.

How it works

WP-CFM creates bundles, which are essentially JSON files of configuration — from the wp_options database table. These files are where most site options are stored. You can segment by plugin, for instance, General Site Settings, Yoast Settings, etc. Then, the plug-in allows files to be “pushed” to the file system. Specifically, a folder called /config/ within /wp-content/.

Changes can then be imported or “pulled” into the database. You can also view the difference or “diff” in bundles via the plugin’s Dashboard — similar to how you can review changes with Advanced Custom Pro field syncs.

Why you should use it

There are multiple reasons why using WP-CFM in your workflow would be beneficial, though the big two wins are:

time and
version control.

How do you save time? With WP-CFM, you can simply commit your configuration changes and push them up with your code. Once pulled into the database, you will not have to be concerned with manually making any database changes for configuration. Manual database changes can be extremely time-consuming, and it’s best to avoid them if you can. Queue WP-CFM.

The other top advantage of using WP-CFM is version control. Websites often need to roll out complex configurations, making it very difficult to roll back. Using git, or another version control, you can easily track your changes and roll back.

Additional benefits

Beyond saving your development team time and version control, utilizing WP-CFM also reduces the number of manual checks your QA team has to do.

With less time spent on reducing features, your budget quickly gets lighter.

And last but not least, the WP-CFM configuration management is excellent for remote workers. Are you working off-grid without wifi for a few days? Your remote working stint won’t present any problems, as all development team members have the same configuration for their local work.

WP-CFM in action

If your website is hosted by a managed hosting provider, you will know that the WordPress content folder is not writable.

The first filter you see below will change the directory where WP-CFM stores the configuration and moves this to a writable folder.

The second filter is a companion to the first and will change the URL rather than the directory pathing.

The final filter disables the multiple environments that come default with the plug-in, reducing confusion with the development team regarding which environment they are syncing to.

add_filter(

   'wpcfm_config_dir',

   function( $var ) {

       return WP_UPLOADS_DIR . '/config';

   }

);

add_filter(

   'wpcfm_config_url',

   function( $var ) {

       return WP_UPLOADS_DIR . '/config';

   }

);

add_filter( 'wpcfm_multi_env', '__return_empty_array' );

Taking it one step further

WP-CFM is fantastic by itself, but it still relies on manually going to the plugin settings, and either pushing or pulling the bundles. That can easily be a missed step.

Using hooks such as Pantheon’s Quicksilver or circleci tools such as orbs, you can set up automatic pulls upon deployment via CI/CD. WordPress and some plugins, such as Gravity Forms and Advanced Custom Fields, also provide multiple developer hooks, filters, and actions that you can employ to automate the push.

Developing smarter

WP-CFM is a fantastic tool that saves you time, money, and headaches. By adding in a little automation, you help ensure parity between environments. You will eliminate back-and-forth communication for something as simple as a missed plugin activation or the wrong number of posts shown on an archive page.

Want to learn even more about the whys and hows of local development? Check out my talk at WordCamp Finland and develop smart by leveling up your coding.

How to Test Your Website for Accessibility

Faye Polson

There’s something wonderful about putting on adult shoes as a kid. They’re enormous and floppy and shuffle around on your feet as you lift and walk. I remember doing this often with my dad’s shoes, regardless of the smell, giggling all the way.

Somewhere along the line between then and now, walking in someone else’s shoes loses that magical charm. It’s more comfortable to maintain the status quo. What works for us must work for everyone, right?

Except it doesn’t. Humans are not “one size fits all” and this is also true when it comes to the internet. Like a building needs accessibility access, a website needs accessible code so that it can be used by everyone.

Many people have vision problems, hearing loss, physical limitations and more. In fact, 27% of adults — a full 61 million people — in the United States alone are permanently disabled in some way. Once you include temporary disabilities (such as a broken wrist), or extend the range to teens and children, that number soars even higher.

Your site could be unusable for up to a quarter of your audience, and it’s worth it to check. Follow this guide to do some quick testing, or jump down to our tl:dr.

Why automated tools are useful but also insufficient

We’re often asked for metrics and automatic scans that can “score” a site for accessibility. As appealing as that may sound, it’s simply not an option in the current technical landscape. In reality, it is generally accepted that automated tools can only detect about 30% of WCAG’s 2.1 success criteria. Any tool or service that claims 100% automation is 100% lying.

The reason for that is there are many accessibility issues that Artificial Intelligence (AI) simply cannot understand, and while a scan could possibly identify a place where a human mind should take a look, it couldn’t say with any certainty whether or not there is an error there. In fact, the more aggressive the scanning tool, the more likely it is that there are false positives in the results.

A common example of this are images. Automated tools can detect whether or not an image has alternative text (a requirement for accessibility) but they can’t tell if the alternative text is appropriate for the image.

Because of this, testing requires both automated tools and manual tests. And since each tool is different in what it can detect, and how it presents its errors, it’s recommended that you use multiple tools when testing website accessibility. Each tool has its own pros and cons, things it does really well, and areas that need improvement.

By the way, the disparity between automated testing and manual testing is also why we highly recommend you avoid quick fix solutions like overlays. There are a number of other reasons, including legal reasons, but when it comes down to it automated tools are only part of the process.

Automated scanning tools to use

Lighthouse (Google)

Pros:

Provides scores out of 100 (for people who love metrics)
Gives advice for manual checks
Easy to use extension
Generally no false positives
Identifies target size errors
Can also provide SEO and Performance audits
Links errors to Deque’s aXe ruleset

Cons:

Very simple scan
Only audits 44 possible accessibility errors
Provides minimal information regarding errors

WAVE

Pros:

Easy to use via URL
Allows toggling styles and javascript on and off for scans
Attractive visual interface
Shows Level A and AA items as errors (red)
Shows Level AAA, and Best Practice items as warnings (orange)
Identifies all ARIA used
Identifies all structural elements
Identifies accessibility features applied
Identifies contrast errors separately
Provides helpful information regarding error
Links errors to WebAIM’s WCAG 2 Checklist
Links directly to code in Developer Tools
Has built in contrast checker

Cons:

Cannot scan javascript injected content
Generates a few false positives each scan

aXe

Pros:

Shows Level A and Level AA errors
Best Practice items can be toggled on and off
Groups errors by serious, critical, moderate, and mild errors
Groups uncertain items for manual review
Links errors to Deque’s aXe ruleset
Explains specific fix options for each error
Links directly to code in Developer Tools
Rarely gives false positives

Cons:

Extension can be overwhelming and difficult to use
Does not scan hidden items
May or may not scan javascript injected content

SiteImprove

Browser extension
Paid Platform

Pros:

Platform version can scan site wide
Platform scans for Level A, Level AA, and Level AAA errors
Includes scans for Best Practices
Platform provides a score out of 100 (for people who love metrics)
Extension can be configured to scan for specific levels, such as warnings, items to review, best practice, items likely related to content entry, etc
Links errors to WCAG 2:1 Guidelines
Links directly to code in Developer Tools
Groups errors by guideline

Cons:

Aggressive scan causes frequent false positives
Considers many Level AAA and Best Practice items to fall under Levels A and AA
Difficulty understanding javascript injected content

ANDI

Pros:

Extremely easy to install
Very visual interface
Provides information on how a screen reader might interpret some elements
Great entry into understanding what kinds of errors can exist
Has built in contrast checker

Cons:

Does not link errors to guidelines
Limited suggestions for fixes

Add manual testing to find what the automated tools didn’t

Once you’ve run your site through some of the automated tools, it’s time to get some hands-on experience about what it’s like to use your site in someone else’s shoes.

How to do keyboard testing

Believe it or not, keyboard testing is actually “low key” and easy to do. There are only a few things that you need to know in order to do this testing on your own.

Tab, Shift + Tab

Pressing tab will move you down a webpage through interactive elements like links, buttons, and form fields. Pressing shift + tab will take you backwards through those same elements.

Spacebar / Enter

These keys “activate” interactive elements. When you are focused on a link, hitting one of these will open that link. Sometimes they can also move you into an “application” state where other keys become usable (see Arrow Keys).

Arrow Keys

These keys will scroll the page up and down, but not always. Tabs, accordions, sliders, and menus can be designed as applications. That means once you are focused on them (or enter them using the spacebar), using the arrow keys will navigate you through those interactive elements instead of scrolling the page.

Esc

If you have entered an application, or a popup window, the escape key should exit that area and allow you to continue down the page where you left off.

Knowing these interactions, you should be able to use your webpage without a mouse. Try it for yourself and see if you can reach and use all of the interactive elements.

Can you see where your focus is (what your next keypress will activate)?
Can you navigate through your menu?
Is tabbing logical, or does the focus move to unexpected areas?
Can you use sliders, accordions, galleries, videos, and tabs?
Can you enter form information and submit?
Do you get “trapped” anywhere and need to use your mouse to move on?

If you can’t use your page without a mouse, or if the keyboard experience is generally frustrating, then there’s some improvement to be made with accessibility. Keyboard functionality is vital to most assistive technologies, and if you had a hard time then chances are so is someone else.

A note about screen reader testing

You will likely need to hire someone to do this for you, as it takes a high level of skill and experience to operate. But using the ANDI tool on your site can show you some of the things a screen reader will present to a user, so if you’re interested give that tool a try.

To learn more about screen readers and assistive technology, check out our Screen Reader 101 blog post.

Where to find real users to test your site

Putting your site in front of real users with a variety of disabilities will most certainly uncover any issues missed by automated and keyboard testing.

Here are some resources for finding those users:

If you think there’s a problem, it’s time for a deep dive audit

While the methods mentioned here can give you an overall picture of a single page’s level of accessibility, it doesn’t reflect the full breadth of your site. For that, you’ll want a deep dive accessibility audit.

This type of work typically takes someone with a good deal of experience in the accessibility space. It would entail automated and manual testing of multiple pages to try and get a sample of each template used, in addition to some randomly selected pages. The auditor needs to know how to use multiple tools, how to test via keyboards and screen readers, how to investigate Javascript injected content, and know what to look for in criteria that can’t be caught in an automated scan.

Kanopi specializes in accessibility for our clients and we do offer deep dive accessibility audits, including itemized results for remediation. If you’re interested, send us a message!

TL:DR for testing your website’s accessibility

Try to use your website without a mouse.
If it’s frustrating for you, it’s frustrating for someone else.

Imagine someone was trying to navigate your homepage only by headings and links.
If someone couldn’t see the page and only had these elements to navigate by, would they know where to go?

Run your most popular page through two or three of the tools mentioned in this article.
A single issue can prevent someone from buying a product, viewing a service, or understanding your content. Take any errors seriously.

Re-test your site every so often.
Updates to code and content can unexpectedly change your site’s accessibility. Regular testing helps keep you informed about potential barriers on your site.

Want more accessibility info via a webinar?

Interface of ON24's webinar platform with Candice Dexter giving a webinar on the ADA guidelines.

Kanopi’s Candice Dexter gave a webinar for our client the University of California San Francisco called “Making Your Websites Accessible: An Overview of the New Federal ADA Guidelines.” (30 minutes)

Kanopi Pack: Consolidated Package Management Made Easy

Ryan Leeson

Here at Kanopi, our amazing team of developers constantly works to not only create value for our clients but also contribute to the greater open-source communities of the development platforms we work with. With this in mind, we are excited to present Kanopi Pack, a new open-source tool for developers looking to simplify their workflows.

Pre-Kanopi Pack

Developers often turn to tools like Grunt or Gulp to automate and manage repetitive tasks and static assets. These tools automate the process of creating your production scripts and styles from source files. However, they come with a few drawbacks. They can require significant configuration, which is time-consuming, error-prone, and can become a mini-project of its own to maintain.

As you bring new dependencies and packages into the ecosystem, you add boilerplate configuration and make design decisions, adding complexity. Your maintenance needs can scale quickly as you have to manage updates for each of these libraries.

Further, you may need a small application, such as a calculator, on your site. Tools like Grunt and Gulp don’t offer modern support to build and manage a React or Vue application. These applications become separate projects, with their own additional sets of configurations and libraries to manage. Typically, they require you to run the application in a self-contained environment, making integration and deployment a challenge.

At an agency, you may have 100+ projects to work on and maintain every month across multiple teams. The question becomes, how do you manage these libraries sustainably while allowing your teams to work with a common configuration and providing a sensible amount of flexibility?

What is Kanopi Pack?

Kanopi Pack is a toolkit designed to streamline package management and enable modern web projects or revitalize older projects with an aging toolkit. Kanopi Pack currently uses Webpack and consolidates management of its features and configuration into a single package, with an additional package at present for either React or Vue.

Let’s say you’ve managed a WordPress website over the years. You may have updated a plugin that unintentionally broke something. Similarly, when you have multiple packages running at the same time, your project can break many times.

Instead of running maintenance on one package at a time, with Kanopi Pack, you can conduct maintenance once across many packages. This saves time and minimizes testing.

You are free to add or continue using additional packages in your project, provided they work in a modern JavaScript environment. There can be package mismatches or configurations from these additional packages you need to address, though this helps consolidate the troubleshooting scope.

On the front end, Kanopi Pack provides a fully documented configuration file to tailor features for a specific project. You can install Kanopi Pack via Node Package Manager (NPM) anywhere in your project structure. For PHP-based applications, like Drupal or WordPress, you can install Kanopi Pack Asset Loader with Composer (Packagist) to manage registering the scripts and stylesheets in the application.

Why should you use Kanopi Pack?

Other consolidation tools promote the idea that you must install 20-30 packages to streamline your team’s workflow. Kanopi Pack is a free, open-source tool that allows you to manage multiple dependencies through one module.

If you’re looking to refresh your outdated tech or keep your new build projects lean, Kanopi Pack is a useful infrastructure package to add to your toolbox.

Keeping up with the Kanopi team

Our team is committed to helping developers streamline their work by making projects more adaptable and easy to maintain. We value collaboration and contributing workable solutions like Kanopi Pack to our communities. Browse our GitHub to get a sense of what our other repositories can do.

If our philosophy resonates with you, reach out to us today to learn more about our team.

4 Google Tag Manager Strategies to Improve Performance

Nathan Shower

With Universal Analytics coming to an end in the next few months, marketing professionals are getting up and running with Google Analytics 4 (G A 4). GA4 is an event-based analytics solution rather than a session-based one. That means GA4 focuses more on user behaviors and actions, not just the pages they visit.

With that in mind, marketers must determine the most effective ways to track events. In this guide, we’ll share techniques to improve your site’s performance with Google Tag Manager.

Your website’s performance matters because:

Fast load speeds can improve your Google search rankings.
Better performance leads to greater visitor engagement.
High-performing web pages can help boost conversions.

Let’s begin by reviewing the standard WordPress enqueuing process and how you can enhance it with Google Tag Manager.

Standard WordPress enqueuing

WordPress gives users the option to add scripts to the header or footer of a document. Header-loaded scripts can block and delay a page from loading. By adding scripts to the footer, you can improve blocking time.

These scripts still need to be managed within WordPress and are subject to other plugins and elements loaded on the site. Fortunately, you can simplify this process with Google Tag Manager.

What is Google Tag Manager?

Google Tag Manager is a JavaScript container that allows you to place additional pieces of code (or tags) on your site. It provides a single place to manage marketing efforts, conversion tracking, and other tags, and keep those tags organized and optimized.

With these tags, you can track user behavior and conversion metrics like link and button clicks, form submissions, conversions, page views, and more.

Getting started with Google Tag Manager

Install Google Tag Manager using these steps:

Create an account at Google Tag Manager.
Create a container to manage your tags.
Add the Tag Manager code to your site using a plugin, custom template file, or hook.

Google Tag Manager best practices

You can improve your website’s performance by using tags strategically. Keep these best practices in mind when leveraging Tag Manager throughout your site:

Load tags selectively

Don’t load tags on every page. web.dev recommends not using tags to load elements that immediately impact the visual or user experience, like hero images and cookie notices. Using Tag Manager to load these aspects can unnecessarily slow down your pages.

Use custom triggers to fire tags only on the pages that need them. Here’s an example of a custom trigger configuration:

Fire tags later

Most tags don’t need to be ready instantly. You can put triggers in place to fire tags when specific conditions are met. This can help improve your page speed and performance.

To do this, you can use the “Window Loaded” trigger instead of the “Page View” trigger. The “Page View” trigger fires immediately as the page starts to load. This can track all actions a visitor takes as soon as they land on a page, but you can run the risk of having your tags trigger too early before all page data is loaded.

On the other hand, the “Window Loaded” trigger fires after all of the page’s content has already been loaded, such as the images, scripts, and other media. This can be helpful if you have some page content that loads later than other content. Later-loading tags can improve page speed, facilitating a better user experience.

Deferring script loading

Deferring script loading until after the page’s content has loaded is another way to boost page speed and enhance user experience.

Using Google Tag Manager’s Timers, you can create a new “Timer” trigger type, set a delay, and run it on Pageview. Let’s review the steps of this process:

Assign a tag to the new timer’s trigger.

Use Window.setTimeout on the script. This is a JavaScript feature that can load the script but delay execution. The script will load simultaneously as the page loads but the execution will be held back until the timer has ended. This requires custom scripting per tag.
Set Tag firing priority to add additional delay.

Add a custom event using window.setTimeout. This allows more control over when tags load.
You only need to develop one custom tag which is used as a trigger.

Audit and remove tags as needed

Fewer tags lead to faster load speeds. Audit your tags regularly, removing or disabling them as needed.

Ask yourself the tough questions during this process. For instance, do you really need three different user-tracking systems in place sitewide? Does that optimization test need to load everywhere or just on the page that is being tested? Every step you take to make your configuration leaner boosts your site’s performance.

Managing performance expectations

These strategies aren’t a miracle cure, but optimizing your tags could drastically improve your site’s performance.

Essentially, you should build your Tag Manager strategy around the idea that lots of small improvements can add up to major enhancements.

Additional resources

Goodbye Universal Analytics. Hello, Google Analytics 4 (GA4)! Learn more about what to expect from GA4 and how to set your analytics up for success.

8 ways to optimise Google Tag Manager (GTM) for speed and performance. This guide covers eight additional tips to optimize your Google Tag Manager configuration for speed and performance.

Google Tag Manager vs Page Speed: Impact & How to Improve. Use the tips in this resource to further improve your website’s page speed.

ACF Updates in WordPress

Kate Walsh

The ability for Advanced Custom Fields (ACF) to create post types is one of the biggest updates WordPress is making since blocks.

On Apr 3, 2023, Advanced Custom Fields (ACF) released one of its most groundbreaking updates since the introduction of Gutenberg ACF blocks. This 6.1 plugin release includes one truly significant feature: the ability to create custom post types.

This new feature is particularly timely, as it allows for greater customization directly from the administrative area of WordPress. Adding custom post types with “no-code” isn’t a new paradigm — but it is new for ACF. Given that ACF already excels at consistently implementing fields, blocks, and many other features, we’re excited to see the introduction of custom post types in ACF.

A Brief History of ACF

ACF was created March 28, 2011 by Elliot Condron as an easier way to implement custom fields. And from the earliest dawn of the 1.0 plugin, ACF was a clear advancement over add_meta_box.

Twelve years later, ACF has indeed proven its value, with over 2 million installations and counting. Features such as automatic field validation, a friendly UI in the admin panel, and powerful repeater and flex content fields make ACF a clear winner in the custom fields space.

After ten years of growth under Condron’s watchful eye, in 2021 ACF was sold to Delicious Brains, a significant player in the plugin community. Just over a year later, Delicious Brains – and thus ACF – was acquired by WP Engine. This acquisition was a shift for the WordPress community, but it also ensures that ACF remains in very capable hands.

Alternatives to ACF CPT

Naturally, there are some alternatives to custom post types in ACF. After all, we’ve been making CPTs for ages. Among those options:

CPT UI
GenerateWP
Good old handwritten register_post_type (note that this method is manual and time-consuming)

Why We’re Excited for ACF CPT

In particular, there are a couple of ACF CPT features we’re anticipating in WP Engine:

ACF custom post types built into the ACF user interface we already know and love.
Custom post types will be available in both the free and pro versions. The developers could have easily locked this feature behind the premium paywall, knowing that many people would be willing to pony up for it. However, we applaud WP Engine for being kind enough to release it in the free version.
CPTs are synced with standard ACF JSON or PHP exports. Easy to synchronize and it keeps your CPTs out of the database.
ACF has a tool to help users migrate away from existing custom post type definition plugins, such as CPTUI.
The post type tool can be easily disabled with a filter, namely:

add_filter( 'acf/settings/enable_post_types', '__return_false' );

Fun Extras

While investigating this ACF custom post-type release, we encountered some additional fun tidbits. They may not be directly related to ACF CPTs, but we thought we’d share because it’s a pretty neat little collection!

ACF has a filter to show/hide the admin panel entirely. acf/settings/show_admin – this can keep developers, clients, and anyone else trawling through your WP admin panel from live-updating fields and post types.
ACF has a filter to force the preview mode of an ACF Gutenberg block. This is great for ensuring your back-end editing interface looks just like the front-end. Within block.json, set your “mode” within your “acf” JSON to “preview” to force any ACF blocks into preview mode.

In fact, if you’d like to learn more about the advantages of using ACF to build Gutenberg blocks, check out this article by our WP Engineering Manager Oliver Harrison.

Links and More Information

Build With ACF — With Us

ACF is a foundational part of theme development at Kanopi. We’re excited to see the progression of ACF with these wonderful new features. And if you’re into building WordPress with ACF and other cutting-edge tools, we invite you to come and work with us!

What are WordPress and Drupal?

WordPress Overview

Drupal Overview

Drupal vs. WordPress: Side-by-Side Comparison

Ease of use

Security

Costs

Deployment

Performance

Customization

Support

SEO Capabilities

Which is better: WordPress or Drupal?

Partnering with WordPress and Drupal Experts

Additional Resources

Table of Contents

What is the Donor Journey?

Why Is Donor Journey Mapping Important?

The Elements of the Donor Journey

Donor Journey Step 1: Awareness

Donor Journey Step 2: Research

Donor Journey Step 3: Decision

Donor Journey Step 4: Appreciation

Donor Journey Step 5: Repeatable

How to Map Donor Journeys for Your Nonprofit

Define your key performance indicators (KPIs).

Create audience personas.

Isolate aspects of your digital user journeys that apply to the donor journey.

Review the elements of an effective donor journey.

Revisit, refine, and retest often!

How Kanopi Can Help

Wrapping Up

More machine learning and web personalization

More AI

More modular layouts

More security — and continued privacy concerns

More mobile devices and better overall performance

More accessibility

Is WordPress for Nonprofits the Right Choice for Your Organization?

Reasons to Use WordPress for Your Nonprofit Website

Reasons to Use a Different CMS for Your Nonprofit Website

Find Your Ideal Nonprofit CMS

Planning Your Nonprofit WordPress Website

Set goals

Research your audience

Choose a domain name

Choose a host

Select a theme

Design the user experience

Create wireframes

Develop navigation

WordPress Themes for Nonprofits

Prebuilt themes for nonprofits

Custom themes for nonprofits

WordPress Plugins for Nonprofits

Contributed vs. premium plugins

Types of WordPress plugins

WordPress plugin examples

Examples of Nonprofits Using WordPress

Physicians for Human Rights

Alameda County Community Food Bank (ACCFB)

PEN America

Catalyst

First Tee

How to Fundraise Effectively Using WordPress for Nonprofits

Content Tips for Your Nonprofit WordPress Website

Tips to Maintain a Healthy WordPress Website

WordPress for Nonprofits Resources

Simple and seamless configuration management

The difference between local and hosted environments

How it works

Why you should use it

Additional benefits

WP-CFM in action

Taking it one step further

Developing smarter

Why automated tools are useful but also insufficient

Automated scanning tools to use

SiteImprove

Add manual testing to find what the automated tools didn’t