More reasons why we use Wix…
If you’ve read our previous article, you may understand why Wix is our go-to platform. Here are even more elements Wix offers that we believe deliver clear benefits to our business and those of our clients.
Wix finance
As Wix is the second largest website platform in the world, you would expect their back end system to integrate with most financial systems—thankfully, it does. We use Quickbooks; for one of our companies (ITKmagazine) we run all the invoices through the back end of the Wix website. Once you’ve done your first invoice you’ll see how easy it is to use. I wouldn't be shocked if Wix eventually became a full financial system on the back end of your site, that you can use for all of your bookkeeping. For now, it’s great for recording stock, sales and invoices, which are all aspects included within their e-commerce package.
Add-on apps
Also known as widgets, if you’re a WordPress user. I compare WordPress and Wix as I would android and Apple. WordPress is very much like android, whereas Wix is like Apple. For the purpose of putting apps onto a website, I want to make sure each one is completely safe and won't come back to haunt me. Thankfully, Wix ensures that all their apps are safe—they might not all work the way they say they will (we've all downloaded those kinds of apps before), but at least you won't be hacked through them.
Wix may not have as big a range of apps as WordPress; however, we’ve never had a problem finding the functionality we need for a client.
Wix analytics
The best free analytics platform is Google and I highly recommend everyone embeds it into their website (which, through Wix, takes a few clicks of a button); however, the analytics on Wix are pretty damn good and tell you what you need to know, in terms of where your clients are coming from, where they are on the site when they leave, and the overall time spent on your website, etc. For most people, this is more than enough information to check how well their website is working.
The price
When people first look at the price of Wix for the year they think, ‘God, that’s expensive’. If you’re used to paying pennies for your hosting, on a server stored in someone’s garage, then it is. But when you start looking into everything you get for the price, suddenly, it doesn’t seem that expensive.
For a simple non-ecommerce website, you’d spend around £120 inc. VAT with Wix (if you look around, you may be able to find a half-price voucher for the first year), which equates to £10 per month.
That £10 per month gives you access to the majority of Wix tools (excluding the e-commerce features), which, in itself, is worth it. It gives you an SSL certificate for the year, it gives you storage space and unlimited bandwidth, and so much more.
But the big thing is, you will be using Wix’s servers. We have never (touch wood) had a server-related problem with a client’s website; we’ve never had a client’s website hacked (touch wood again); and by using their servers, we’ve noticed an increase in site speed. Regarding our larger clients, we’ve not had an issue with the amount of people being on the site at once, either.
SEO
Wix and Google must go out drinking together, because in terms of SEO—especially on page SEO—we really enjoy using Wix. For those of you who just want to make sure your website is indexed correctly on Google and that your basic SEO is covered, Wix has its very own SEO wizard that will guide you through the process one webpage at a time.
Mobile optimisation
Mobile optimisation for websites is a necessity. With Wix you’re able to make your mobile site look and feel as good as your desktop site with just a few clicks (especially if you have a basic website where you’ve followed one of their templates). Wix will convert the majority of your site to mobile. It’s your job to make sure everything is aligned correctly and to eliminate anything you don't think is needed, however, as phone screens are a lot smaller than monitors.
Not only does it allow you to optimise mobile easily, Wix sites are completely responsive to screen size, and will adjust your site to any screen size used to access it. When we build a website we normally use 3 - 5 different screen sizes (depending on budget) to ensure that, no matter which device you use, your website will always look its best.
Wix automation and workflow
For those of you looking to set up basic automation (email triggers) Wix has this covered; it will teach you how to do them. As long as you don't mind paying an extra tenner a month, you will have access to ‘Ascend’, which is the advanced marketing arm of Wix that can help you create trigger campaigns, emails, social media posts and videos. So, if you need an extra hand with your marketing, check out the Wix Ascend package, as it may give you the tools you need.
You may think that, given we’re a Wix partner, we’re biased. Like most things, it has its issues, but on the whole, the reason why we use and promote it is because the user interface is incredibly easy to use. We don't want our clients to have to ring us to change a couple of words on their website or to add a blog because they find it too complicated. Plus, as we’re beta testers, we have access to the coding section of the site; we have the freedom to do whatever we like with websites and not be constrained by templates. With the introduction of Editor X, this is more capability to create than ever before.
For the vast majority of our clients who are just after an attractive, functional, effective website that’s easy to maintain, we will always use Wix until a better platform comes along.
It’s free to create a basic website, so go on, have a play around and see for yourself how easy it is to use.
For some reason, Wix has always received a bad rap. Five years ago, we wouldn’t have contemplated using Wix, but in our opinion, for the clients we work with, it’s by far the best platform for them.
This is not an exhaustive list; however, just over the course of our two articles, featuring what we perceive as the main benefits to using Wix, there is plenty to both admire and utilise. Wordpress, whilst good in its heyday, has become clunky and limiting to anyone other than web developers. Wix is absolutely a viable alternative.
If you think that implementing a Wix site would be a good move for your business and would like help with its design and augmentation, contact Novus Marketing Solutions on 07983 575934 or email info@novusmarketingsolutions.co.uk.
