What website builder should you use?
You’ll get a whole range of answers and likely based on personal experience or what people may have heard. Maybe they are WordPress wizards or Shopify sleuths who are eager to sell their services and show their expertise. It may be overwhelming?
Here’s the thing … they’re not you. Nobody but you knows how comfortable you feel about tech and the goals for your website.
Try this first and let’s see if we can avoid all that feedback:
Write down what you would like your website to do
Short list a few websites that do what you’d like your dream site to do
Have a look on YouTube or the website builders to get an idea of how content is loaded and constructed.
You should get a feel, at this point, for what’s making you tick.
You may love the way WordPress’s dashboard looks and how you have flexibility to swap hosts and try out different plug-ins. Or you may like to have everything under one place like Squarespace as you have limited time or interest.
What about your users? It’s hard to tell what a website platform is built on. In fact there are websites that allow people to find out if they wanted to but that’s also a marker of how flexible most platforms can be (though I’ll flag now that Weekly is the exception to this -carry on reading to find out why). Note that I’ve said ‘do’ a lot here and the reason for this is that users aren’t terribly bothered as long as the site loads and they can do or find what they need.
Your experience is critical.
If you loath Wix, then you may not feel there’s any point to moving to another CMS (content management system) site like Squarespace. WordPress might be your thing. Or vice versa. If you loath your platform then the chances are, you’ll be worried about updating it or it simply drops to the end of your to do list. And you should know my mantra if you’ve been reading Gorgeous, my newsletter - your content should be on your website first as social media platforms can randomly close you down or change their terms (if you’re not reading it, go sign up as you’ll find a lot of useful design advice for free).
Here’s a run down of some builders which you may find helpful.
Wix is a drag and drop platform based on HTML 5
Plus points
It’s got a wide range of templates.
It has market place for add-ons that can make your site work harder.
It uses Generative AI to help with text.
Minus points
You cannot change the template as your business grows, you have to rebuild.
Wix limits your storage on all plans.
Wix only offers e-commerce on premium plans making it more expensive that other builders.
It has limited site security which makes it unsuitable for business sites.
It’s not great for Google as the drag and drop can hide errors which Google won't rank.
It’s hard to migrate data if you wish to change platforms.
Squarespace is a CMS based website that can be customised with code or sites can be based on templates
Plus points
You can have two weeks free trial or longer if you use a Squarespace Circle designer, like me, and you can pay annually for hosting with a discount of around 15%.
It has great blogging facilities with multiple author functions.
You can easily change the template at any time and there are plug-ins to help move content from one website to another.
The hosting is by Squarespace and updates are automatic.
It can be optimised for tablet and mobile viewing.
You can export out blog content if you migrate to Wordpress.
It’s good for SEO and encouraging best practice with a plug-in support.
It has partnered with e-commerce providers for drop-shipping.
You’re be able to find Squarespace endorsed professional designers who provide design, development and support like me.
Minus points
Whilst it’s possible to build a unique site, the coding can be limited.
It might be overwhelming at first, that wish list is really important as there are so many tools to play with.
You want something super simple to start with (Wix might be better).
The hosting is by Squarespace which is good but it means you can’t swap around.
WordPress began as a blogging platform in 2003 and it’s now one of the most popular choices for website building.
Plus points
Once you’ve got to grips with the platform, it’s pretty user-friendly, not necessary attractive but WP makes it simple to organise content.
There are thousands of plug-ins that allow site customisations, though be careful with your choices.
SEO on WP is good, there are plug-ins to support best practices in the content creation.
It’s open source which means that many themes and plug-ins are free under the licence and you’ll be spoilt for choice when it comes to developers.
Minus points
You need to keep an eye on updates and security. You can do this yourself or have a maintenance plan with a developer.
If you don’t, and even if you do, WP can be open to hacks and that can come from plug-ins so choose them wisely
Some themes can be bloated with code and that can make them slow to load and run
Customisation can be expensive.
Shopify is an e-commerce platform enabling users to open an online store and sell their products online
Plus points
Supports a wide range of businesses with custom plans.
Great at drop shipping.
Has a wide range of payment options including Paypal, Stripe and Apple Pay and online security.
Lots of apps and plug-ins to help develop and website.
Minus points
It’s a subscription model so you have to play monthly for the set-up and running costs, this can eat into your profits, and it’s important to keep an eye on the price increases.
Your store can be customised but it’s limited with no option to create your own thank you page, other platforms do provide this (Squarespace, BigCommerce and WooCommerce).
It uses Liquid which is its own programming language, which could be a plus as it is specialised but it might be difficult to find external support and its something else to learn that may not be as useful as other code that is universal.
The content management isn't as flexible or friendly as other platforms. Do check it can handle what you’re intending to sell.
It, like Wix and Weekly, can lock you into their platform by making it hard to export content.
Weebly is a good option if you want to build a website for free
Plus points
Its free plan is generous.
It has recently improved the App Store to add more site functions.
It has some useful SEO tips in the guides.
Minus points
The drag and drop is limited and can be frustrating for anyone wish to get creative.
The templates are dated and it’s hard to make anything stand out due to the lack of customisation, users may find other sites that look similar to their own.
It is poor at mobile formatting and that’s a must these days.
I create with Squarespace and Wordpress. I have been exploring Shopify. I am an authorised Squarespace Trainer, and Circle Member, proud to be part of Women Who Code and I’ve trained in UX and accessibility. I believe that my clients deserve the most suitable tools for their work.