by Samirah Roye
In this article I will outline why Wix is one of the best website building recourses in 2021. Whether you’re looking to develop your eCommerce business or perhaps you’re a photographer wishing to showcase a professional portfolio, Wix is an extremely powerful, popular, and accessible tool for creating a solid online presence!
So, what is Wix?
Wix was founded in 2006 and has gone from having 1 million users in 2009 to an impressive 200 million users in 2021! The dominance of the internet and the importance of having a reputable online presence for a plethora of reasons has skyrocketed the need for a website building tool like Wix.
Wix offers a global website building service with all the tools you will need available with just a click of your mouse. As a ‘hosted” website building tool, the creation process is heavily design based, meaning the nitty gritty of having to understand a coding language to produce a functioning, professional website is not a necessity.
The functionality provided through Wix is ideal for both the novice wanting an interactive and intuitive experience and the more tech savvy individual who may want to include custom functions to their website using Wix Velo and JavaScript.
What is the difference between Wix and WordPress?
The key difference between Wix and one of its major competitors WordPress is that Wix is a ‘hosted’ website builder and WordPress is a content management system (CMS).
Although Wix does offer CMS functions, it cannot be described as a pure CMS as it is heavily design driven, meaning the features embedded into the Wix interface with code are relatively unchangeable.
If however there are specific function you wish to integrate into your website, Wix Velo is a fantastic integrated tool that will allow you to advance the functionality of your website.
With Wix Velo you can introduce coding, API keys, databases, site monitoring and more with a built-in IDE on a serverless, secure and maintained platform via the Wix cloud.
What are the benefits of using a Hosted website builder?
Wix is run completely using the cloud. This means all the features Wix has to offer is fully integrated and there is no need for you to have to download any additional software.
Another benefit is of using the hosted website builder with Wix is the added security and customer support you benefit from when becoming a member of Wix cloud service.
Long term maintenance of the overall functionality of your website is completely taken care of by Wix. This allows you to have complete control in the management of your website and be reassured that the functionality tools you use such as the Wix Store, will be serviced and maintained regularly without you having to change or update anything yourself.
How much is it going to cost me?
Wix offers all users the ability to create a simple website for free. This is a useful way for you to get a feel of how the system works and how you might want your website to look.
There are however some downsides to solely using a Wix free account such as:
· The website will display ads
· You are not able to connect your unique domain name
· E-commerce features are not included
· The design process is highly template based
If you are creating a website for a wedding, birthday or recreational purpose, the free version of Wix may be just fine to meet your needs.
If, however you are a business or wish to showcase a professional portfolio the benefits associated with have one of Wix’s many premium subscription plans are worth taking into consideration.
Wix offers monthly subscription plans which they section under 2 main categories:
· “Website Plans - for showcasing a professional site”
· “Business & eCommerce Plans - essential for accepting online payments”
The website plans range from £3 - £18 a month, with the £3 plan being the most basic of all and essentially just allowing you to connect and create a custom domain.
For £6 onwards you will remove any Wix ad from your website and benefit from utilising functions such as Unlimited bandwidth, increased storage space, a Free Domain for 1 Year, Video hours, a £75 Ad Voucher and more!
The business & eCommerce plans range £13 - £22 a month. If you plan on selling products or services on Wix, this is the plan for you.
With one of Wix’s business plans you will benefit from most of the functions offered on a website plan and more! Some of the benefits include, unlimited products, subscriptions, multiple currency sells, automated sales tax, advanced shipping, abandoned cart recovery and more!
Why is mobile optimisation an important feature?
Let’s be real, its 2021 and if you are lucky enough to own a smartphone, you probably spend more time next to your phone than logged on to your computer or laptop. With the powerful capabilities mobile phones have as an internet browsing tool on the go, it is important to ensure your website can be viewed properly on a smaller screen.
When building a website in the 21st century it is important to remember much of the traffic your will receive on your website will be happening through a mobile phone. It’s too easy to build a fabulously smooth and striking website made for the 16:9 aspect ratio of a laptop screen and assume it will automatically work on a smaller mobile screen.
That is an easy mistake to make but with Wix it is an even easier problem to fix! If you choose to create your website on Wix you will be able to make use of the fully integrated mobile optimisation tool.
With this tool you can see first-hand how the site you built translates on a smaller mobile screen. You can add, remove, and alter elements on the mobile site only such as images, text, and call to action buttons so they are formatted I the best way for smooth navigation and accessibility across all platforms.
So, what do you think?
To summarise, Wix provides an incredibly powerful website building experience without the need for external software, coding ability or any prior website creation experience.
4 key benefits of using Wix to design your website in 2021 are:
· It is a low-cost solution
· It will save time remove the need for in-depth technical know-how
· It features Intuitive and interactive design features
· The mobile optimisation will set your website apart from others
The beauty of Wix is that you can try it out for free before you commit to any of the subscriptions they offer! They’re subscriptions are also provided on a monthly basis and not bound by a fix term contract. So, if you would like to give it a go and see if Wix provides the advanced features your website required, you can do it with no string attached.
Did you know that our talented team at Dimension Creative are recognised as an approved Wix Partner? If you're looking for some help building your new website, you're in luck! Get in touch with our web designers here.
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