Why I Chose Wix As My Website Platform
Like many new and aspiring entrepreneurs, I struggled to choose the right platform for my business website.
As someone who thrives on aesthetics and creativity, I knew I'd need a platform that could change and grow with my tastes and was easy to self-manage without having to learn intensive HTML coding {because gross}.
With my list of "must-haves" in hand, I got down and dirty experimenting with different options for Ink & Vellum.
Wordpress, Squarespace, GoDaddy, and Weebly all came up short {and there may or may not have been some cussing involved}.
I was getting frustrated.
Where the heck was the drag-and-drop, click-to-edit, sexy-yet-simple superhero I was looking for?!
Enter Wix.
My virtual knight {....or knightess?} in shining armor.
With a user-friendly dashboard and a website editor that allowed me to easily move, tweak, add, and customize to my heart's content, I knew it was love.
Here are the top nine reasons Wix is the best platform on the market today if you’re looking to DIY your website, or get a professionally designed website you can actually understand and self-manage.
1) {Virtually} Endless Customization Options
While most {if not all} platforms give you pre-set templates to start with, only Wix allows you to truly customize EVERY aspect of the template {without a giant learning curve}.
With Wix, you can easily move design elements around the site, add new elements and pages, or customize existing elements and pages. This allows you to have complete control over how your visitors experience your website, what information comes first, and what each page features.
With no set design rules or page minimum/maximums, this editor truly allows you to create a website that embodies your personal style and includes everything your audience needs {and nothing they don't}.
2) Superior Design Freedom
Nearly every. single. element. of your Wix website can be customized and edited to your liking.
Wanna change the style of that container box? Done.
Wanna add a video background to that banner? Here ya go.
Wanna move that vector art to another page? Go for it.
Wanna have a vertical menu rather than a horizontal menu? No problem.
With Wix, there are very few design limitations. For someone who wasn't interested in having a cookie cutter template that 20,000 other people in the world already had {🙋🏻}, this was essential. With Wix, I was able to create a site that was deeply representative of me and my business and allowed me to create a truly unique client experience.
3) Intuitive Drag & Drop Technology
If you’ve never tried your hand at HTML coding, trust me when I say, it's fun for a very small {and possibly sick-minded} percentage of the human population.
Wix allows you to bypass that massive headache by using drag-and-drop and click-to-edit technology. That means even if you’re outsourcing the initial creative design to a professional {I know a gal 😉}, you’ll still be able to easily edit it on your own moving forward. Because changing or moving an element is as simple as clicking and taking the desired action, anyone with an internet connection a general familiarity with computers can use this tool.
As a professional Wix website designer, this is such a win/win for both me and my clients. I love that they don't have to feel tied to me for life, and they love having the option to hire me for changes or handle them independently based on their ability and budget.
4) Easy Backend Dashboard
One of the biggest reasons I didn’t choose Wordpress for my website platform?
The. Backend. Dashboard. 🤷🏻♀️
It felt clunky, confusing, and frankly, poorly designed {as an aesthetically-driven person, this was a hang up for me}.
In contrast, Wix’s backend dashboard simply made sense. With easy-to-navigate options to help you manage your website, a separate blog and store dashboard exclusive to those subjects {so you don’t get lost}, a fully functional CRM, and easy marketing tools that integrate seamlessly into your website, the difference was night and day.
While I found myself getting lost in Wordpress’s tabs trying to find simple things, Wix’s dashboard seemed intuitive and naturally lead me to things that would help me grow my business like quick stats, analytics, app suggestions, and tips for improving my website's functionality.
5) Synced Email Marketing
One of my favorite things about the Wix platform is the effortless way it syncs with my CRM and email marketing platforms. Not only does Wix have an app called Contact Collection that syncs seamlessly with my Mailchimp and allows me to automate specific messages to specific subscribers, it syncs with my blog and allows me to quickly and easily send blog posts to my database with the click of a button through a tool called Wix ShoutOut.
Talk about a time saver.
6) Stellar App Market
Wix has a fantastic app marketplace that allows you to fine-tool your website's design and functionality. With plug-ins and tools like custom forms, social media linking and live-streams, appointment booking, live chat, payment tools, embedding, enhanced site analytics, music and video plug-ins, events calendars, menu and food ordering software {the list goes on}, there's an app for just about anything your site could ever need.
Even better? Many of these apps are created and run by Wix employees and all are tested and cleared by the company before being added to the app marketplace. This means you won’t get any random, bug-filled options run by someone from another country who never responds to your support emails after the app crashes your entire site {and yes, that IS a personal horror story I've heard from a Wordpress user}.
The longest I’ve waited to hear back from a customer service rep for an app question or issue on my site is 48 hours. And in 5 years, I’ve never had one crash my site {winning}.
7) The Option {Key Word: Option} To Code
While this wasn’t available when I first built my website, it’s too good not to add to the list now that it does exist {and it would have been another reason to say YES to this platform had it been around when my company was born}.
With WixCode, any site can now be customized and tweaked by a coding guru with the simple click of a button.
If you’re personally educated in HTML code or need a custom feature that doesn't come "standard" with the platform, the WixCode editor will let you input, edit, and move code any which way you need to get the perfect features and look on your website.
And the best news? Anything you add is automatically SEO compatible. Score!
8) Responsive Customer Service
Not only does Wix have a robust trouble shooting forum with detailed answers to common questions and issues, when you do need to email them directly, their support team is responsive, competent, and friendly. Nuff’ said.
9) They Genuinely Care For & Listen To Their Customers
In my five years as a member, I’ve seen the Wix leadership work with, listen to, and respond to its members in a pretty awe-inspiring way.
As a company, they are consistently working on improving their service, innovating the dashboard capabilities, adding more integrations, and bringing new features to the editor.
This allows their customers to stay relevant in both website design and functionality as industries innovate and technology develops.
DISCLOSURE:
This is an honest summation of my experience using Wix, but it's important to do your own research before you commit to a website platform. Every website platform has its pros and cons {obviously}. I am not affiliated with Wix or compensated in any way for sharing these opinions.
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