THE MOST POPULAR WEBSITE BUILDERS…
AND WHY YOU DO NOT WANT TO USE THEM:
I am sure you have heard of some of the website builders. There are several well-known sites that feature drag-and-drop builders.. and new ones coming online all the time.
There are also drag-and-drop builders that you can install on your WordPress blog.. and many hosting companies also offer website builders that you can use to build your site.
While this might sound like a good way to get started.. building your site using one of the drag-and-drop builders is definitely not the best way to go.
* This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure for more info.
The website builders may be fine if you are just setting up a simple blog for friends and family to enjoy.
However, if you are planning to use your website for your business.. or you are considering utilizing affiliate programs and/or other monetization methods to generate some additional income.. then using one of the website builders would not be in your best interest.
WEBSITE BUILDERS – DRAG-AND-DROP TECHNOLOGY:
THE GOOD? THE REALLY BAD, AND THE REALLY REALLY UGLY:
The good thing about the website builders is.. hmmm.. well let me see.. uhhh..
I’m sorry.. but I can’t think of any good reasons to use any of the website builders.
The website builders are popular with those who are looking for the easy way to build a website and are not interested in taking the time to learn how to build a successful website.
Just keep in mind.. there are NO shortcuts to success! If you want to be successful with your online venture you will need to register a domain name.. choose your web hosting.. select a website theme and get to work!
THINGS TO CONSIDER IN REGARD TO THE WEBSITE BUILDERS:
- To make the drag-and-drop builders work the way they do requires a lot of scripts and extra code in the background. All of this excess code, special scripts, etc. is known as “bloat”. It will slow your site considerably.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . - Any time you have technology that does a lot of the work for you.. you are going to pay for that convenience. The way you pay is in the speed of your site.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . - The website builders have notoriously bad SEO capabilities as a result of the same factors as noted above.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . - There are millions of people using these services. The template options are limited.. which means your site will look very much like a lot of other sites with the exception of different colors and a few different images.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . - There is no way for you to get in to the code in the event you need to make a few tweaks here and there.
THE WEBSITE BUILDERS COST MORE THAN hOSTING A WP SITE:
Most of the website builders charge anywhere from $16 to $19 a month to build a site on their platform.
Website hosting for your self-hosted WordPress site can be as little as $2.50 per month. And, a self-hosted site offers so many more benefits.
Self-hosting simply means that you are hosting your site yourself with your own chosen hosting provider. This allows you complete control of your online future!
You can read more on the following post:
* What is a Self-Hosted Website
A FEW MORE CONSIDERATIONS REGARDING THE
WEBSITE BUILDER SOLUTIONS:
- Due to the way the drag-and-drop builders are set up.. when you finally decide you would prefer to move your website, it will not be easy. You will basically have to rebuild your entire site. This is due to the extra code in the background which is not compatible with WordPress.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . - Additionally.. what happens if one of these companies is sold or goes out of business? What will happen to your site?
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . - If you have a self-hosted WordPress site and your host is sold or goes out of business.. you simply move your site to a new web hosting provider. You are up and running in 30-60 minutes without missing a beat.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
NOTE: Most of those who start out using one of the drag-and-drop builders wind up becoming very frustrated. As they become more knowledgeable about blogging they realize the need to move their site.. which is not easy.
In many cases, these bloggers become so discouraged as to the amount of time they have wasted, and the prospect of starting over they ultimately choose to give up blogging altogether.
As we all know.. Google is all about the “user experience”. The latest Google update has put specific emphasis on “Core Web Vitals”. If you are not sure what Core Web Vitals are.. click the link to read the article from SEMrush.
If your site is slow loading due to a lot of extra code in the background.. your Google rankings will suffer as a result!
Your site will be less visible on Google.. which means a decrease in traffic, which will result in a loss of sales from any affiliate programs.
COMPARING THE THREE TOP WEBSITE BUILDERS…
HOW DOES THEIR PAGE SPEED COMPARE?
We did a check of several random sites that have been built using the top 3 site builders:
Sites built using Wix.com had speed ratings of 15, 17, 20, 21, 23 and 2
None of the sites we checked passed the Google Core Web Vitals test.
Sites built using Weebly.com had speed ratings of 16, 17, 22, 26, 30 and 31.
None of the sites we checked passed the Google Core Web Vitals test.
Sites built using SquareSpace.com had speed ratings of 13, 15, 19, 22, 24 and 26.
Again.. none of the sites we checked passed the Google Core Web Vitals test.
In addition.. We found several sites being hosted on these platforms that did not even have SSL certificates. 😳 Google SSL requirements began in July 2018.
HTTPS sites get a higher ranking on Google than HTTP. Sites without an SSL certificate are flagged by Google as unsafe.
Most competent web hosts now include free SSL certificates.. since they know every site needs one if anyone expects their site to show up well in the SERPs.
IN CONCLUSION:
WordPress can most definitely be a pain in the neck to work with sometimes.. but it is the world’s leading CMS which will allow you to create the website/blog of your dreams.
It will be UNIQUE-ly yours.. and with the right theme and the right web hosting it will be blazing FAST!
As you become more familiar with everything.. and inevitably learn a little about HTML you will have the option to go into the code and tweak things as desired.
You will have your own domain name with your own web hosting plan and the world will be waiting to see what magic you create 🙂
Good Luck to You!
I hope I have provided enough information so you can clearly understand why using one of the website builders is not in your best interest.
About the Author: Sherry Bennett
Ms. Bennett is a Professional Blogger, who has been earning a living online with niche websites for 25+ years.
Through hard work and dedication, she has turned her passion for blogging into a 7-figure business.. and you can do the same.
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