What Website Platform is Right for Me: WordPress, Shopify, or Squarespace?
By Jacob Price
Summary: The best website platform for you depends on your needs. Wordpress is best if you need to host a lot of content with customization, features, and flexibility. Squarespace is best for creatives, service-based businesses, or businesses with small-inventory. Shopify is perfect for online stores that need robust e-commerce features.
If you find yourself googling “best website builder” or “which is better, Squarespace or Shopify?” or even “easy way to make a website,” there’s a good chance that:
- You need a new website
- You got a lot of information but not a lot of answers
- You’re overwhelmed
You also probably know a good website is crucial for business. Studies show that it takes .05 seconds for a potential customer to form an opinion about your website. If it’s not favorable, they’ll leave and take their dollars with them.
The good news is, you’re asking the right question! Choosing the correct website platform is the foundation of a functional, beautifully designed website that engages potential customers. The even better news is, we’re here to help. We’ve broken down the top three website platforms in an easy-to-understand guide so you can choose with confidence.
Is Squarespace Right for You?
Squarespace is ideal for creatives (think portfolios), service-based businesses, blogs, or businesses that sell a small number of products.
Pros:
- Squarespace is easy to use, even for beginners.
- Design-forward with plenty of stunning templates to choose from.
- Built-in functionality for booking appointments, selling services, and posting blogs.
- Straightforward billing and award-winning support.
- Built-in SEO tools and analytics.
Cons:
- Limited e-commerce capacity, best for 20 products or fewer.
- You can customize to a point, but have less options than WordPress.
- Scaling can be difficult if your needs outgrow the platform.
If you’re an artist, writer, musician, or small service-based business looking to create a beautifully designed website, Squarespace is a wonderful option. And, you can rest assured that their templates look as good on mobile as they do on a desktop (which is important as 64.35% of all web traffic is mobile).
Is Shopify Right for You?
You should choose Shopify if you run an online store, have a drop shipping business, retail store, or sell a large inventory of physical or digital products. It’s a good fit for online sales because it offers advanced e-commerce features. In addition to a great-looking site, you’ll have access to secure payments, shipping labels, and inventory management all in one place.
Pros:
- Specialized for e-commerce, with built-in tools tailored to the demands of online sales.
- Integration with third-party apps to add extra functionality and customization.
- Secure payment processing of 100+ different payment gateways.
- SEO tools
Cons:
- More expensive compared to other platforms.
- Less design flexibility compared to other platforms.
- Uses its own template coding language and can require more technical knowledge to manage or customize.
Shopify is a powerful platform for online sales that not only gives your customers a seamless experience, but empowers you with advanced functionality.
Is WordPress Right for You?
WordPress is great for companies that need a lot of flexibility, custom features, scalability, and powerful SEO. Powering 43% of all websites, WordPress is the most popular website platform out there because if you can dream it, it’s likely achievable with WordPress. Need a blog? Robust SEO? An ecommerce store? Seamless scheduling? It’s possible to accomplish it all with WordPress.
Pros:
- Extremely customizable with a vast library of themes and plugins.
- Full control over design, hosting, and functionality.
- You own your site, content, and all the code that goes into making it.
- Powerful features for results-oriented SEO.
Cons:
- The more customization you require, the more technically demanding the execution.
- Requires frequent maintenance and updates.
There’s a reason WordPress powers so many of the internet’s websites. The open-source technology means you can achieve practically any feature you need within a design that’s tailor-made to your brand. Plus, WordPress offers the ability to optimize every page of your website for SEO so you can rise in the search-results and get your beautiful website in front of more customers.
What is the Best Website Builder?
The best website builder depends on your specific needs. In other words, there is no best website builder, there’s only what’s best for helping you reach your goals. Still waffling about what platform to pick? LeadPoint Digital can help!
At LeadPoint Digital, we have a team of SEO experts, developers, designers, copywriters, and marketing strategists ready to create a beautiful, functional, and custom website that delights your customers and meets your goals. Schedule your free consultation today and take the first step toward a website that delivers results.
