Wix Website Builder – A Detailed Review

Times are such that, almost every business needs a web presence, making it essential to stand out in the crowd. Wix is a site building platform that comes with a very powerful site builder and hosting solutions in one easy to use package that helps you make a website. It is the ideal solution for people who need an aesthetically pleasing and functionally strong website but don’t really possess the skills to create one.

Features

A huge variety of readymade templates are available to suit every industry. Wix has around 510 templates to choose from, for your web site. Users also have the ability to create a customised version of their design.

The website builder comes with a drag-and-drop feature enabling users to choose the design elements they require and just place them wherever they it on the page they are creating.

Wix also has a wide range of support systems that include phone, email, knowledgebase and forum to help you if and when you get you lost.

Using Wix

Wix is an ideal solution for those in need of a personal or business website without the hassle of hosting and hiring a web developer. It’s best suited for musicians, artists, photographers and other small businesses who might have a small portfolio.

Wix makes use of a What You See is What You Get (WYSIWYG) website builder. This is the industry standard in codeless web development where whatever you put in the web editor is what will appear on the website. The learning curve is simple and most will get the hang of it in about 20 minutes, although there are numerous configurations, tools and features which might take longer to get used to and since the user interface is very intuitive it’ll be easier for the users.

Templates

Wix provides around 500 templates to its users. The templates are HTML5 based designs with large images and modern fonts and thus help rank better in terms of SEO and mobile screen compatibility.

A major drawback to b consider is that once you’ve selected a template and put it into use, you won’t be able to change to a different template later. So take your time to select. Also, you won’t be able to change the HTML and CSS codes directly.

Wix enables you to create a separate mobile site that has a special bar to display email addresses, phone numbers, social media profiles, maps and other important details. This is most welcome as majority of users access the internet from mobile devices.

Search Engine Optimization

Wix enable users to optimize on page SEO factors like titles, keywords and descriptions. Users can also use their Google Analytics code to track statistics with regards to website performance.

Hosting

One of the key feature of Wix platform is that it is a hosted solution where all the required security features and software updates essential for the website are handled behind the scenes, and the user need not have to worry about security loopholes and hacking attempts.

However, there is a downside to this as well. If user plans to leave the Wix platform, that user will not be able to export their website data to a different host. This is mainly due to the reason that the platform’s technology is unique and it will not function anywhere else.

Pricing

Wix provides competitive pricing when compared to the service it provides. Users are able to start for free and then gradually add paid services as and when their websites grow over time. The free offering does not come with a time limit thus enabling users to fully understand their options, potential and possibilities and then consciously decide if Wix is a good choice for their needs.

The platform has five premium packages that range from $6.90 per month to $29.90 per month. When the overall functionality of the platform is considered that enables you to build a site without hiring a professional web developer, which is combined with hosting solutions, the price seems competitive and the scheme seems to be quite fair.

If you happen to choose the VIP, eCommerce, Combo and Unlimited plans then you get to register a free domain name, which generally costs around 10$ a year, so this could be added to the total cost. You can try the premium plans for free for the first 14 days and hence there is little risk involved.

Conclusion

Wix is a robust platform that provides the capacity to build an aesthetic. functional website with other technicalities like SEO and page load times fixed for minimal time and money. It is best suited for those who do not possess technical skills to build a site but want a web presence.