If you’re starting on your digital journey. It’s highly likely that you’ve jumped over to Google and searched this exact question. There are a range of website builder platforms available and they all have their pros and cons.
Which website builder platform is best for my business?
The results will show you a bunch of ads for various page builder style CMS (content management system) options. They all claim to be the easiest, fastest, most affordable option for getting your business online.
But how do you know which one to use? It really comes down to the purpose of your website and the functionality you require from your digital presence.
To answer this, we need to consider the type of business you are building a website for.
- Are you a service business, selling time in exchange for services rendered?
- Are you a store selling products (either online, in a physical location or both)?
- Are you a club or organisation that needs to recruit new members?
Answering this will help narrow down which website builder application will be the best option for you.
There are a few more things to take into consideration and are worth checking out before you make your final decision.
- What are your technology capabilities (do you know your way around a computer, or do you shy away from new tech)
- Do you have time/resources within your business to keep your website maintained moving forward?
- Maybe you have dedicated software that you use in your day-to-day business. It could be for inventory management, scheduling appointments or managing memberships. These things will also influence which CMS you choose for your website – as some integrations work best with certain platforms.
Let’s break it down to the basics:
If you’re looking to sell products online (or in a physical location as well) you’re going to want to check out Shopify.
All major website builders now have online store capabilities but Shopify is by far the easiest, best performing and easily scalable solution for businesses of every size.
One of the perks of Shopify is that it’s a self-hosted platform meaning you don’t need to worry about additional security for your site or running updates as you would with other platforms.
If you’re a service-based business and you just need the basics – you’ll want to check out Squarespace.
The free (and paid) template options on Squarespace are well-known for their sleek designs! It’s a drag and drop builder so you don’t need to be a web extraordinaire to get a beautiful site up and running in no time. Just like Shopify it’s a self-hosted platform so no updates or maintenance to worry about. It’s pretty flexible and those in the know can make it do some pretty powerful things – but if you’re working with an out of the box template you might face some limitations in getting it to work exactly the way you want it to unless you engage a developer or designer to work on it with you.
If you know you’re way around a computer and you want a bespoke solution, the best bet is WordPress.
If you want a website that is just as unique as you, WordPress wins. With WordPress your only limitation is your technical capability.
If you know your way around a computer, it’s not too hard to master but there are some things to take into consideration. With WordPress you’re going to want to sort out your own account to host the website – this means you’ll be responsible for sorting out your own SSL for security purposes and running maintenance updates of the software to keep it secure and performing well.
For more comprehensive custom solutions there are builders such as Webflow, SilverStripe & Duda – these are more complex systems that definitely require the assistance of a website developer.
Which website builder do I use for my client’s websites?
It’s not about me! It’s about what my clients need. I help you answer the questions above to work out which option is going to work best for your business.
Unlike many website designers, I won’t peg you into an option that isn’t going to work for you.
My love lies with WordPress because the possibilities are endless, but if you’re an e-commerce business I’ll be working with you to develop your customised Shopify presence. You can read more detail about our web design services here.
For clients who need a brochure style site without all the bells and whistles – I may encourage you to go with Squarespace so you can update it yourself moving forward with little assistance.
If you’re unsure about the best option for your business or organisation, flick me a message and I’ll set you on the right track.