11 min read
Gone are the daunting days of building a website. What used to be a time-consuming and expensive rabbit hole of designing and coding – has now become something quite simplistic, quick and affordable.
Whether you’re promoting your business, showcasing your work, opening your store or starting a blog—you can do it all with the Wix website builder.
Sign up today to create your free website.
A website builder helps you construct a website without relying on a web designer or coder. Extremely user-friendly, they’re becoming increasingly popular amongst small businesses that are looking to launch a beautiful, functional website quickly and without breaking the bank.
There are two types of website builder, online and offline:
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Offline Offline versions are downloaded to your desktop and can build your website without an internet connection. |
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Online Online versions create everything in the cloud and operate on an editable template system – you have to be connected to the internet to access, build and update your website. |
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With the above in mind, we’ll be focusing our insight on online website builders as they are cheaper and easier to use, offering better flexibility for small businesses and startups. You won’t require hefty hardware, have to run regular software updates or have to handle separate hosting arrangements. Offline website builders are slightly more geared towards professional web designers who would make more use of the wider range of customisation options and would likely have the powerful hardware to support the downloaded software.
There are two types of online web builder, all-in-one and license based.
There are two types of online web builder, all-in-one and license based.
Select your favourite template and apply a drag-and-drop approach to updating and modifying content and functionality.
These platforms offer everything you need to create, publish and maintain your website. They will secure your domain name, organise your hosting and ensure the software used to run your website stays up-to-date.
Create your website via content management system (CMS) templates instead. These work as standalone site building apps that can run on any server.
You’re free to use any hosting provider you like and can transport your site at any time. Once you’ve paid your template and hosting fee, you don’t have to pay anything else (e.g. monthly/annual renewals)
If you’re a brand new business, the chances are you’re not at the stage where you need to hire an agency to create your website. Even for more established businesses, committing to an agency could be a risky move when there are a number of user-friendly, affordable website builders out there.
Here are the main advantages of doing it yourself.
On the other hand, you’ll need to consider the downsides of doing it yourself:
You might find that two-to-three years after launching your business, you’ve got some money coming in and are questioning whether it’s the time to bring in the professionals to revisit your website. Consider how much money you have to invest at this stage. If it’s around the £500-1,000 mark, that still won’t substantially improve your website. Re-invest in other elements such as social adverts or photography for your website to encourage continued income and help your business grow.
An experienced digital or web design agency will bring a wealth of experience with it. Here are some of the main advantages of using a web design agency:
When you're starting out it will likely make more sense to go with a DIY website builder. There's a lot of choice on the market but, as ever, it's important to consider your business needs and capabilities first and foremost.
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It’s important to do your research when choosing a web builder as changing from one to another later on can be difficult. We’ve looked at some of the main builders on the market, including a more detailed summary below.
The all-rounder, Wix’s most popular plan is £8.50 a month.
Great fit for businesses with beautiful visuals, Squarespace’s business plan is £15 a month.
A slightly more advanced option, with WordPress.org the only fixed cost that you need to endure for your site is hosting.
Powering 35% of the internet, WordPress.com offers a range of plans and 24/7 support by more than 300 humans.
The eCommerce specialist, Shopify offers a free trial option.
The cheap option, Weebly offers a basic package for free as well as other plans.
The all-rounder, Wix’s most popular plan is £8.50 a month.
Great fit for businesses with beautiful visuals, Squarespace’s business plan is £15 a month.
A slightly more advanced option, with WordPress.org the only fixed cost that you need to endure for your site is hosting.
Powering 35% of the internet, WordPress.com offers a range of plans and 24/7 support by more than 300 humans.
The eCommerce specialist, Shopify offers a free trial option.
The cheap option, Weebly offers a basic package for free as well as other plans.
Founded in 2006, Israeli company Wix now has 150 million users across 190 countries.
Example websites:
Support:
Help Center where you can ask questions and browse articles.
Costs:
Wix offers a free version but its worth upgrading to a paid plan to utilise premium features:
The bottom line:
Wix offers a competitively priced range of plans including the option to get started for free. If you’re looking to go DIY, it’s one of the best options on the market – easy-to-use with plenty of features to ensure your website looks and performs great.
This New-York based company provides website building and hosting. It’s product and service offering feels very similar to Apple – simplistic, sophisticated, design-led.
Example websites:
Support:
Excellent support options including guides, videos, community forum, webinars or contact support team directly.
Cost:
Squarespace offers a 14-day free trial.
Trustpilot: ★★
The bottom line:
Can feel slightly more restrictive compared to Wix. Great fit for businesses with beautiful visuals.
Shopify is the ‘best e-commerce platform that has everything you need for setting up an online shop, on social media or in-person’.
Example websites:
Costs:
Shopify offers a 14-day free trial.
Trustpilot: ★★
The bottom line:
Best for e-Commerce businesses, you need to keep an eye out for what’s included in Shopify’s plans. For example, Shopify Basic plan doesn’t allow you to construct a fully functional, standalone online store.
WordPress.org is a self-hosted content management system (CMS)
Example websites:
Costs:
The open-source version of WordPress is free to download. The only fixed cost that you need to endure for your site is hosting. Download free plugins and themes.
Trustpilot: n/a (reviews only for WordPress.com – see below)
The bottom line:
Giving you full control of your site but less user-friendly, WordPress.org is an option to consider if you’re experienced in web design and coding.
WordPress.com is a fully hosted service, powering more than 34% of the internet.
Support:
24/7 instant support by more than 300 humans.
Costs:
Trustpilot: ★★★★
The bottom line:
Great for blogging but not the best option for e-commerce. Free version doesn’t support online stores. Business Plan offers function via plugins.
‘Build a free website that grows with your business’.
Example websites:
Costs:
Wix is notable for its free and low-cost plans.
Trustpilot: ★★★★
The bottom line:
If you delete a site, it’s difficult to restore it. You’d have to liaise with Weebly team to sort. Not as useful as Wix and Squarespace – fewer features and not as many template options.
When it comes to selecting a website builder, make sure to do your research. Most builders offer 14-day free trials, so clear out as much of your diary as you can to dedicate focused time testing out the features and solutions. Have a clear idea on what you need your website to do, how you want it to look and when you need it by. Consider these elements within your available budget – then start having a play with the free trials. Ensure the platforms you’re looking at integrate well with any existing tools you rely heavily on and that the builder fits with your expansion plans – does it have the capability to grow with your business offering?
As always – ask around. Do you have any friends who run small businesses that would recommend a particular website builder?
Don’t forget, it doesn’t have to be as black and white in regards to going down the DIY route or employing an agency. You can hire freelance specialists to help set up and launch your website, or if you’re confident you can create your website within a builder, consider working with a photographer and copywriter to create your content, freeing you up to focus on other areas of your digital footprint such as SEO, email marketing and social media.
Just remember to walk before you can run. Avoid signing up to lengthy payment plans or agency fees. Keep things clean and simple, with clear calls to action. Always opt for well-respected, secure builders that provide you with strong support should any questions crop up. Downloading an expense tracker app will also help you to keep on top of ongoing costs, to determine which website builder is most appropriate for you.
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