Which Website Builder is Best for Your Business?

Choosing the right website builder can feel overwhelming, especially with so many options available. Shopify, Wix, and Squarespace are three of the most popular choices, each with its own pros and cons. In this blog post, I'll break it all down to help you make an informed decision.

Shopify

Shopify is specifically designed for online stores, making it ideal for businesses that want to sell products online. It has a wide range of robust features including product management, inventory tracking, payment processing, and shipping. The themes are also built to be lightweight and are already mobile optimized. Shopify's app store has tons of third-party apps to extend the functionality of your store, including Shopify Collective which enables retailers and suppliers to connect with each other. It can be more complex to set up and manage compared to other website builders. Shopify's pricing plans are generally more expensive than Wix and Squarespace, especially for businesses with high sales volumes.

Bottom Line: If your goal is to build an e-commerce business, Shopify is the best place to be.

Wix

Wix provides a host of super customizable templates to choose from, allowing you to create a unique website. There are a variety of pricing plans to suit different budgets. While not as robust as Shopify, Wix can handle basic e-commerce needs for smaller businesses. Creating landing pages within Wix is a cinch, whereas other platforms like Shopify require a third party app like Pagefly or Magento. Wix can also be challenging to optimize for search engines, especially if you're not familiar with SEO best practices.

Bottom Line: If your goal is to collect leads for your service based business, I always recommend Wix.

Squarespace

Squarespace is known for its stylish and professional-looking templates and offers a user-friendly interface that makes it easy to maintain and update your website. Squarespace provides robust e-commerce featureslike Shopify and offers excellent customer support, including live chat and email support. While Squarespace offers a lot of design options, it can be more restrictive than Wix in terms of customization. Squarespace's pricing plans are generally more expensive than Wix, especially for businesses that need advanced e-commerce features.

Bottom Line: If you need a combination of both e-commerce and lead collection, Squarespace is a great option if you have the budget.

Conclusion

The best website builder for you will depend on your specific needs, goals and budget. For my own product based business, I went back and forth between Squarespace and Shopify, and I ultimately decided on Shopify and have zero regrets. For this website, I chose Wix because it was the better option for my freelance business goals. Basically, it's about picking the best tool for the job. Need help deciding? Contact me! I'd love to help.