Gone are the days when you thought owning a website is an expensive investment that your small business cannot afford. With the rise of website builders, it is possible to build your own website free of charge and with little to no coding required. Even startups and small businesses with limited marketing budgets can take advantage of the brand building potential that a site can bring.
But we have to admit, there is still much apprehension over having to build your own website free. In the past, using these one and done platforms run the risk of ending up with a site that often left much to be desired. Let’s explore some of the most common misconceptions about using website builders to build your own website for free.
1. Websites created from these platforms look cheap and unprofessional
Website builders enable users to create one and done websites. All you need to do is select a website template, add in your content and you’re basically done. When you do it this way, there is a tendency for the site to look ugly and incoherent.
Modern site builders such as Strikingly allow you to build your own web site for free with minimal effort but you still end up with a functional site. Now, of course you still need to devote some time on your site to make it look unique. Even a platform as advanced as Strikingly can only get you started with a template. Play around with the different design elements and settings to get a full-featured site that looks like it was professionally built.
2. A website should be professionally done to make it successful
This is true for the most part. Building your website through a site builder takes away the need to code your site from the ground up. But the framework is just one part of the website building process. You’re going to need great content to attract visitors. If you have the knack for writing engaging copy, then you have this covered. If not, there’s value in outsourcing the website copywriting work to someone else.
3. A DIY website has a low chance of ranking on Google
The program that was used to build a website does not have any bearing on the site’s rank. It’s not considered a ranking factor, nor will it influence your ranking signals. But the choice of template and the site’s overall performance would have some say on how Google sees your site. Strikingly’s web templates are all mobile responsive and are not weighed down by unnecessary script so they load quickly and render well on all devices.
One of the things that you learn about how to build your own website for free is the importance of a strong SEO strategy in building online presence. To make sure your website ranks well on Google searches, optimize your content. Complete your site metadata information and add alt tags on your images. Build links with relevant websites.
4. Successful websites are built by professional web developers
A lot of factors contribute to the success of a website: engaging content, positive user experience, SEO, digital marketing strategy, etc. Even website templates are professionally-designed so if you go by the argument that you require a professionally built site to be successful, your DIY site is already set up for success.
However, it doesn’t make sense to rely on a single factor to ensure success. You need to work on other things to make your brand visible on the internet. Your website depends on a strong digital marketing strategy to back it up.
