Jump Right In:
I’ve always had a fascination with designing websites. The first time I tried to design a website I was a freshman planning to be a doctor who wanted to create a blog about shoes. I remember trying out both Weebly and WordPress but gave up almost as quickly as I started. That following summer I successfully started a blog on Blogger (it was 2012) while interning in Dublin at the same time deciding to drop my lifelong plan to become a doctor.
My love of website design continued as I started my first startup after graduation and this time decided to build my website on Squarespace. Oh, how much easier it was to use than the previous tools that I had tried. I have a strong memory of sitting on my bed staring at my analytics feeling excited that we had an actual website to point people to.
Then, when we launched UnderBelly and we swapped platforms once again and made the move to Wix.
A lot has changed in the website world over the last 11 years. When we pivoted to UnderBelly Creative and knew we would be designing websites, we asked ourselves “What website builders are the best option for most of our clients?” This is a question we are still regularly researching to make sure we can point businesses in the right direction.
And in our humble opinion, for most businesses, the answer continues to be Wix.
When we’re talking about a website for a business, typically that website should be seen as a marketing and sales tool. It is a place that tells your story, shares your vision, explains your services, and sells your product. That’s it. And in a world where people see literally hundreds of websites a week, you also need your website to look good.
Customization
Wix allows for some of the most customizations when it comes to design, formatting, fonts, colors, you name it and for most needs, there is no coding required. This means we are able to easily upload our clients fonts, HEX codes, videos, photos, podcasts, etc, and use them as needed.
Wix also has a massive built-in library of icons, illustrations, elements, and more to make adding extra bits of detail that much easier. At the end of the day, most elements within Wix are customizable which is a wonderland as a designer but can be overwhelming if you’re not building websites every day.
Lastly, Wix makes it possible to edit the mobile version of your website separately from the desktop version. This means you can remove website elements that may be unnecessary on mobile but still have them on the desktop version.
SEO
Wix has been doubling down on their SEO tools as of late which is amazing as a website owner. Within Wix, they have made it incredibly easy and user-friendly to track all website engagement and page analytics.
Semrush:
Gain access to detailed SEO recommendations and checklists.
Get specific tips on how to improve your SEO ratings
Manage all your keywords in one place and understand how competitive each one is.
Google Search Console:
Now you can access your Google Search Console within your Wix Dashboard!
See where and when and how people are coming to your website.
Track your Site performance including impressions, clicks, popular pages, and queries.
User-Friendliness
One of the reasons that attracted us to Wix in the first place was how user-friendly the web builder is. And as the years have gone by, it’s only gotten better and better.
The Blog: The Wix blog builder is easily the easiest blogging tool we’ve found. It is incredibly simple to write and format each blog post. You are able to manage the SEO and meta-data all in one place. You can add and format videos, images, and GIFs and easily link to relevant posts while categories allow you to interconnect your blog throughout your website.
Drag & Drop: We’ve talked a bit about this above, but the drag & drop design of Wix means you can easily swap out photos, change headlines, add new products, and update blogs, all with just a little bit of training.
All-in-one: Wix is constantly adding new features and tools to its dashboard. What that means is more and more, you’re able to run your digital business all in one space with Wix. You can track your SEO and analytics, write your blog, and manage your e-commerce, your scheduling, and your digital marketing all without leaving the site. Sure there are more powerful tools in each one of these categories but having a base option within Wix is amazing.
Wix Resources: Holy moly has Wix invested in educational resources. They have blogs, forums, tutorials, and webinars on nearly every topic you could think of. And they are formatted in a way that is actually digestible and engaging.
Agency Focused
Something that we love about Wix is the fact they have designed Wix for agencies and designers to build for clients. This has resulted in a couple of really great tools.
We are able to build a website within our account and easily transfer it to our clients without them having to put in a credit card.
We can stay on as a “Website Manager” for any client who wishes which allows us to make edits even after we transfer the site. There is no need to share passwords.
During projects, we can share a specific “Feedback Link” where clients can type feedback directly on top of the site without fear of messing up the website or having to have a Google Doc filled with random edits. (This can be glitchy but it is relatively new so we aren’t complaining yet)
In future posts, we’ll break down the pros and cons of some of the other builders and why at the end of the day, we still recommend Wix for most of our clients and love using it for our own website.
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Needing a new website? We'd love to chat and learn more about you and your business! Schedule a discovery meeting or contact us at hello@underbelly.io.
About The Author
Olivia Wisden is the Founder + CEO of UnderBelly Creative. She has worked with dozens of brands over the years ranging from city initiatives to product launches and beyond. When she’s not fan-girling over the design team’s illustrations she can probably be found reading a novel or attending a boxing class.