WEB DEVELOPMENT
WIX vs Squarespace vs WordPress – What Website Builder Suits You?
At some point, most small business owners have sat down to create a website for their business. Some will go on to create their own while others will eventually outsource it to a professional.
One of the first steps, however, is deciding which website builder to use, and what you choose all comes down to how easy the website builder is to use, how flexible it’s design capabilities are and the price. It’s certainly not an easy choice; three of the most popular website builders – Wix, Squarespace and WordPress – are all great platforms to use, each has their own benefits and some business owners will prefer one over the other.
If you’ve been down the path of attempting to build your own website, you’ve probably realised that it is easy to get overwhelmed when choosing which website builder to use. We’ve put together some research to help you understand each platform, and make the decision about which one is best for your business.
WIX
Ease of use ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Value for money ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Design flexibility ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Features ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Help and support ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
SQUARESPACE
Ease of use ⭐⭐⭐
Value for money ⭐⭐⭐
Design flexibility ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Features ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Help and support ⭐⭐⭐⭐
WORDPRESS
Ease of use ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Value for money ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Design flexibility ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Features ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Help and support ⭐⭐⭐⭐
WIX
Wix is generally a good website builder, particularly for those new business owners who haven’t had a lot of experience in designing a website or just don’t have the time to do it. It is a drag-and-drop style website. Out of the three website builders we are looking at, Wix is the easiest to use, and if you are still having trouble, the Wix ADI can build a site in minutes after you’ve answered a few short questions. There are over 500 themes available across 16 categories, all are mobile responsive, however, there is the downside that if you don’t like the theme you’ve chosen, once you hit publish there is no going back.
There are three eCommerce price plans and over 20 payment gateway options which give you plenty of choices when it comes to selling online. For those business owners who want to add a blog to their website, Wix is easy to upload new blogs, however without the option to archive posts, you will lose your content as you upload more blogs. This is something to consider if you are using blogging as part of your marketing strategy.For online marketing, Wix offers email campaigns, newsletters and add banners, and you can also integrate social media feeds. When it comes to SEO, Wix offers a basic feature to improve your website’s SEO but it doesn’t provide the same level of freedom when compared to WordPress.
Overall, Wix is a great website builder for those small business owners who are looking to get online quickly and with relative ease.
Squarespace
If you’re after a website that looks great, Squarespace is your best bet. The templates are suited towards the creative industries, but there is a learning curve that comes with using the platform. It isn’t as easy to use as Wix and does require some creative and technical knowledge to get the best effect.
While Squarespace there is no coding involved in this website builder, the tools used to design and build your website takes some getting used to, but it does produce a lovely looking site. The templates are professional-looking, easily searched for and you have a high level of customisation.There are some great eCommerce features including coupon generation and abandoned cart recovery which can really assist in your marketing strategy, while the blogging platform is a great way to build a following and market your business. One downside on the marketing side, however, is that, while Squarespace has everything built-in, you are restricted to what they offer. The other downside is that there is no app market which limits what you can do on your website, and the SEO features aren’t great.
WordPress
WordPress is one of the most popular website builders, particularly for those who want total freedom and control over how their website looks and performs. There are unlimited coding capabilities, so almost anything is possible. WordPress tends to be more popular with businesses that need a website that really makes a statement on who they are and what they do – essentially, a website that says “we mean business.”
Unlike Wix and Squarespace, WordPress is self-hosted which means you need to find a web host that provides the space for your website. But in saying that, you are in control of everything that happens on your website – creating new pages, adding blog posts, adding new images, changing the content, changing the look of your site and so on. While WordPress may not seem like the easy option straight away, once you get stuck into it, you’ll start to realise just how easy it is to use and make modifications to your website, and how much freedom you have, to create a website that looks exactly how you envisioned it to.The major benefit of WordPress over other website builders? WordPress offers hundreds of thousands of themes that you can customise to your heart’s content. You can add plugins to customise the themes further, or if you have the know-how, add coding to make your website show almost anything you want. There is no real limit to what WordPress will allow you to do.
On the eCommerce side of things, WordPress has WooCommerce, which is an eCommerce plugin that is specific to WordPress. While this side of things may not be as extensive as Wix and Squarespace, it has its own benefits – namely in the ability to provide refunds with a simple click as well as the ability to embed products throughout your website.When it comes to marketing, WordPress really shows its prowess. On the blogging side of things, the website builder is home to 42.1% (in 2021) of all websites that exist today. The blogging capabilities are impressive, and if you spend the time on design, they look great. With over 54,000 plugins that can assist in marketing, there are a lot of options available to small business owners from emails to managing comments. Similarly, with social media integrations, everything you need is on the one platform including share button, auto-posting and commenting on social media posts.
WordPress also wins out on the SEO side of things. Search engines love WordPress websites, and there is no limit to what you can do to help your SEO performance. Yoast is one of the most popular plugins for SEO and it is really easy to use, giving you a great understanding of where you can improve your SEO performance.
The three website builders outlined above – Wix, Squarespace and WordPress – have plenty of great features, but it’s really important to spend some time considering what you need in your website and what you need your website to do for you. If you mean business, WordPress is our recommended website builder. With flexibility and customisation, you couldn’t ask for a more well-rounded website builder that suits every industry, and best of all, has the ability to grow with your business without losing functionality.
Time to get your website up and running? At FrogOnline we have a team of experienced and knowledgeable website developers who can have you online quickly and with little fuss. Contact us to discuss the most suitable website option for your business.
Let's do this!
WE'D LOVE TO HEAR FROM YOU
About us
FrogOnline's online and creative solutions help you connect your brand with customers, increase audience reach and accelerate growth, with online and offline strategies that deliver the results you need to hit your goals.
Subscribe To The FrogBlog