Let’s assume that you have decided to make a new website. Whether it be your first website online or replacing an old one, both need to meet two criteria. The first is to obviously fulfill the requirements of your business. This can include having an e-commerce store, having contact forms and phone numbers to get leads, and of course descriptions and pictures illustrating what your service is. However, this is often placed in the forefront, and leaving the second criteria, good SEO implementation, on the backburner. This is a mistake that can be difficult to correct, as it is always better to have SEO on your mind right from the onset as opposed to implementing it later.
Now unless you are a professional coder, chances are you will be building your website with either a CMS(content management system) or a website builder. Both have their strengths and weaknesses, and both have built-in SEO capability. But which one is right for you?
Website Builder
First, we’ll take a look at the website builder, which if you are a complete beginner to building and running a website, is probably the best choice for you. Website builders tend to use a “drag and drop” system that is very user-friendly, enabling you to shape the general look of your site with ease. Furthermore, they tend to be cheaper to run, and have built-in functions that make basic SEO actions, such as creating page titles and meta descriptions, an easy task.
That being said, it isn’t without its drawbacks. Probably the biggest one is that there is a large limitation to their capabilities. Outside of basics like texts, media, and some plugins, more sophisticated elements will be harder to implement. For example, a simple e-commerce set up involving listings for products and a shopping cart is easy (eg. Shopify), but a more customized account setup involving numerous promotions and email integrations will be a lot more difficult. Take into account the requirements of your site, and whether a website builder can meet them. Other drawbacks include limitations on page size and poor URL structures.
Content Management System
CMS is perfect for those who have a more complex site to manage, as they usually perform much better at handling a larger amount of data. They also tend to have far more capabilities and are more flexible in the realms of SEO and plugins, allowing you to implement far more, and have freedom over the intricacies of your site. The most popular example of this would probably be WordPress, which is the CMS of choice by us over at Boston Web Marketing. Through its usage by our experienced SEO specialists, we can whole-heartedly vouch for its ability to perform. We regularly create high-ranking sites through it, so if you feel like you can benefit from our expertise, please let us know.
Amidst all of its benefits, it does have a weakness in regards to security. With many of them having open-source formatting, it is easier for hackers to enter these sites and steal data. For that reason, larger companies tend to opt for custom-built websites or purely coded websites.
Ultimately, when it comes to choosing between the two, it comes down to three things: budget, level of expertise, and purpose. Depending on these factors one or the other may be better for you. If you want to reap the benefits of having a CMS website without the hassle of figuring out how to manage it, our team over at Boston Web Marketing will be more than happy to build and manage a custom-built website made just for you. From handling all aspects of SEO, to promoting the site through PPC, we are dedicated towards meeting your online needs. Contact us at 857-526-0096, or submit an inquiry form. We’d love to work with you!