Building a website is an important step for any business to establish an online presence. With the rise of DIY website builders like Wix, it may seem tempting to create a website on your own. However, it's crucial to understand the downsides of using Wix as a serious website creation platform. In this article, we will explore the limitations and drawbacks of using Wix from the perspective of website and graphic designers. While the ease of use may seem attractive, the long term benefits from avoiding Wix far outweighs it's simplicity.

The DIY Approach vs. Professional Web Design

When it comes to building a website, it's essential to approach it like building a house. Just as you would need a team of professionals with specialized skills to construct a house, the same principle applies to website design. By using platforms like Wix, you are essentially trying to build a house on your own, which may result in structural issues and a less-than-optimal outcome. While Wix offers simplicity and ease of use, it lacks the expertise and attention to detail that professional web designers bring to the table.

Wix Uses Smoke & Mirrors With Pricing

You'll notice the allure of what looks like an affordable and easy way of having a website. Once you've paid for your Wix membership, you'll notice that for any extra features, there's a price attached to it. And that fee is added to your bill monthly or annually! Which adds up fast if you're trying to build a quality website. Before you know it, your monthly bill from Wix is going to cost a lot more than hiring a web designer.

Lack of SEO-Friendliness

Search engine optimization (SEO) is crucial for driving organic traffic to your website. Unfortunately, Wix has a reputation for being less SEO-friendly compared to other platforms like WordPress. DIY website builders generate code on the fly in a visual editor, resulting in unnecessary code and extra HTML. These factors can hurt your search engine rankings, as search engine bots crawl your website and notice its similarity to other Wix sites. In contrast, professional web designers have full control over the website's code, allowing for constant monitoring and optimization to improve SEO performance.

Poor User Experience

One of the significant drawbacks of using Wix is the limitation in designing a user-friendly website. Building a website involves considering user flows, calls-to-action, and prototyping, which are crucial elements for a good user experience. DIY site builders like Wix often result in cookie-cutter websites that lack uniqueness and fail to engage visitors effectively. Additionally, the use of pre-made templates can diminish brand recognition and make your website blend in with countless others. Professional web designers, on the other hand, create objective-based designs that enhance user engagement and increase conversions.

Speed and Security Concerns

Website speed and security are critical aspects of online success. However, Wix, along with other DIY website builders, hosts your website on a shared server with numerous other users. This shared hosting environment can significantly impact your website's speed, leading to a poor user experience and potential loss of customers. Moreover, the security risks associated with shared servers are heightened, as a breach in one account can compromise all the websites hosted on that server. In contrast, professional web design services usually provide dedicated hosting options that ensure better speed and enhanced security measures.

Limited Pages and Content

Another drawback of using Wix is the limitation in the number of pages offered, especially with their basic plans. For example, Wix's lowest website plan only allows for a single page, which is inadequate for building an authoritative website. Search engines like Google favor websites with more content, including images and text, as they provide more information to users. Having limited pages can result in lower traffic to your website and hinder your ability to engage and sell to potential customers effectively. Professional web designers understand the importance of content and can help create a comprehensive website with multiple pages to drive traffic and conversions.

Flash-Based Websites and Ads

Wix websites are predominantly flash-based, which is an outdated technology for creating websites. Flash websites are notorious for their negative impact on SEO, as they don't offer crawlable content and tend to have slow loading times. Flash should only be used for animations and games, rather than as the foundation of an entire website. Additionally, when creating a website with Wix, you'll notice a large ad indicating that the website was created using Wix. These ads can lower your brand's credibility and trustworthiness, as customers may perceive a free or cheap website as a sign of low investment in your business.

Lack of Uniqueness and Brand Recognition

Wix currently boasts over 90 million users and offers 500 designer-made templates. While this may sound like a wide variety of options, the sheer number of users using the same templates makes it challenging to create a unique website. Using a template that many others have chosen can negatively impact your brand recognition and make it difficult to stand out from competitors. Moreover, search engines like Google tend to favor unique websites with engaging content, and having a non-unique website can affect your search engine rankings.

Optimization Challenges

Website optimization is an ongoing process that involves A/B testing, user flow testing, and continuous improvement. Unfortunately, with Wix, you lack the flexibility and freedom to optimize your website effectively. As a result, you may end up with a static website that doesn't evolve or grow, potentially hindering your business's success. Professional web designers understand the importance of ongoing optimization and have the tools and expertise to continuously improve your website's performance and user experience.

Lack of Ownership

One of the most critical downsides of using Wix is the lack of ownership over your website. When you create a website with Wix, you are essentially subscribing to their platform and granting them a revocable license to your content. This lack of ownership means that if Wix were to go bankrupt, make significant changes to their platform, or remove certain features, you would have limited recourse and may be forced to adapt to their decisions. As a business owner, it's essential to have control over your website and not rely on external companies that can impact your online presence.

No Easy Migration - Until Now

If you ever decide to switch away from Wix or feel that your business has outgrown the platform, you may encounter difficulties in migrating your website. Unlike other platforms that allow for easy HTML export or provide migration options, Wix currently lacks a simple way to export your data to another platform. This limitation can be frustrating and costly, as you may need to rebuild your entire website from scratch or hire a developer to handle the migration. It's crucial to consider the long-term implications and flexibility of a website creation platform before committing to it.

From January 1st to April 1st receive $500 off when migrating to Moore Design Labs from Wix.

Migrate Now

Considerations for Your Web Development Needs

In conclusion, while Wix offers simplicity and ease of use, it falls short in several areas that are critical for business websites. From limited customization options and SEO challenges to lack of ownership and migration difficulties, it's clear that Wix may not be the best choice for businesses looking to establish a strong online presence. Instead, investing in professional web design services can provide you with a unique, optimized, and scalable website that aligns with your brand and business goals. By working with experienced web designers, you can ensure that your website stands out, attracts visitors, and drives conversions.

Remember, building a successful website requires a strategic approach and expertise in various areas such as user experience, SEO, and optimization. So, before embarking on your website creation journey, carefully consider your business's needs and goals, and choose a solution that aligns with your long-term vision.

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