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Custom plugins or buy a ready-made one?

If you are here, it is because you have a website and you want to give it shape. So much wordpress as other platforms offer very useful templates; but depending on your objective as a brand, you probably prefer to give it a different touch. For this, there are pre-designed plugins, but there is also an option that is little talked about: the design of custom plugins.

The network is vast in plugins with countless functions, but not all of them meet our expectations or requirements. When this happens, we can go to a developer to take care of it. But is it worth doing or is it better to pick one from existing collections?

Prebuilt plugins

The plugin pre-designed are those that we find in the collections of the platform. There are a wide variety of functions that make them very attractive and, in fact, offer a number of benefits.

Advantages of pre-built plugins: ease, speed of installation and low cost

First of all, they are easy to install, which reduces waiting times and allows us to obtain results faster. They are definitely a great help for both entrepreneurs and reputable brands.

Another advantage is that many pre-built plugins are free or inexpensive compared to asking a developer to design them. Custom plugins require additional investment.

If you are just starting out with your Web page and your budget is limited, or you prefer to invest according to your progress, perhaps the most convenient thing is to look for one that suits your site in the existing collections.

Disadvantages of pre-built plugins: weight and low security

However, using pre-built plugins carries certain risks that deserve attention. For example, many hackers often use these plugins as a way to attack or hijack websites. The consequences could be fatal: from monetary loss to loss of content published over years of hard work. 

But how can this happen? There are many reasons. To begin with, many of the free plugins that we find on the net, such as those commonly used in WordPress, are developed by amateur programmers and not necessarily registered companies.

Your codes may have serious security flaws that are difficult to make visible with a lack of knowledge. Attackers often use these gaps to make their own. Others are simply maliciously developed to distribute malware, spyware, and other malicious software that have similar effects. 

Another aspect of attention is that pre-built plugins can slow down your website, which would be disadvantageous in the long run. Nobody likes to wait for a page to load, much less those that experience failures; so you should probably choose very carefully the ones that you will include so as not to saturate your website.

Custom plugins

There is also the option of creating custom plugins, which simply consists of hiring a web development professional who will design it according to your needs. 

Advantages of custom plugins

The main advantage of custom plugins is that they are designed to do just what we want our site to do; no more no less. If we know our market well, we can probably include features through them that other websites do not offer, which would benefit our brand.

Being so exclusive, security breaches are significantly reduced. Even aware of the risks, customers may demand that the best possible settings be made to avoid them at all costs. 

In addition, if we have chosen our supplier well, we will have support when an inconvenience arises or when an update is necessary. This is definitely a big plus.

Disadvantages of custom plugins

But not everything is as nice as it sounds. A digital marketing strategy usually requires some investment, but plugins are rarely something we consider. However, to enjoy the advantages mentioned throughout this article, it is often necessary to pay an expert. And let's be clear, designing a very specific plugin can be expensive.

Another weak point is that, many times, when designing it we do not contemplate all the things we want, and we end up with a product that does not fully satisfy our needs. 

In short, if you have a web page with very specific requirements and none of the plugins you have seen fit them, it would be best to go to developers.

But remember: they need to be experienced and active to offer support in case of any issues. The Cloud Group has trained personnel for this. If you need a custom plugin, Click here and request information. You have come to the right place.