An open source website reduces long-term dependencies because the website, content, and technical foundation should belong to your company – not to a platform, not to an agency, and not to a pricing model that only becomes visible with growth.
For over 20 years, I've seen the same pattern in projects with SMEs: Initially, a closed platform seems fast, inexpensive, and convenient. After two or three years, the focus suddenly shifts to multilingualism, interfaces, data export, new processes, AI readability, performance, or changing agencies.
That's precisely when it becomes clear whether a website is a true company asset or merely rented access to a system. My point isn't about a love of technology. An open-source core is a business decision for ownership, independence, transparent costs, and long-term viability.
Why an open source website creates more economic freedom
The economic advantage of an open-source website isn't that everything is free. Good strategy, good design, clean development, maintenance, security, updates, and backups all cost money. The difference lies in the cost logic: you pay for added value and infrastructure, not for permanently artificial access restrictions.
Ideally, in an open system, your company possesses:
- the domain and the DNS access,
- the hosting or at least direct access to it,
- the database and all its contents,
- the exportable source code,
- the media files and structured data,
- the administrative access points,
- a documentation of the most important technical decisions.
Once these points are clearly defined, you can switch providers, expand, restructure, or bring in another team later. This freedom is more important to many small businesses than the lowest starting price.
A website is truly your property when you can continue to operate it independently in terms of technology, content, and organization.
At Berger+Team, we don't think of websites as digital brochures, but as strategic systems. If you'd like to delve deeper into how we combine concept, design, and technical implementation, you can find more information about our web design and development work.
Open source is no longer a fringe topic
Open source is not a niche topic for developers. According to the Bitkom Open Source Monitor 2025, 73 percent of surveyed companies with 20 or more employees in Germany use open-source software. It's important to understand the context: not every company is already using open source strategically. This is precisely where the opportunity lies for SMEs.
Those who see open source merely as a "free tool" are missing the point. Those who understand open source as part of a holistic strategy gain more options:
- more control about data, content and processes,
- less platform dependency during growth,
- less agency dependence through accessible source code,
- improved adaptability for individual requirements,
- clearer investment logic, because development remains reusable.
This aligns with my philosophy at Berger+Team: technology should empower small businesses, not create dependency. Our freelance collective therefore operates with direct client contact, lean structures, and transparent decision-making.
What platform dependency means in practice
Vendor lock-in sounds technical, but it means something very simple: you're dependent on a single provider because switching is expensive, cumbersome, or practically impossible. This dependency can occur with website builders, closed agency CMS platforms, cloud services, CRM systems, shop platforms, or AI tools.
The OECD describes such lock-in effects in cloud markets: customers rarely switch providers after an initial selection. The OECD cites a lack of standardized data formats and contractual and financial barriers such as egress fees (costs for transferring data) as obstacles.
For an SME, platform dependency usually doesn't become apparent on day one. It only becomes apparent when you want to grow.
- You want to add new language versions, but the package becomes significantly more expensive.
- You need a clean data export, but you're only getting incomplete files.
- You want to hire an external developer, but the source code is not accessible.
- You want a custom interface, but you pay a fixed fee per API call or per integration.
- You need more users, and suddenly high user costs arise.
- You want to automate processes, but the platform only allows predefined workflows.
The problem is not that closed systems are inherently bad. The problem arises when the economic consequences are not openly discussed.
When closed platforms can be useful
A closed platform can be useful if you need to get started very quickly, for a very small project. Budget You have a website builder, or you need a simple test page. For a pop-up test, a side project, or a temporary landing page, a website builder can be economically sensible.
One platform is often sufficient if:
- Your website has only a few pages,
- no individual processes are planned
- no complex multilingualism is necessary
- no special interfaces are needed
- A later change of provider does not pose a significant risk.
- so that monthly costs remain manageable even with growth.
Caution is advised if your website is to become the digital hub of your company. Once website, marketing, automation, sales, and content converge, you need more than just attractive templates. Then the website becomes a system. I explore this very idea in more detail in the article "Website as an Asset or Hub ."
WordPress as a widely used open-source core
WordPress isn't the only open-source solution, but for many SMEs, it's a realistic and economically viable open-source core. W3Techs identifies WordPress as the most widely used content management system in April 2026: WordPress is used by 42,5 percent of all websites and achieves a 59,8 percent market share among websites with a well-known CMS.
This market share is not automatically proof of quality for every single project. A poorly built WordPress system remains poor. However, widespread adoption brings economic advantages:
- There are many developers who can work with WordPress.
- Switching providers is more realistic than with proprietary, specialized solutions.
- Content, database and files are generally accessible.
- Many functions can be individually expanded.
- Maintenance, security, updates and backups can be professionally organized.
The crucial question isn't "WordPress yes or no." The crucial question is: Is WordPress strategically planned, leanly structured, and maintained long-term? An overloaded system with 40 plugins doesn't offer freedom. A lean, well-documented system with a clear architecture, on the other hand, can be invaluable for a small business.
Transparent costs instead of hidden costs
Many offers seem cheap at first because the real costs only become apparent later. Hidden costs often don't surface in the initial presentation, but rather in daily use.
Typical cost traps include:
- Ongoing license fees for features that are actually a core part of the website,
- User costs for additional staff or editors,
- Cost per API call for interfaces, automations or AI functions,
- Fees per form, per language, per data export or per edit,
- Expensive mandatory upgrades as soon as traffic or content grows,
- Agency fees for even the smallest changes because there are no clean access points.
An open-source core doesn't eliminate all ongoing costs. But it shifts the cost logic. You pay for transparent services: design, development, hosting, maintenance, security, updates, backups, monitoring, and support. These costs are predictable and explainable.
That, for me, is the key difference: Transparent costs create trust. Hidden costs create dependency.
Transparent hosting is infrastructure, not a tool of power.
Hosting is often underestimated in many website projects. For me, transparent hosting means clean infrastructure performance with clear accountability. Hosting should not be used as leverage to keep customers.
A good hosting setup for SMEs should clarify at least these points:
- Who is the contractual partner for the hosting?
- Where are the website, database, and backups located?
- How often are backups created?
- How long are backups kept?
- Who installs updates?
- Who checks for safety and technical errors?
- How quickly can the website be restored in case of an outage?
- Can the company switch its website to a different provider?
In South Tyrol, I often observe that SMEs place a great deal of trust in their service providers. Trust is good and important. But trust is no substitute for clear agreements. Especially with domains, hosting, databases, source code, and admin access, ownership must be transparent.
Ownership: What your company really needs to own
Website ownership is more than just whether your logo is on the page. Practical ownership means you can continue to run the website independently.
Before starting your project, you should ask these questions:
- Does my company own the domain?
- Does my company have access to the hosting?
- Will I receive a complete data export?
- Will I have access to the database?
- Is the source code accessible?
- Which licenses are used?
- What ongoing license fees are incurred?
- What costs increase with users, API calls, content, or languages?
- Can another professional take over the website?
- Is there any technical documentation?
If these questions are answered evasively, caution is advised. This isn't because every provider has malicious intentions. Often, dependencies arise from convenience, lack of documentation, or unclear contracts. But for your company, the result makes no difference: you're dependent.
Open Source, AI and digital sovereignty
The discussion is becoming more important due to AI and automation. If your website is to provide structured content, pre-sort inquiries, trigger internal processes, or supply reliable information to AI systems in the future, you need access to your own technical foundation.
An independent website is more than just a marketing platform. It can become a controlled data and process hub. That's precisely why digital sovereignty is n't an abstract concept for SMEs. In practice, digital sovereignty means you can decide which tools you use, where your data flows, and which systems you replace later.
The EU Data Act also demonstrates that switching options and data access are becoming increasingly economically relevant. The EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), Regulation (EU) 2023/2854, entered into force on January 11, 2024, and contains rules on switching between data processing services in Chapter VI. Most of the obligations have been in effect since September 12, 2025.
For SMEs, this doesn't mean that every platform is risk-free. Regulation is no substitute for good architecture. But regulation confirms a trend: data portability, the ability to switch providers, and transparent supplier relationships are becoming key economic issues.
Decision support for SMEs
An open-source core is particularly suitable if your website is intended to grow in the long term and not just need to go online in the short term.
Open source is a good fit if:
- Your website is a central sales channel,
- If you want to regularly maintain content yourself,
- Multilingualism is important, for example German and Italian in South Tyrol,
- Interfaces to CRM, newsletter, booking, shop or automation are planned
- If you want transparent costs in the long term,
- If you want to be able to switch providers,
- You consider the website, content, and technical infrastructure as a company asset.
A closed platform is often sufficient if:
- You only need a very simple presence,
- the website is not business-critical,
- No individual functions are planned
- You consciously prioritize low start-up costs over long-term flexibility,
- A later reconstruction would not be a major problem.
Caution is advised if:
- You are not guaranteed a complete data export.
- It remains unclear who owns the domain, hosting, and content.
- You do not receive admin access,
- Changes are only possible through one provider.
- Prices per user, API call, or processing increase sharply,
- the provider does not make the source code accessible,
- Maintenance, security, updates and backups are not clearly described.
Berger+Team's philosophy: Strategy before technology
At Berger+Team, we don't start with the question: "Which system should we choose?" We start with the question: "What does your company need to be able to do in the coming years?" Only then do we decide on website structure, design, content system, hosting, automation and possible AI integrations.
This isn't a detail for me; it's the difference between technology and strategy. Technology without positioning creates effort. Design without strategy produces superficiality. Marketing without substance produces noise.
Our working model as a freelance collective fits well with this idea. You get direct access to specialists, but no artificial agency dependency. We want to build systems that work, remain understandable, and belong to your company. This makes economic sense and is ethically sound.
For me, a win-win-win means: Your company benefits from clarity and the ability to act. The team benefits from fair and transparent collaboration. And the collaboration remains healthy because responsibility, knowledge, and benefits are not unnecessarily centralized.
FAQ: Open-source core, ownership and costs
Is an open-source website automatically cheaper?
No. An open-source website isn't automatically cheaper to build, but it's often more economical over several years. The advantages lie in lower ongoing licensing fees, better reusability, and greater independence.
What exactly does website ownership mean?
Website ownership means that your company controls the domain, content, database, access, hosting arrangements, and ideally, the source code as well. Only then can you further develop the website without unnecessary dependencies or switch providers.
Is WordPress secure enough for SMEs?
WordPress can be operated securely if maintenance, updates, backups, user permissions, and hosting are professionally managed. WordPress becomes insecure primarily due to outdated plugins, weak passwords, and a lack of support.
How much does transparent hosting cost?
Transparent hosting costs vary depending on the scope of services, but should clearly explain what is included: storage, performance, backups, security measures, updates, monitoring, and support. It is important that hosting is not sold as an unclear flat fee or a tool for creating dependency.
Can I change agencies if I have an open-source website?
Yes, provided the website is well-documented and your company has access to the hosting, database, content, and source code. Switching providers doesn't have to be pleasant, but it must be possible.
What is the difference between agency dependency and good service?
Good support means that a partner takes responsibility and works transparently. Agency dependency arises when you can't access, make changes, export data, or participate in technical development without using the same provider.
Are closed platforms inherently bad?
No. Closed platforms can be useful for simple, quick starts. Closed platforms become problematic when growth, interfaces, multilingualism, individual processes, or long-term platform independence become important.
What question should I ask before offering any website?
The most important question is: Can my company independently continue to operate this website with all its content, data, and access rights? If the answer is unclear, you should inquire before commissioning the service.
