When running a business website, decide how to keep it up to date. You can choose to have a designer create a unique visual system for your site and configure it. But someone still has to place the content and in its place and make future changes. A common question for a small business is: Can I keep the content updated even without the constant need of a webmaster?

Maintenance is a job for a visitor management system. A content management system (or CMS) is a type of software program that makes writing and modifying web pages less technical and more similar to word processing. Without a CMS, you need the ability to code HTML in your hand properly. With a CMS, you have the tools to change text, add images or other media and let the software insert the HTML markup that makes it work on the Internet.

WordPress is an open source software program that has many features that you need to run a website. Most people think of it as a way to run a blog. Here are 7 reasons why it's a great opportunity for people who want more than a traditional site for their business:

You can build web pages with WordPress. Many people think that if you use WordPress, your home page should show your latest posts or articles rather than a steady text page about your business. It's not true. You can create a default homepage that you would do for any other site creator. A simple configuration allows you to do this. The control system, called the control panel, allows you to select a page instead of a blog as the home page. How to create a 'static page' instead of a blog style page to act as your homepage.

Your new pages will automatically appear as menu settings. It is not necessary to update the main menu manually in most cases. Your WordPress system is programmed to automatically list your new pages in your navigation bar. This saves you (or your webmaster) a lot of time because you no longer need to manually code the new page in the menu

You do not need to buy a special program to upload files to your web server. WordPress includes tools for uploading images and other types of files to your server. Some people will tell you that creating a website requires an FTP program. FTP applications use special software to move files from your local computer to your site server. Once you have configured WordPress, you do not need additional software to move files. While a separate FTP program can certainly help you build a website (and no serious web designer would be without one), it doesn't have to work with WordPress.

You can easily recover from mistakes. Wow, did you accidentally delete a page? The Trash feature, new from WordPress version 3.0, allows you to recover a file you sent to the Recycle Bin. Did you change your text just to wish you hadn't done it? WordPress saves all previous versions automatically. If you scroll down the control panel, you'll see a list of saved versions each time you save or publish a page. While you may need time to learn how to use the tools, they are there if you need to put something back as it was before.

Trim, resize or rotate images with a built-in image editor. You do not need to buy image editing software separately to get basic formatting tools. If your image is too large or it looks better or flipped like a mirror image, WordPress has the tools. Can you fix red-eye or illuminate a dark image with WordPress? Not from version 3.0. If your images need more work than resizing or orientation, use additional software.

Want to sell ebooks, add a photo gallery, or manage testimonials? Add-ons are software programs that you can add to your WordPress site to incorporate new features. They are usually free to use because developers are willing to do the work for donations or attract links or customers who want personal programming. You can create an online store, podcasts, questionnaires, and hundreds of other features using specific add-ons. You may be able to install and configure basic add-ons yourself. However, an expert WordPress webmaster can help you configure a complex add-on properly if you find one that requires advanced custom settings.

Adding a blog is easy. The blog tools are