Recently, a disagreement between WordPress.org (the free, open-source software) and WP Engine (a popular WordPress hosting provider) left many small sites without crucial updates. It’s a reminder of why partnering with a team like First Ascent for managed hosting is a smart move—especially for small businesses. We manage our own servers, so your site isn’t at the mercy of third-party disputes. And if something goes wrong? You’re not stuck with a faceless ticket system—you get real, human support from us. Plus, with our in-house marketing expertise, your site isn’t just secure; it’s designed to perform. Let us take care of the tech so you can focus on what you do best.

Website maintenance—the act of securing, maintaining, polishing, and improving a website over time, is not simply hosting! We build dozens of sites every year and actively maintain 80+ websites as of 2024. 

What goes into maintaining a Website? 

Monthly Content Updates

You should feel capable and empowered to make edits to your own website, but we’re here to provide support and take on that burden. Need to add a new page to the website? Want to change the copy or images? We’ll handle any and all updates. We’ll also provide general email support for your staff. Different tiers of maintenance include additional time for updates.

Monthly Analytics Reports

We call them “site health reports,” and that’s exactly what they are. Every month, you’ll be able to see a snapshot of your site’s performance with detailed data about visitors, visitor actions, heat maps, goal tracking, and other insights.

CDN & Loading Speed Optimization

A fast site is a well-used, productive, and profitable site. The public’s expectations for the loading speed of a website have changed, and Google’s definitions of a fast-loading website have also changed, which leaves a real user- and SEO-risk if the loading speed is not optimized. To serve content quickly and smoothly in all regions, we link sites to a global CDN Network and optimize loading speed.

Security Updates

Most sites require an update at least once a week (some daily) and major updates can sometimes break a site. Not updating is even worse, leaving your site vulnerable to attack. We’ll perform routine security scans to keep your site safe and secure.

Note: This was the core issue in the WordPress vs. WPEngine debacle in September/October 2024. The disagreement between the two companies caused all WP Engine-hosted websites to lose the ability to easily get updates from WordPress, leaving them vulnerable and exposed. Our systems and real developer support teams would prevent issues like this from affecting your site.

Uptime, Loading, and Broken-Link Monitoring

We’ll monitor the website for changes in availability, loading speed, and broken links to continually provide the best user experience possible.

Consistent, Reliable, and Off-site Backups

We make consistent backups of your website files and databases—stored on our First Ascent Design servers—and these backups of your website will always be accessible, no matter what happens. If the unthinkable happens, and your site is hacked, deleted, or otherwise damaged, we can restore the most recent backup of the site, quickly and easily.

Accessibility in the Modern Web

Did you know that 10% of Americans have one or more disabilities that could affect navigating a website?

The accessibility landscape is constantly changing.

  • Nearly 3,000 accessibility-related lawsuits were filed in 2023.
  • DOJ standards for state and government sites must be met by 2025, and private sector websites will be next.
  • Businesses receive thousands of demand letters annually. The cost of resolving them can reach $25,000.
  • Depending on business size, many cases settle out of court for an average of $5,000- $20,000.
  • Website remediation driven by demand letters can take up to a year and cost roughly $100,000.

Maintaining Accessibility Through AI

To best protect our clients, our maintenance plans include an AI-powered accessibility solution that allows for:

  • Daily audits and updates on the latest accessibility best practices
  • An interactive accessibility interface that allows users to choose what they need
  • For users that don’t need additional accessibility options, the website will remain unchanged
  • A monthly compliance certification that can be used as part of a legal defense if necessary
  • Third-party legal support is provided by the accessibility partner if a case is brought against the website


What about hosting?

Website maintenance is about so much more than hosting. So much so, that we include it by default.  

A Secure Environment

Hosting with First Ascent Design means that your website is secured on multiple levels. At the server level, your site operates in its own environment and is protected with server-level tools like Iptables. At the DNS level, we configure Cloudflare as both a firewall layer and DNS provider. On the software level, we secure WordPress sites using automatic, safe-update technology along with the WordFence security firewall and scanning. In other words, there are at least three layers of protection before a bad actor can gain access.

Hosting (Last but not least)

While you don’t need to host with First Ascent to benefit from our website maintenance packages, we highly recommend taking advantage of the opportunity. For most websites, web hosting is included, along with any necessary host management — at no additional charge. We provide fully managed hosting with hardware on DigitalOcean, which provides a 99.99% uptime SLA. Our development team maintains and secures each individual server, ensuring your website stays healthy, fast, and secure.

Looking for Support with your Website?

If you’re ready to stop worrying about your website, have experts on hand for support, and know that your story is being told online, let’s have a conversation!