Today, most companies need a website to gain visibility or simply to do business, but few have the necessary coding skills or the financial means to hire a developer. Fortunately, you don't have to know how to code to be able to create a high-quality, customized site. You can use a website builder or a CMS (Content Management System). Both solutions will enable you to create a website that meets your expectations. To help you choose the method best suited to your current and future needs and budget, we've put together a comparison of the two methods.
Website builders
They use proprietary tools that operate only on their hosting platform. In general, they offer "all-in-one" solutions that free you from many constraints. This solution is easy to use, and doesn't require you to spend too much time creating a site tailored to your field of activity.
Website builders are particularly recommended for small businesses (micro-entrepreneurs, sole traders, VSEs...). They are well suited to freelancers (graphic designers, photographers, web copywriters...) who need to create a portfolio to showcase their expertise and credentials to potential customers. Finally, they are ideally suited to online sales, as some manufacturers offer an integrated e-commerce solution.
What are the advantages of site builders?
Apart from the fact that they allow you to create your site without coding, they bring you :
- a wide range of ready-to-use templates created by professional designers, which you can customize to suit your business sector;
- the ability to insert photos and videos with ease;
- form creation ;
- a complete service including hosting, domain name and e-mail account;
- regular updating and maintenance of your site, so you can be sure it's always secure;
- significant time savings, since you start creating your site with pre-designed elements, and all that's left to do is incorporate your content;
- control your expenses, as most site builders offer you several types of package with free options that you can upgrade later.
What are the disadvantages of site builders?
The trade-off for the ease of use and the ability to create a site in just a few hours is that :
- you have no access to the server;
- you are not the owner of your ;
- you'll have to convert your site if you want to change hosting platforms, which can be costly and complicated, if not impossible to implement;
- customization options are much more limited than with a CMS.
CMS (Content Management System)
A CMS is software that lets you create, store and manage content, with control over most of the elements. A CMS is open source, so you can make all the changes you want, should you decide to learn how to code afterwards.
CMS are suitable for all categories of users, but they are particularly well suited to companies with high content requirements.
The advantages of CMS
They are suitable for beginners who want to create their own site without any coding, as well as for advanced users who want to customize their site in a more sophisticated way. They offer the following main functions:
- the ability to choose an existing free or Premium theme, but also to design your own layout with a drag-and-drop page builder ;
- the presence of a large number of themes and add-ons ;
- the possibility of changing theme while keeping the content already in place;
- free choice of hosting platform and the freedom to change it without difficulty;
- the ability to customize your site without coding, thanks to numerous plugins;
- a cost that can be adjusted according to the features you need.
CMS disadvantages
Unlike site builders who offer you "all-in-one" solutions, with a CMS, certain tasks remain your sole responsibility. For example :
- you need to find a hosting platform, take care of your site's maintenance and backups, manage your site's security... or entrust these tasks to a professional;
- you'll often need to spend more time getting to grips with the interface than you would with a site builder, as some CMS are not intuitive;
- it sometimes happens that the plugins you add over time present compatibility problems.