How to Perplexedly Stop or Pause Your Stunning WordPress Website

Stop the press! Has the process of maintaining your WordPress website left you feeling utterly confused and bursting with frustration? Fear not, for we have the answer to all your problems. Whether you’re looking to close down your website for good or just taking a break, we’ve got your back. In this article, we’ll walk you through how to stop your WordPress website step-by-step to give you some much-needed peace of mind.

Step 1: Back Up Your Site

Hold your horses! Before taking any further steps, it’s crucial to consider backing up your website. Whether you’re pausing or shutting it down completely, it’s essential to keep a backup copy that ensures you can restore your site later without any issues. To do this, use a plugin like UpdraftPlus, which is free and incredibly user-friendly.

Step 2: Pause Your Website

If you’re only looking to pause your site momentarily, consider using a maintenance mode plugin such as WP Maintenance Mode. It enables you to display a personalized message to your visitors while your site undergoes maintenance.

Step 3: Close Your Site to Visitors

If you’re permanently closing down your website, you’ll need to make sure that it’s closed to visitors. Use the Disable Site WordPress Plugin, which is easy to use and free, and customize your message. Whether you want to redirect visitors to another site or simply show a blank page, you’ve got the power!

Step 4: Disable Search Engine Visibility

If you’re permanently shutting down your website, remember to disable your search engine visibility in your WordPress settings to ensure your rankings don’t drop. Head to Settings > Reading page, and check the box that says “Discourage search engines from indexing this site.”

Step 5: Remove Site Content

To ensure that your website is not accessible to visitors, you need to remove all content, including posts, pages, and images. Don’t forget to delete all plugins and themes associated with your site to avoid any leftover data.

Step 6: Consider Redirecting Your Site

If you’re shutting down your website permanently, consider redirecting your visitors to a new site. You can use a plugin like the Redirection plugin to add a new redirection and choose the source URL (your old site) and the destination URL (your new site).

Wrapping Up

Now that you know how to stop your WordPress website, you can move on to new opportunities with confidence. Remember to keep a backup copy of your site in case you need to restore it later, and redirect visitors to a new site if you’re shutting down permanently. Follow these steps, and you’ll soon be waving goodbye to all your website worries.