As an internet marketer, having a professional and visually appealing website is crucial for your online success. Your website serves as the virtual face of your business, and it’s essential to make a lasting impression on your target audience. That’s where website builder software comes into play, offering you a user-friendly and efficient solution to create and manage your online presence.
Website builder software is a type of content management system (CMS) that allows users to create and manage websites without the need for extensive coding knowledge. These builders provide a user-friendly interface with drag-and-drop features, pre-designed templates, and a range of customization options.
With website builder software, you can easily create, update, and maintain your online presence, focusing on the content and design rather than the technical aspects of website development.
How Website Builder Software Works?
Website builder software has revolutionized the way individuals and businesses create websites. It typically functions on a drag-and-drop or visual editor interface, allowing users to easily arrange and customize the various elements of their website.
These platforms often include a library of pre-designed templates, which can be further personalized with your own branding, content, and media. The software handles the backend infrastructure, such as hosting, domain management, and security, freeing you to concentrate on the front-end design and user experience.
Many website builders also offer responsive design features, ensuring that your website looks great on different devices, including desktops, tablets, and smartphones.
A survey conducted by W3Techs revealed that website builder platforms account for a substantial portion of websites on the Internet. As of 2023, around 48.6% of all websites used a known content management system (CMS), with popular website builders like WordPress, Wix, Squarespace, and Shopify contributing to this trend.
Benefits of Website Builder Software
Using website builder software offers several benefits for businesses and individuals looking to establish an online presence:
- Ease of Use: Website builder software is designed to be user-friendly, allowing even those with limited technical knowledge to create professional-looking websites.
- Responsive Design: Most website builders offer responsive design capabilities, ensuring your website looks great and functions seamlessly across a variety of devices, from desktop computers to mobile phones.
- Cost-Effective: This software often provides a more cost-effective solution compared to hiring a professional web developer, especially for small businesses and startups.
- Customization: While the templates provided by website builders are a great starting point, they can typically be extensively customized to match your brand’s unique style and identity.
- Integrated Features: Many website builder platforms offer a range of integrated features, such as e-commerce capabilities, blogging tools, and social media integration, making it easier to manage your online presence.
- Scalability: As your business grows, website builder software often provides the flexibility to scale your website’s functionality and capacity to meet your evolving needs.
- Mobile Responsiveness: Many builders include responsive design features, ensuring that your website looks great and functions seamlessly across various devices.
The Best Website Builders in 2024
When it comes to choosing the best website builder for your business, there are several top-performing software to consider. Here’s a closer look at some of the most popular and feature-rich options:
Wix
Wix is a leading website builder known for its intuitive drag-and-drop interface and extensive template library. With Wix, you can easily create visually striking websites, online stores, and portfolios, all while enjoying a range of built-in features like SEO optimization, e-commerce capabilities, and mobile-friendly design.
Wix offers a range of pricing plans, starting from the basic “Combo” plan at $14 per month up to the “VIP” plan at $39 per month.
Pros:
- User-friendly drag-and-drop interface
- Extensive app market for additional features
- Wix ADI (Artificial Design Intelligence) for quick website creation
Cons:
- Limited flexibility for advanced customization
- Once a template is chosen, it cannot be changed
It was estimated that 35% of small to medium-sized businesses use Wix as their preferred website builder choice. One of those businesses is Polemic Digital, an SEO agency.
The agency had website challenges associated with maintenance, load times, and user interface (UI). They also struggled with SEO performance with their current website and wanted to improve that. For that reason, Polemic Digital moved its website to Wix, experiencing zero loss in traffic. In the end, the agency experienced 100% growth in organic traffic and improvement in load times.
Squarespace
Squarespace is a popular choice for businesses and individuals seeking a modern, visually appealing website. In fact, it was rated 4.3/5 in a survey of over 10,000 website owners and developers.
This builder offers a wide selection of beautifully designed templates, advanced customization tools, and integrated e-commerce functionality, making it a great option for creating professional-looking online presences. Additionally, Squarespace offers pricing plans from $12 per month for the “Personal” plan to $40 per month for the “Advanced Commerce” plan.
Pros:
- Stunning, modern templates for a polished look
- Integrated marketing tools and analytics
- 24/7 customer support
Cons:
- Limited third-party app integrations
- No free plan available
WordPress
WordPress is a highly versatile and widely used content management system (CMS) that powers millions of websites worldwide. According to W3Techs, WordPress powers over 43% of all websites on the internet. With its vast ecosystem of themes and plugins, you can customize your website to meet your specific needs, whether you’re running a blog, an e-commerce store, or a corporate website.
WordPress.org is a free and open-source platform, but users need to pay for hosting. WordPress.com offers plans ranging from $4 per month for the “Blogger” plan to $45 per month for the “eCommerce” plan.
Pros:
- Highly customizable with thousands of themes and plugins
- Ideal for blogging and content-heavy websites
- Strong SEO capabilities
Cons:
- Steeper learning curve for beginners
- Users are responsible for updates and backups
Slotswise, a prominent iGaming company, recently migrated its website to WordPress to improve its performance. They previously encountered issues, particularly on the Free Slots page, such as slow loading times and low user engagement. To address this, SlotsWise implemented custom-made widgets from WordPress tailored to their specific needs.
The custom-made widgets included interactive game carousels and personalized recommendation modules, which significantly increased user interaction on the Free Slots page, leading to a 25% boost in average session duration. The dynamic filtering options also allowed users to easily discover new games, leading to a 30% increase in the exploration of different slot titles.
Shopify
Shopify is a powerful and user-friendly e-commerce platform that simplifies the process of setting up and managing an online store. Its app store offers over 6,000 apps, providing extensive customization and expansion opportunities for e-commerce businesses
With its intuitive interface, Shopify makes it easy to create a professional-looking online store, manage inventory, process payments, and track orders. It also offers a range of marketing and SEO tools to help you promote your products and drive traffic to your store. Shopify’s pricing starts at $29 per month for the “Basic Shopify” plan and goes up to $299 per month for the “Advanced Shopify” plan.
Pros:
- Specialized in e-commerce with built-in features for online stores
- Secure and reliable hosting
- Wide range of payment gateways
Cons:
- Transaction fees for using external payment gateways
- Additional costs for apps and add-ons
GoDaddy
GoDaddy is a well-known name in the web hosting industry and offers a website builder solution for businesses and individuals. It serves over 20 million customers worldwide and manages over 80 million domains. With its user-friendly interface and a range of customizable templates, GoDaddy Website Builder allows you to create a professional-looking website quickly and easily.
GoDaddy’s website builder plans start at $9.99 per month for the “Basic” plan, up to $19.99 per month for the “Ecommerce” plan.
Pros:
- Easy setup and intuitive interface
- Integrated marketing and SEO tools
- Affordable pricing
Cons:
- Limited design flexibility
- Less suitable for complex or large-scale websites
GoDaddy’s tailored products empowered Hinterland Skis to thrive in the competitive ski industry, enabling the company to maintain its vision of innovation and customer-centric sales processes. The business experienced a surge in ski orders, leading to concerns about managing the workload with a small team. To address this, they integrated GoDaddy Online Store and GoDaddy Payments.
Implementing GoDaddy’s products resulted in several positive outcomes for Hinterland Skis. They reduced pressure on the business by lowering transaction fees. They also increased the ability to pay employees more and allocate resources to innovation and product improvement. Finally, they simplified order management and customer communication through a single dashboard and mobile app, streamlining the high-touch sales process.
How We Test the Best Website Builders
When evaluating the best website builders for your needs, we consider a range of factors, including ease of use, design flexibility, e-commerce capabilities, SEO optimization, and overall value.
Our evaluation process involves the following steps:
- Hands-on Testing: Our team spends extensive time using each website builder, assessing its user-friendliness, customization options, and overall functionality.
- Feature Comparison: We compare the key features and capabilities of each website builder, such as e-commerce tools, blogging features, SEO tools, marketing tools, and integration with third-party services.
- Performance Evaluation: We measure the speed, security, and responsiveness of the websites created using each platform to ensure they provide an optimal user experience.
- Customer Support: We assess the quality and responsiveness of the website builder’s customer support, as this can be a crucial factor for those new to website development.
- Value Assessment: We analyze each website builder’s pricing plans and overall value proposition, taking into account features, ease of use, and long-term scalability.
Next Steps to Build Your Website
Now that you’re ready to build your website, here’s a quick guide to get you started:
- Determine Your Goals: Before choosing a website builder, take the time to clearly define your goals and objectives for your website. Consider factors such as the intended purpose, target audience, and desired features.
- Research and Compare: Explore the various website builder options available, comparing their features, pricing, and overall capabilities to find the best fit for your needs.
- Choose a Platform: Once you’ve identified the website builder that best meets your goals, sign up for an account and begin building your website.
- Customize and Optimize: Use the platform’s design tools and customization features to create a visually appealing and user-friendly website. Remember to optimize for search engines and mobile devices.
- Publish and Promote: When your website is ready, publish it and start promoting your online presence through various marketing channels, such as social media, email, and content marketing.
Website builder software has emerged as a powerful solution, enabling entrepreneurs, small business owners, and marketers to create and maintain professional-looking websites without the need for extensive technical expertise. Now that you’ve explored the benefits and features of the best website builders in 2024, you can choose the platform that aligns with your unique goals and requirements.
Whether you’re looking to establish an e-commerce presence, showcase your portfolio, or simply build a visually striking online home for your brand, website builder software can help you achieve your objectives and drive your internet marketing success.
Building a website is just the beginning. Continuously optimizing and promoting your online presence is crucial to stay ahead in the competitive digital landscape. Embrace the power of website builder software and embark on a journey towards online success, one click at a time.