So, you’re ready to take the plunge and build out a new website and place to be your digital home…exciting! And now it’s time for you to consider a host, a domain, a website platform…Wordpress vs. Squarespace vs. ShowIt vs. Shopify — it can be a little overwhelming! Especially if you’re new to a lot of this. But it’s worth it!
Having a strong website presence can do amazing things for your business!
It will build your businesses’ reputation, increase brand credibility/professionalism, and give you a personal, strategic platform to connect with your dream clients and promote your unique spark of genius.
That being said, the deeper you dig into the website design process, the more confusing it can get.
What is the difference between a domain host and website host? Why are some so much more expensive? What is an SSL certificate — and do I need one? Why do some website platforms come with a monthly fee when WordPress.org is free? Which platform is best for my e-commerce store?
I totally get it. My clients often come to me with the same look of overwhelm in their eyes (…and I’ve been there, too!). Your website is a huge investment of time, money, and energy and it can be super intimidating to jump in without knowing all the facts.
LET’S START WITH THE BASICS.
YOUR HOSTING + DOMAIN BROKEN DOWN
Your website is the building where your customers can find you. You can choose how it looks, how many rooms it has, how you decorate it. It’s all you, and (hopefully) no one else has one quite like yours.
Your website platform + website designer/developer are your architect/builders. They’re the ones that provide your foundation, guide you through the building process, and help you to make your building your own. Some platforms offer a selection of layouts/blueprints to choose from with limited customization, some let you build completely from scratch.
Your hosting provider is the street you live on. They agree to lease you a piece of “land” in exchange for a monthly fee. Some streets are more crowded than others, and you share your space with many other businesses.
If it’s too crowded or you have a few HUGE businesses on your street, it can be hard for your customers to reach you in a timely manner (it can slow down your website AKA you don’t want this to happen).
If you’re feeling fancy, you can buy your own street (a virtual private server, AKA a “VPS”) and have it all to yourself. If you’re sharing your street with strangers, it can sometimes open you up to break-ins (hacks) and security threats if your website platform doesn’t provide some additional security.
Finally, your domain is your building’s address. It’s how you direct your customers to find you. You want to make sure that it’s as simple and as accurate as possible so that people don’t get lost along the way or type it into their GPS (browser bar) incorrectly.
NOW THAT WE HAVE A HANDLE ON HOW IT ALL COMES TOGETHER, LET’S SHIFT OUR FOCUS BACK TO OUR WEBSITE PLATFORM:
WordPress vs. Squarespace vs. ShowIt vs. Shopify
I’ve done plenty of research over the years. There are a million different options when it comes to choosing a website platform, and I’ve worked with many of them. They all have their own unique strengths and weaknesses, but not all platforms are equal. I’ve found WordPress, Squarespace, ShowIt and Shopify to be the most reliable, professional, and well-supported.
IMPORTANT FEATURES THAT COME WITH ALL FOUR PLATFORMS:
- Managed Security
- SSL Certificate Options (HTTPS)
- Automatic Backend Updates
- Free Website Back-ups
- Blog Integration
- Ability to Add Google Analytics
- Ability to Add Google Fonts
- Options for Sub-Domains
NOW, HERE ARE THE KEY DIFFERENCES:
👉🏻 WORDPRESS
YOU’RE GOING TO FALL IN LOVE IF YOU’RE LOOKING FOR A WEBSITE WITH INFINITE FUNCTIONALITY AND GROWTH POTENTIAL (this is what my website is built on).
✓ IDEAL FOR YOU IF: you’re relatively tech-savvy, somewhat comfortable with basic HTML coding, and you’re looking for some fairly advanced functionality (like a membership site, advanced e-commerce shop, and/or advanced SEO capabilities), and you want a website that will likely grow and evolve with you over many years.
✖ NOT GREAT FOR YOU IF: you’re unfamiliar with basic HTML, you want a website that is super simple and straight-forward, and/or you don’t need a bunch of fancy features.
$ MONTHLY FEE: FREE! WordPress.org is an open source platform so while WordPress itself IS free, you WILL need to pay for hosting and your domain (typically billed yearly).
A note on choosing a WordPress domain + host:
Unless my clients are coming to me with a domain and hosting provider already selected/purchased, I always recommend selecting a web host that offers a domain hosting in a convenient all in one package. This keeps it easy in the years to come when it’s time for your hosting and domains to renew and you can handle it all in one fell swoop. My favorite options for hosting are either Bluehost or GoDaddy depending on your preference. Both options are extremely user-friendly and affordable when it comes to their website interface and it just comes down to which one you prefer.
Both options offer:
- Managed security (hacking is common on WordPress if you don’t have someone watching your back)
- Your own private server (called “VPS,” no sharing your street with strangers!)
- Free SSL (https, which is super important — especially if you will be selling anything on your website)
- Nightly backups for peace of mind
- Automatic WordPress Updates (Because WordPress is open source, it is ALWAYS updating. Both Bluehost and GoDaddy experts will manage the updates for you, automatically)
- Monthly investment: Bluehost begins at $3.95/mo and GoDaddy begins at $8.99/mo typically billed annually
As an added bonus to WordPress – one of my all-time favorite themes to use is the Divi Theme by Elegant Themes. This user-friendly theme takes all of the struggles of coding your website out of the picture and instead replaces it with a super easy drag and drop page builder similar to what some of the other platforms offer. And as an additional bonus – Elegant Themes support is available via chat 24/7. You literally can’t beat that.
👉🏻 SQUARESPACE
YOU’RE GOING TO FALL IN LOVE IF YOU’RE LOOKING FOR AN “ALL-IN-ONE” WEBSITE THAT IS SUPER SIMPLE TO UPDATE AND MANAGE.
✓ IDEAL FOR YOU IF: you don’t want to mess around with coding/HTML to make basic updates, you want an “all-in-one” platform for your website, e-commerce store, and blog, you’re not super picky about the design as long as it looks professional, and/or you may want to switch up your template fairly frequently without having to start from scratch.
✖ NOT GREAT FOR YOU IF: you have a very specific vision for your website’s design/layout (Squarespace templates are very beautiful, but also very limiting), you have advanced needs for functionality/integration (such as a membership site or complex e-commerce store), and you want your website to make a super unique, “one in a million” visual impact.
$ MONTHLY FEE: Varies (currently starting at $12 per month). This includes your hosting, security, tech support, and unlimited storage. You’re paying for the convenience of an all-in-one system that is super intuitive and easy to manage.
👉🏻 SHOWIT
YOU’RE GOING TO FALL IN LOVE IF YOU’RE LOOKING FOR A WEBSITE WITH STUNNING VISUAL IMPACT THAT IS 100% UNIQUE TO YOU.
✓ IDEAL FOR YOU IF: you want to build an amazingly unique, show-stopping website that is 100% custom, you like to work with “what you see is what you get” website editors, you only need a few website pages (that look top-notch), and you’re interested in working on the WordPress blogging platform (they have a great integration!)
✖ NOT GREAT FOR YOU IF: you plan to add lots and lots of pages over time, you need advanced functionality (like a membership site, e-commerce store, etc), you like to swap out your website design a lot,
$ MONTHLY FEE: Varies (currently starting at $19 per month; $24 with a blog). This includes your hosting, security, tech support, and WordPress blogging integration (if selected). You’re paying for the power of a limitless design platform with amazing support.
👉🏻 SHOPIFY
YOU’RE GOING TO FALL IN LOVE IF YOU’RE LOOKING FOR A WEBSITE THAT OFFERS UNLIMITED ECOMMERCE CAPABILITIES AS WELL AS A BLOG.
✓ IDEAL FOR YOU IF: your main goal is to use your website to sell products, services, etc. and process payments, shipping and more through your website. Shopify truly is a platform that was built for ecommerce and makes it extremely easy to list your products and get to selling!
✖ NOT GREAT FOR YOU IF: you don’t plan on selling products or services through your website.
$ MONTHLY FEE: Plans start at $29.99 a month and they all include unlimited products, blog capabilities, and amazing discounts on shipping with most major shipping providers.
Now, back to you!
How are you feeling? More confident about your choices? Do you have any lingering questions? Feel free to drop me a line and schedule a clarity call with me and I can help answer any additional questions you may have!
And if you’re looking for help building the website of your dreams, I would love to chat! Learn more about my pricing and availability here.
DISCLAIMER: Many of these links are affiliate links, which means I may get a commission if you purchase. However, none of the fees of these resources have been increased to compensate me. In fact, many of the creators of these tools have given me special discounts that I get to extend to you! Please be aware that the opinions in this blog post are entirely my own and I only recommend products that I currently use or have used in the past.
