A business website is now an important asset for any company, especially in this increasingly digital world.
If you want to have a home for your business on the Internet, then you definitely need to get a business website up and running. Luckily, there are plenty of options available online that makes it easier for you to know how to build your website.
If you still don’t have a business website, then the first thing you need to consider is which website builder you want to use. A website builder is great for people who don’t want to do a lot of manual coding to launch their website.
If you want a website for your business but don’t have the chops for coding, nor the budget to hire someone, then a website builder is for you.
With that said, there are a lot of options to choose from when looking for a website builder that suits your needs. To help you narrow down your choices, here are five things that you need to know to find the right platform for you:
1. Determine Your Budget
First things first, you need to find a website builder that is within your current budget.
Of course, as your business grows you might find yourself more able to devote money on your site, but if you’re only starting out then you need a website builder that is within your means.
Remember that your website budget isn’t only for your website builder. You also have to consider your domain registration, web host, SSL certificate, and more. Aside from that, you’ll need to spend on the visuals, the copy, and the design on your site as well.
2. Consider Your Needs and Priorities
Another point for consideration when choosing your website builder is your priorities and needs regarding your website.
There are certain negotiables and non-negotiables that you might have when it comes to a website builder. Depending on these priorities and your personal wants, your ideal website builder might be different.
Therefore, you need to ask yourself several questions first about your website building needs and priorities. Here are some of these questions:
- Do you have any website designing experience?
If the answer to that first question is no, then you might need to invest in a website builder that is easier to figure out than most.
Although most website builders are already quite intuitive for those without web design experience, you can still find platforms that offer a convenient, drag-and-drop way of designing your site.
- Do you want to have more flexibility when it comes to your website design?
If the answer to that is yes, then you might want a website builder that is known for having tons of different templates for you to choose from.
For example, if you’re using Squarespace, then you’re going to be fine since this website builder has more than a hundred customizable templates available for you to choose from.
That means you can play around with their templates a bit to find the right website design that works best for you.
- Are you building an ecommerce shop on your website?
If so, then you definitely need to use website builders that either has online store templates or specializes in ecommerce.
It’s going to be a lot easier for you to start an ecommerce business if you work with website builders that know how to accommodate the needs of launching an online store.
3. Consider the Number of Themes
Since a website builder makes it easier for you to design a website from scratch without prior experience, what you should look into is the number of themes and templates that they have available.
If a website builder only has a few templates, then you might risk looking like you have the same website as another business.
For branding purposes, you wouldn’t want that. Plus, you want to be able to have a lot of options to choose from to find the right one for you. So look into the number of themes that your chosen website builder has.
4. See How Easy it is to Use
Although the whole “sell” of a website builder is its ease of use, you still need to double-check so you aren’t stuck using one website builder with zero ideas on how to design anything.
The best way you can find out how easy it is to build a website, especially its customization presets, is by looking at customer reviews. These reviews will have a better snapshot of just how beginner-friendly these website builders are.
5. Investigate Third-Party Integrations
You should also check if your chosen website builder makes it easy for you to integrate third-party applications onto your site.
For some, these integrations might be free but for others, you might have to pay extra to get that feature on your site.
Since you will need these integrations if you want to make your website more functional, you want to ensure that your website builder has a way of accommodating that growth.
Although there are plenty to choose from, creating a set of criteria (like the one listed above) will help you narrow down your choices. Hopefully, you find the website builder that best fits your criteria so that you can get your business website up and running in no time.
Ref Altitude Branding.
