Nowadays, if you want to build your own website, you don’t need to have prior training in web design and development to make this possible. It’s no longer a requirement that you have a significant amount of money to invest in professional services. Website builders have lowered the barrier to entry for aspiring entrepreneurs, bloggers, and small businesses looking to build a web presence through professional looking websites. And in the world of website builders, apart from Strikingly, you might have encountered a few other big names including Weebly.
Here at Strikingly, we believe that every website building tool that you find on the internet serves a specific need. We don’t claim to be a one size fits all solution but our team is always on the lookout for new design trends, web development techniques and user experience ideas to explore for our growing number of users. Our platform is a constant work in progress so we continue to roll out new features to address different website challenges.
In this article, we will look at how Strikingly compares to another well-known website building platform: Weebly, to help you make an informed decision.
In a nutshell:
Strikingly is a multi-faceted website builder that offers great value for money due to its ease of use and affordable startup options. The service is great for beginners who are looking to dip their toes into the world of website design, providing access to a wide range of features including eCommerce without committing to the paid service.
Weebly is another user-friendly website builder whose strengths lie in creating blogs and personal websites. It has recently branched out to eCommerce solutions but you will need to sign up for one of the paid Weebly plans to be able to access this feature and other more advanced services. It is good for users with a solid background in code editing to be able to maximize its web design features.
Ease of Use
Strikingly: Well-structured drag-and-drop editor. Option to edit CSS style code for the Header and Footer section.
Weebly: Expect to spend a bit of time learning how to edit HTML and CSS if you’re looking to customize further.
Templates
Strikingly: Responsive.
Weebly: Responsive.
eCommerce
Strikingly: Available for free accounts.
Weebly: Available under the Business Plan
Customer Support
Strikingly: Email, chat, phone, Knowledge Base and Community Forum.
Weebly: Email, chat, phone and Knowledge Base.
Best For
Strikingly: Beginners, aspiring entrepreneurs, and content creators.
Weebly: Beginner to intermediate users with web design experience.
Let's dive into more detail about what these two website builders have to offer.
Ease of Use
Strikingly is well known for its simple and user friendly interface. The easy-to-navigate platform does not require advanced technical skills and web design background making it a great tool for people who are just starting out. It features in-line editing and a WYSIWYG customization experience so to make it easy for you to visualize what your website will look like as you create it. The intuitive editor simplifies the web development process, providing you with a quick tour as soon as you land on the dashboard for the first time.
Weebly also boasts of a solid drag-and-drop editor that is great for beginners. The website editor is intuitive and easy to use. You can add different website elements, content and manage web pages with ease. Expect a relatively steeper learning curve especially if you want to explore the HTML and CSS editing feature of the site builder.
Template Selection
Both Strikingly and Weebly feature stylish and responsive templates, making it easy to create screen adaptive websites. Strikingly features a mobile view that allows you to see what your site will look like on a smaller screen size to further adapt your content as you build your page.
Having been around for longer, one will find a bigger selection of Weebly templates compared to Strikingly. However, in terms of versatility, the growing library of Strikingly templates remains at par with the best platforms in the industry. One key difference is that the latter offers the entire theme selection even to free accounts to give users - both paid and free - the ability to design their websites without too much limitation.
eCommerce Features
With online stores starting to dominate the retail industry, many aspiring entrepreneurs are looking for more cost-effective ways to sell online. Both Weebly and Strikingly feature built-in ecommerce functionality with a straightforward setup process. However, while the former offers shopping cart features on its paid Weebly plans, Strikingly opens access to its Simple Store feature to free accounts. This allows you to start a single-product business to test the waters until you can upgrade to a multi-category shop later on.
Pricing
When you’re just starting out, you want to get the most out of your investment. Strikingly offers greater value for money because it makes it possible for everyone to build full-featured websites without the extra expense. Once your online venture takes off, you can upgrade to the Pro plans as your business grows.
Weebly plans start at $5 per month if you want to simply connect a personalized domain to your website. To build an online store, you will need to upgrade to a Business plan priced at $25 per month. This gives you access to the entire ecommerce solution that the platform offers. Meanwhile Strikingly plans start at $8 per month allowing you to create up to 2 websites with their own custom domain - a good value especially for brands looking to create microsites for content marketing purposes. For the same price, you can also upgrade to a 5-product store per website.
In terms of value for money, Strikingly offers a more cost-efficient solution for small businesses and startups.
Customer Support
Building a website on your own means you get full control of the design and content - and while this is all well and good, you may find it a challenge as well especially if you start getting stuck in the middle of development. A good website builder should be able to offer reliable support to help you resolve issues that you might encounter while setting up your site.
Both Weebly and Strikingly feature sufficient support options in the form of live chats, email and phone. If you like finding things out on your own, each platform has a Knowledge Base that covers some of the most common concerns that users might encounter while building their websites. With Strikingly, however, you have the added option of interacting with other users through a community forum. The platform also welcomes suggestions for additional features from users so feel free to drop them a note if there is a feature or functionality that can further enhance the service.
The Strong Winner
It goes without saying that we would recommend Strikingly as a solid start to your website project. However, as we have emphasized previously, each website builder satisfies a particular need and a one-size fits all solution, while ideal, may not be practical. At the end of the day, it is up to you and your level of comfort around website building platforms that will decide between Strikingly and Weebly.
Try Strikingly for free and discover new possibilities for building awesome websites.
