As the world gets more digital, having an online presence for your business has never been more important (or easier). We'll walk you through the best website builders for small businesses to help you do just that; use our comparison table to compare them, or keep reading for a more in-depth look.
A small business web design will aid in the promotion of your brand, as well as the acquisition of new customers. As the world becomes more digital, having an online presence for your company has never been more crucial.
However, because one size does not fit all, our in-depth reviews will show which small business website builder is best for you.
The Most Effective Builders for Small Business Website
1. Strikingly ($12/month) – Best free website builder for small businesses.
2. Wix ($14/month) – This platform is ideal for offering services.
3. Squarespace ($12/month) – This platform is ideal for building a brand.
4. Weebly ($6/month) is the best business website builder on a budget.
5. GoDaddy ($10/month) – Best for businesses that need to be online right away.
1. Strikingly
Image is taken from Strikingly user’s website
Strikingly is a free website builder for small business that focuses entirely on one-page web pages. It is not suitable for everyone. It is, nevertheless, a fantastic choice for the best small business website builder for small businesses, with a well-regarded support team and a thorough editor.
You may easily pick a style you want and update it with your own information because the templates are trendy and unique.
Specifications:
- Monthly cost: $12
- There is a free plan
- Excellent SEO
- Email marketing is available
- 4/5 for ease of use
- Support is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week via live chat
- Support via email and telephone (VIP users) and articles from the knowledge base are available
- Other features include: Custom domains, hosting, e-mail, pop-ups, newsletters, and more services are available.
Pros :
- Excellent SEO support and social media tools to help you rank effectively
- Ideal for folks who aren't tech-savvy
- Users' preferred platform with some of the best-curated template collections
- The opportunity to construct two websites on the cheapest package
- A helpful and responsive support team
Cons:
- Only one-page sites are allowed on the basic plan
2. Wix
Because of its affordable costs and user-friendly site builder, Wix draws small business website managers from a variety of industries and business models. Although it takes longer to establish a site than a prior business website builder, you can really go into the weeds of web design to create something genuinely distinctive.
Specifications:
- Monthly cost: $14
- The free plan is available
- Very Good Search Engine Optimization
- $9/month for email marketing
- 4/5 for ease of use
- Support: a help button, and a phone number to call (Monday -Thursday 5 am to 5 pm EST )
- Additional features include ADI, 500MB of storage, and 500MB of bandwidth.
Pros:
- 500+ templates in a variety of industries
Cons:
- You can't change your template; starting over with a fresh template is inconvenient.
- There is a steep learning curve
- To remove advertising, you must upgrade to a paid membership
- There is no "Live Chat" option
3. Squarespace
Squarespace is a close competitor to Wix, as both small business website design platforms target a similar market of flexible customization options and an easy-to-use editor. There is, however, a little yet the discernible difference between them: Although Squarespace's editor isn't quite as user-friendly as Wix's, the designs are slightly more polished, resulting in better graphics. Squarespace is now only a hair to the right of the convenience-customization specification.
Specifications:
- Monthly fee: $12
- There is no free plan
- Very Good Search Engine Optimization
- $5/month for email marketing
- 3.4/5 for ease of usage
- Monday through Friday, live chat is available
- 24/7 Email help is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week on Twitter
Pros:
- Excellent for online reservations
- Excellent blogging and social networking capabilities
Cons:
- It's a little more difficult to learn
- There is no phone support available (but there is LiveChat)
4. Weebly
Weebly is a middle-of-the-road eCommerce website builder for a small business website. We believed it would suit better here because, while it isn't expressly for eCommerce, it appears to be specialized to eCommerce customers. Weebly offers more design options than a standard business website builder, but not to the point where it becomes overwhelming.
Specifications:
- The cost is $6 each month
- Yes, there is a free plan
- Very Good Search Engine Optimization
- $8/month for email marketing
- 3.5/5 for ease of use
- Support tickets (available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week)
- Chat in real-time (available Monday through Friday from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. PST, Saturday and Sunday from 8 to 5 p.m. PST)
- Phone number (6 am-6 pm PST)
Pros:
- ADI's auto-generated design option It's simple to add custom code to your website. For site customization, there is a substantial app market.
Cons:
- A free domain is not included in the annual plans
- To remove adverts, you'll need to upgrade to a $12 plan
5. GoDaddy
Since the late 1990s, GoDaddy has been a household name in the internet services market, and its hosting and domain services have now extended to encompass small business website design and development. Users can customize an automatic site template depending on their industry and modify portions of the content as needed. It is, however, a step up in terms of customization, with more color and font options, but a step down in terms of free services.
Specifications:
- Monthly cost: $9.99
- NO, there is no free plan
- SEO: Excellent
- $6.99 for email marketing
- 3.8/5 for ease of usage
- Help is available via phone 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
- Chat in real-time (Monday to Friday, 5 am-6 pm PST)
- Help Forum Articles from the Knowledge Base
- Other features include: the quickest ADI construction
Pros:
- It's the simplest way to make a website
- It's perfect for non-techies
- It has good digital marketing tools
Cons:
- Doesn't provide for creative control
- Isn't ideal for larger businesses
Tips & Tricks for Maintaining a Small Business Website
If you're looking to build a new startup website or improve the effectiveness of your current one, here are 10 important steps to get you started and assist your small business's website in competing effectively in the internet market.
1. Put Quality Ahead of Quantity
In designing a small business website, quality takes precedence over quantity. To begin with, a small, high-quality website is far preferable to squandering your resources on a large site. It enables you to concentrate your time, energy, and resources on the most important components of your website, such as:
- Making the site mobile-friendly (responsive); and
- Offering a positive client experience
2. Make a Loud and Prominent Call to Action
Your website should be treated as if it were a salesperson, producing leads for your business. CTAs that provide an incentive for a potential lead to take the next step and buy what you're selling is the most effective.
You'll want to make sure your CTA is visible and leads to a manner for a lead to get in touch with you. These media could be a contact form, a phone number, or even an email address.
3. A Picture Speaks Louder Than a Thousand Words
A good small business website uses both content and media to communicate your company's story (such as photographs and video). An image may be significantly more effective than any words you might write in promoting your service.
With purchasing decisions, graphics can help sell your goods and may even be the reason a customer chooses your firm over a competitor's.
4. Become a Part of Your Customer's Mind
The most crucial question you may ask yourself while developing your websites for business is, "What information does the customer need while browsing this website?" This will give you an idea about how to lay the groundwork for your small business website.
5. Responsiveness on Mobile Devices and Quick Loading Times
You must ensure that the web design company you pick builds a mobile-responsive site that loads in less than three seconds. Although the user is accessing the same content, the device is much smaller and has limited access to high-speed internet, and mobile web watching is beginning to overtake desktop viewing. That means your website ought to fit their device's screen and load quickly, or they'll abandon it.
Small Business Website Created With Strikingly
Here are few websites created using Strikingly for your inspiration.
1. Startup Youth
Image is taken from Strikingly user’s website
2. System2coffee
Image is taken from Strikingly user’s website
3. Siamco
Image is taken from Strikingly user’s website
4. Localwander
Image is taken from Strikingly user’s website
5. KerrynGamble
Image is taken from Strikingly user’s website
Conclusion
You'll have to put in a lot of time and work if you're designing your own small business website. It is largely determined by the complexity of your site and your level of expertise.
Practically, all small business web designs need flexibility, control, and customization. As we all know, though, one size does not fit all. Do not overwhelm your company's website with things that will disadvantage you. It's vital that you weigh each of these factors differently depending on the demands of your firm.
Our suggestion has come to a close. Hopefully, this article has helped you choose the finest website builder for your small business.
