Building a website from scratch isn’t necessarily a daunting task. Today, you have the option of subscribing to a premium website building service that will take care of all the things you need to get the design you want. Choosing a domain name, registering your business email address, and using simple website building software for hosting and advanced tasks—everything can be done with a single service. A professional website builder software provides both support and solutions for managing front and back ends and complete support for a bundle price. Herein, we discuss four key pros and cons of website builders in today’s market.
Some services offer the best web store, while others only provide blogging tools and download selling compatibility. Every service has something unique to offer, but they may also fall short on services that are crucial for maintaining a website. This is why it is necessary to understand the pros and cons of website builders and compare the options with professional web design services to figure out which is a better option.
Pros
- No coding necessary
Code-free design is one of the main advantages of website builders. These software feature simple drag and drop interface to enable users to create a website within a matter of minutes. You don’t have to understand the basics of programming and don’t even have to rely on an expert to design the website. Unleash your creativity and let the builder do all the work while you simply add, remove, and modify existing tools and plugins while working on a pre-designed template. Wix, Squarespace, Memberpress, and Weebly are among popular options that offer a simple to use a template-based website in a matter of minutes. These websites can also be integrated on multiple online platforms for ease of use.
- Cheap web solutions
Top website building companies offer affordable subscriptions and bundle plans for their services, making website builders a more affordable alternative over professional coders and web designers. Additionally, you can avail free templates with the basic plans and purchase custom templates at discounted prices. The process is still cheaper than designing the entire website from scratch. For example, WordPress is an open-source and free-to-use website builder that can be easily integrated on multiple platforms. With such web solutions, all you end up paying for after designing the website are the domain name charges and web hosting services. Affordability is among one of the best advantages of website builders for long-term use.
- Tech support
Most of the premium website builder plans offer dedicated technical support and grievance redressal. These companies understand the value of customer support and ensure you can contact their executives directly to address a problem. The turnaround time for grievance redressal is quick and efficient, ensuring that your website does not suffer from severe downtime.
- All in one service
The top website builder software are essentially packages that include everything from domain names, templates, customer support, and tools for final publishing of the website. They are your one-stop-shop for all solutions available online at the click of a button. This makes it very easy for individuals and small businesses alike to manage the website thus saving both time and efforts.
Cons
- Not recommended for professional businesses
Even the most premium software and plugins lack critical SEO optimized tools that enable a website to climb the ranks of Google search. Here again, SEO optimization will differ on the basis of the service as builders like Webnode, Wix, Weebly, Webstarts, and Site123 offer decent SEO settings. But you won’t have exclusive control to manage your web content and ensure website visibility in Google. Also, the website’s design is the prime factor that influences the end-users’ experience and professional coders or experts can code such an SEO optimized website. It is advisable to hire the services of an experienced web designer to create professional business websites.
- Limited customization options
Limited options for complete customization and control are among the few prime disadvantages of website builders. The templates are nothing more than presets that feature a standard design that may be suitable for one type of website. There is very little modification that can be done to the templates. For a professional website, customization is key to feature the products and services that are a key focus of your business. A professional web designer, on the other hand, can modify and redesign your website interface and modules accordingly and avoid making the website look generic. The result is a thorough business website.
- Not all website builders offer mobile-friendly templates
There are some premium website builders that offer both PC- and mobile-friendly templates. But you will have to check with the service to confirm whether the templates can automatically adjust their interface to work on a smartphone. Among premium services, Weebly, BigCommerce, and Constant Contact are among the popular options for designing mobile-friendly websites with limited coding and technical expertise. With the growing number of smartphone users in recent times, many will prefer a mobile-friendly website that simple to use on the go. This will not be a problem with professional web design as the code can be modified to suit any interface without disturbing the layout of the original website. Some users may consider limited mobile support as one of the disadvantages of website builders available for a premium subscription.
- Site portability
Many premium website builders, including Wix, Duda, HostGator, and GoDaddy, don’t support direct site portability. This can be a major drawback especially if you already have website ready to go and simply need a domain and hosting service to make it live. While popular options like Squarespace, Weebly, and WordPress offer site portability, the number of choices available to you are limited to the top 10 website builders of 2019. Limited support for site portability is among the biggest disadvantages of website builders.
There are several other points you must consider after knowing the pros and cons of website builders to make an informed decision. Take your time and do the necessary research with individual services to understand if an investment in website builder software can be deemed prudent in the long term.