We develop websites on the WordPress platform because of its robustness in design, easy integration with thousands of plug-ins giving websites versatility now and in the future, and ease of use post launch. We train our clients how to use and update their website going forward. Although national companies, such as Wix or Squarespace, may seem attractive to small business owners, we think the negatives outweigh any possible benefits. National brands may be easy to use over the short term, but it comes with several unseen costs.
Here are some of those factors we think of when making the decision of what platform to use:
- Limited functionality when compared to WordPress.
- Limited Design options when compared to WordPress.
- Although the monthly fees is a positive from a cash flow point of view, clients have no control over any future increases for the monthly fees or changes in terms. Also, if you are looking to add an online store, there are limitations to how many products you can sell at different leveled pricing. Squarespace takes a percentage of each transaction made from your site, and payments can only be collected through Stripe.
- For Wix, users must pay more to remove “Wix” from their URL.
- For SEO (Search Engine Optimization), WordPress is far superior. Wix and Squarespace only gives the user simple options to optimize by only focusing on clean code and small areas to add keywords and meta descriptions. With WordPress, the sky is the limit. Because it is so robust, we are able to add plugin’s to target these areas and allows your site to be more competitive!
- Currently, Wix only has 10 accessible website templates and it appears that Squarespace websites are not fully ADA compatible.
- Competitors and non-competing companies, such as a plumber, have access to the same design templates and color palettes which could lead to potential confusion for clients or at the very least, brand dilution. You deserve to stand out in the crowd!!