01
Maintenance Plan and Onboarding Audit
We begin with a complete written audit of your WordPress installation: core version, PHP version, full plugin list with version and update status, theme and child theme, hosting platform and configuration, existing backup schedule, security scan history, SSL certificate status, and any issues found on day one. The audit becomes the baseline for all future reporting and gives you a documented record of your site's state when we took it over.
02
Staging Environment
We set up a staging environment on your hosting platform. WP Engine, Kinsta, and Flywheel all support staging natively. For SiteGround or other hosts, we provision staging through the platform or separately as needed. All core, plugin, and theme updates are tested on staging before being applied to your live site. Updates are never deployed to live without a staging test.
03
Core, Plugin, and Theme Updates
We apply WordPress core, plugin, and theme updates on a documented schedule. Security updates are applied promptly. Major version updates are tested more thoroughly on staging and scheduled to minimise disruption. Every update is logged with the version changed, the date applied, and the staging test result.
04
Security Monitoring
We configure a security scanner (Wordfence, Sucuri, or equivalent) and monitor it actively. We check for malware, file integrity changes, known vulnerability matches against your installed plugins, login brute force attempts, and blacklist status. Security alerts are reviewed by a human, not just collected. If a genuine incident is detected, we notify you in writing within the same business day with a summary of findings and recommended response steps. For incidents involving potential personal information exposure, we document findings to support your PIPEDA notification assessment.
05
Uptime Monitoring
We configure uptime monitoring that checks your site every minute from multiple locations including North American nodes. Immediate alerts go to our team when your site goes down. For clients on standard plans and above, we begin investigating without waiting for you to contact us. You receive a written incident report for any outage lasting more than five minutes.
06
Off-Site Backups
We configure automated daily backups stored off-site, separate from your hosting account. Backups are retained for a minimum of 30 days. We verify backup integrity monthly and document the result. For Canadian organisations with PIPEDA data handling obligations, we can configure backup storage within Canadian data centres.
07
SSL Management
We monitor your SSL certificate and renew it before expiry. An expired SSL certificate triggers browser security warnings, damages visitor trust, and can affect search rankings. SSL management is included in every plan.
08
Spam and Bot Protection
We configure and maintain spam filtering for your contact and lead generation forms and apply bot protection rules to reduce junk submissions and server load from automated crawlers. Spam and bot activity is summarised in your monthly report.
09
Monthly Report
We deliver a written monthly report covering every update applied, security scan results, uptime statistics, backup verification status, SSL certificate status, spam and bot summary, and support hours used. The report is written for a non-technical reader with a plain-language summary of any items requiring your attention or a decision. Reports are delivered within five business days of month end.
10
Support Hours Bank
Every plan includes a monthly support hours bank (between 2 and 5 hours depending on your plan) for content changes, small fixes, plugin investigations, and minor work. Support requests are logged, actioned, and confirmed in writing. No surprise invoices for work within your bank.