There are a lot of misconceptions about what WordPress is. WordPress is not a website builder, and does not refer to any particular look or style of websites. It is a content management system, providing an easy-to-use dashboard from which you’ll be able to add, format, and post content like blog entries, event notifications, and photos to your site.

Without a CMS, all of these changes would need to be made directly in code, meaning you’ll have to keep a developer on retainer, or update the code yourself. At a minimum, you’ll need to be comfortable writing, refactoring and debugging HTML, CSS, and Markdown. By contrast, a CMS allows you to edit site content using a Microsoft Word-style interface instead.

You can have your cake and eat it too: a custom-built website (in WordPress speak, a custom template), installed on WordPress’ content management system. You’ll have a completely unique website, while being able to layer on robust security and backup features with just a few clicks.

tl;dr (too long, didn’t read):

Don’t reinvent the wheel. Use WordPress as your content management system (CMS), to manage your content (blog posts, videos, images, etc.)