As a business owner or entrepreneur, you could have numerous reasons for wanting a website. Websites offer us the opportunity to take our ideas, services, goods and products to a global audience. It’s the bridge between turning a local business into a global business. However, like anything in life, building a website is neither easy nor cheap. If you want a cheap website, you often get what you pay for: cheap, low-rent, generic website designs with mediocre content that does nothing to excite the reader.
Since website designers at low cost can be so lacking in value, should you not instead use a website builder?
Often cheaper by a large margin, website builders allow you to build the whole website yourself. Naturally, though, that has some limitations and problems – namely your experience in building a winning website.
At SF Website Design, we make it incredibly easy for you to see the benefits of building a website with a website designer. However, we want you to be fully aware of all options on the table. With that in mind, then, let’s take a look at the comparison between website builders and designers.
Website Builders
First off, a website builder is not a bad idea – if you know what you are doing. In the grand website builder vs website designer debate, there’s ample argument on both sides.- Quality locations such as Wix, Squarespace and WordPress make it easy(ish) for you to build a decent quality website without breaking the bank.
- They also come with a group of templates for you to pick from, with industry-specific designs ready to go.
- This means that you can build a website with a pre-built template in a matter of hours, for around $150 per year.
- You also hold full editorial control so you can change everything you like whenever you want.
You could, for example, change the color scheme (though, for reasons stated here, we don’t recommend that or just some of the content. You could add some new images, or upload a new logo for the site. You are in total control.
Of course, this control comes with some rather damaging limitations. For one, you are left with a narrow number of options in terms of templates, and you’ll obviously suffer from a lack of unicity. Clients who come across your site and then see a competitor with the same will likely be put off by the template approach to website design.
Add in the fact that the site won’t be specific to your business, and it becomes easier to understand why some people are a little hesitant to get involved with website builders.
Website Designers
- Website designers make a fine starting point as it allows you to get a unique, bespoke website built by a professional that is fully tailored to match your business.
- More importantly, it’s built from scratch – it’s entirely your own. It suits your business, it’s only for your business and it means you never look the same as a competitor.
- With more opportunity for a unique design, the opportunity to scale it up as your business grows always exists: unlike website builders, website designers make it easy to keep growing.
- Add in the fact that professional imagery, branding and content is provided – all optimized for better search engine rankings, too – and it’s easy to see why designers win the day.
The only real issue that you might have when choosing website designers is the attached cost. You could easily be into the four figure region if you want to build a quality website that delivers business to you time and time again. That being said, the money you spend on a website that lasts for the long-term is the equivalent of what you might spend on a few months advertising alone.
With the fact a website provides you with professional help to solve any issue, too, it becomes increasingly easy to see why this is the go-to option for so many people. The cost might sound a lot upfront, but website designers make sure you always get a high return on investment, making it a worthwhile expense.
What is right for you?
Naturally, at SF Website Design we come down on one side of the website builders vs website designers debate. We believe that no amount of the value provided by a website builder – and they do offer great value – can match the long-term reputational gains of a bespoke website design.
This helps to make it much easier for your business to strike out and stand on its own, rather than being tethered to the competition. While your competitors decide to stick with a generic website template, why not change it up and wow your audience with a new and improved website design?
Getting this right can be tough, but it’s a decision that is well worth your time and consideration. Done right, it could help to positively transform the way your business handles its marketing for years to come.
